Location, type of home and budget are three equally important factors to take into account when selecting a second-hand house because they are scattered in many spots all over the city. If a person really wants to stay in one specific location, he should look around at what is available in that area before making a joint decision with family members. Investing in a house is often the largest investment one makes in his or her life. Therefore, consultation among family members is needed for the sake of the happiness.

While searching for potential houses, one should search for those available in the preferred location within a targeted budget or use a broker to narrow down interesting choices. A big family may opt to buy a two-storey single house while a smaller family may choose only a townhouse.

When choosing a home location, the prospective buyer should consider total monthly expenses to be incurred by adding up all necessary expenses including transport to the workplace and children's school with the estimated monthly instalments

Many people may want to live in a house close to the entry of a soi or on a main road for the purposes of convenience but they need to consider the trade off with the likelihood of constant noise due to traffic.

Once making a decision using the three factors, one should visit the potential new house during the day as well as at night. Some places may be lovely in the daytime but the location may be too dark at night with no street lights in the area.

Visiting a likely new house purchase is the most important thing to do before committing a deposit. When paying a visit, one must closely examine the structure to determine whether it is in good condition. If the structure is weak, the house could easily collapse.

"Cracks or leaks could easily be repaired but the structure is very difficult to get back in good condition," said Wongjan Nankongsak, general manager at Home Maintenance Co.

One should look at all rooms in the house and see if there are cracks and leaks as well as the overall condition. Also, homebuyers should look at all design choices to see which ones match their needs. Houses constructed in the past few years tend to have better designed spaces for modern appliances than those built more than a decade ago.

The house's colour is not a significant issue as buyers can easily change it to their preferred shade at little cost.

Buyers should also look out for pests and insects, particularly termites. One should not buy a house severely damaged by termites.

One should also talk with neighbours to get information about the surrounding environment, particularly about the risk of being robbed. While getting to know the neighbours, one would have a chance to see who will be living next door.

Another thing that should not be forgotten is to get information from the district office about possible road expansion plans, to make sure the house is not in an area that may be expropriated in the future. One should be sceptical about a house offered at an unusually low price as there might be an outstanding issue involving land expropriation.