Not everyone will have the luxury of owning a vacation home, and it takes a good investment to have one. It can be a great thing to own, but for some people, a timeshare is a cheaper and better option. If you’ve been thinking about buying a vacation home, here are some things you should consider in order to determine if it’s the right option for you at this time.

Where Are You Getting The Money?

Do you have the money saved up to purchase a vacation home? Depending on where you want the home to be, there may be quite a cost to ownership. Most people want someplace in a warm climate, possibly on a beach (beachfront property is more expensive than the stuff not on the beach).

So, if you’re thinking of buying a property somewhere in Orange County, California (or any beach side town), you might have to be prepared to bear a significant buying price for the property, and not to mention the closing costs (https://beachcoast.com/coastal-orange-county-closing-costs/) involved. Not that this should deter you. In fact, spending a little extra on a beachfront property should prove to be worth it, especially if you’ve been dreaming about living by the ocean since forever.

You could take a second mortgage out on your current home to use to put toward your vacation home. Once you have the money you can start looking into homes in the area you desire to vacation.

Are You Still Working?

You might want to purchase your vacation home while you still have a steady income coming in. You can use that money to have the place paid off by the time you retire. And, at that point, you might just want to move to your vacation home and sell your other house.

If you are still working you might not get as much use out of your vacation place as you’d like. You could make some money toward the bills on your vacation home by renting it out during the off-season or during the times you just can’t use it.

Can You Afford The Travel And Extra Bills?

If you can’t afford to visit your vacation home or pay the bills there while you’re not there (don’t forget, that’s a second property tax you’ll have to deal with), then you shouldn’t be getting one yet. Instead, start saving up to get one in the future.

Again, if you can rent it out when you’re not using it you may have the extra money to cover these things (and you could require off-season renters pay their own utilities).

Where Do You Want To Buy?

Once you have the money or know where you are going to get it from, it’s time to determine where you want to purchase a home. Take a look at states that interest you, followed by the current housing rates and housing situation there.

You may want to talk to a realtor to help you out, and you’re going to want to travel to your chosen destination to actually look at houses. It can be dangerous to buy a place sight-unseen. Even pictures shouldn’t be trusted as much as your own two eyes!