Answer These 5 Questions Before Buying A Home
Rather than beating around the bush and creating a background for myself, let me catch the bull straight by the horns. Here then are 5 questions you must ask yourself before commencing your “dream home” project. Here I will focus on the first home buyers and owner-occupiers.
5 questions to answer before buying a home
Q1 # What is your vision?
What kind of home do you want to live in? Are you biased towards open floor plan or are you from the traditional “I want a separate dining hall” school. Would you want your home to be close to amenities and transport or would you be happy with a quiet pastoral cottage setting of the suburbia? Only after figuring this out should you go ahead with home-hunting.
Q2 # Do you have children?
Do you have a child or children at home? In these cases, you may want to live in apartment units that have less strict Strata Bylaws for pets and children. In addition, the very same apartments must meet with the sternest safety guidelines, including retrofit flyscreens and grilles for the windows and balconies.
Q3 # What’s your budget like?
Never venture out for something which is out of your budget while buying home. It will cramp you in ways more than one. So ask yourself how much are you willing to pay each month as part of your mortgage liability? Remember you are not buying a home that you can rent out and create a positive cash flow from. It is a home you are going to live in so it is crucial to figure out how much can you spare each month (month after month).
Q4 # What’s your savings like?
Despite government grants and FHB savings account scheme, the first home buyers find the initial upfront deposit a hard nut to crack. And we don’t live in Canada where you can merrily use your Superannuation kitty to manage the upfront money. This is why you have also got to ask yourself if you are good with the upfront and whether the deposit will encroach upon your contingency fund.
Q5 # Which professional help are you enlisting?
What kind of professionals are you going to employ while buying home. I have seen vendors coming up with delinquent contracts of sales which are ignorantly signed by the buyers. Wouldn’t have happened this way had there been a conveyancer working on your behalf. Similarly, I have known people paying far more for a house than the piece deserved; one reason why you should not put your foot in the property market without a buyer’s agent on your side.
If you are looking for a seasoned buyer’s agent who can keep emotions of home buying at bay and look rationally at the picture which suits you the best, feel free to get in touch with me.
