Warning for first time buyers! Don’t bid until you’ve done these three things
If you’re buying your first home or helping a family member enter the property market, make sure you’re ‘bid ready’ by doing the following before raising a bidder paddle or making an offer.
Three things every aspiring first home buyer needs to do before entering the property market.
1. Take emotion out of estimating what a property is worth
Despite a house or apartment being an inanimate object, you can get quite swept up in the emotion of choice. How often do we hear, “I just fell in love with the place.” This thinking can lead to overpaying. Plus, when you combine attending a ton of open homes, searching online through various suburbs and adding auction dates into your calendar, house hunting can soon feel overwhelming. Sometimes it’s good to have an objective third party give you insights and information that helps make the decision more clear cut. I can look objectively at the real estate data and tell you about the recent sale prices in comparable properties, and what you can expect to pay to secure the winning bid.
2. Know your limits
Your ‘borrowing capacity’ is the term we use to advise how much you can comfortably repay. It not only helps you budget, it can be key to finding the suburbs you can afford to buy in. You might want to live in suburb X, but you can buy a bigger place in suburb Y for the same amount. Getting a formal pre-approval is a crucial part of being in the best position to buy. It’s not only a green light to spend the money you’re borrowing, it also gives you confidence that when you make an offer on a property you’ll be able to see it through and not be so swamped with repayments that you can’t afford to do anything enjoyable for the next 30 years!
3. Selecting the right home loan
When you know how much you can spend, you need to find a home loan that’s right for you. While a competitive rate is important, lending criteria and loan features are also key to getting the right overall package. I can help you wade through various loan features, such as offset accounts or lump sum repayments and help you calculate what your deposit and income allows you to borrow and how it might vary between lenders. I can also let you know if you are eligible for a HomeStart Grant and help you access your KiwiSaver. I can lay out each options strengths and weaknesses, so you can compare apples with apples. Otherwise, it’s a maze out there!
I can help you achieve these three steps. I'll guide you through the process, answering all of your questions, so you can be confident to enter the competitive buying market.
