Gonna buy a house, what should I look for?

Hello, I am currently looking for a house to buy. I am planning on building a studio in the basement (or some other area of the house). My question is what should I be looking for? How much space, etc.. What are questions I should ask. What should set off red lights, etc... I plan on adding walls, etc... to make it as good of a studio as possible. What I want to do is eventually be able to record bands, produce radio ads, etc... So, I should be able to fit a good amount of musicians in the mic rooms.. well, maybe 4-5 + vocalist + drums. From what I know (which isn't a lot) I should have a main mic room, a vocal room, and a drum room. Any suggestions? Also, I'm guessing books and other resources are listed in the forums already. I'll try doing some more searches now. Any comments / suggestions are welcome. Thanks, carl

What you have spec'd out is a good idea. Just look for a house that gives you as much basement room as possible (if that is where you plan to locate your studio) The house my wife and I are moving into later this year has a nice area that allows us to build a 13 x21' studio (small but workable for our needs as we dont plan to record a band in our home just pieces at a time. if we did keys, bass and Gtr can live in the control room. See if the builder (if you are building) will allow you to relocate the furnace to a wall and not in the center (if that is how they plan it) But you have the right ideas. a 20x 20 space would be great for whatever you plan to build. With that space you can do the Corner Studio with the vocal booth to one side, drum booth to the other side and main mic room in the center. Bryan Giles

I'm in a similar boat but I'd rather be outside of the house - what should I be looking for as far as shops/barns/outbuildings? I am also starting to think that I might settle for a basement. I just don't believe that it's possible to have a loud drummer down there that is inaudible (or close to that) upstairs. Maybe I'm wrong?

Make sure the ceiling is done properly and the floor above it is not leaking sound through the floorboards, (meaning it is sealed like it should be) and yeah you will barely know a Drummer is in there. Bryan Giles

What are optimal dimensions for each mic room? Also, is it true what I heard about it being best not to have parallel walls in the mic room?

Best not to have parallel walls in any of the rooms. Bryan Giles