Once every member of the family has put in a vote for needs and wants you can combine the lists into a single one that indicates what your minimum requirements for a home are (needs) and what extras you would like (wants).
This is not an easy process even if your family consists of only two people. We all have an idea of what is really, really important to us in a home. That really, really important thing may be down at the bottom of everyone else’s list or may be the most expensive item on the list. That is why you and every member of your family need to write down what you each want and, most importantly, rank the items.
Each item on everyone’s list needs to be looked at and discussed. The biggest effort here is to compromise. Something that is ranked as a want today may be moved up to a need when the family looks for its next home. The majority of Americans do not buy just one home in their lifetime. We are a society that moves up to that dream home about every 8.5 years.
