Are you planning to buy your first home? It’s not as scary as the Nay Sayers claim!
Please contact Naomi for help, it is a good thing to have a wise head on your side, and one who has helped many others that have been in your shoes over the years.
How is your finance? This is the first thing you must know. How much can you borrow, what is your budget, how is your deposit situated……this will ultimately dictate what you can and can’t buy. Each bank or lender will have different requirements and conditions. For example, some lenders require proof of a longer savings history than others. Your lender will give you a pre-approval amount to work with.
The Government offers a range of benefits to support first home buyers. This includes grants, concessions and tax exemptions. Make sure you check RevenueSA to see what you are entitled to. Tip: The more deposit you have, the greater your choice of lenders and products.
There are also extra costs involved with buying a home that your lender will take into consideration:
- Conveyancing and Legal Transfer of the house to your name
- Stamp Duty must be paid to the government; but as a first home buyer you may have concessions on this.
- Mortgage application fees
- Transfer fees
- Registration fees
- Mortgage insurance fees.
- Property Insurance
- Encumbrance registrations.
- Building and Pest Inspection is certainly recommended to be included in the sales contract.
Consider the location of your new home to be:
- Are friends and family nearby?
- What are the neighbours like?
- Are their gardens clean and tidy?
- Is the street busy?
- Can you park?
- Is it noisy?
- Are there any likely hazards like floods or fires?
You can never do enough research. If you are unsure, drive past at different times of the day or night.
Think of the future:
- Are you buying a house in a poor condition, but it is a growth area, or popular area?
- Is the property Torrens Titled, Strata or Community Titled? If the latter two, you should be given 2 years of the last committee minutes. Pets are often not allowed in strata groups. Make sure the group is the right fit for you!
- Are their schools, shopping centres, transport options nearby?
You can NEVER do enough research when buying a home.