Buying Hints and Tips - Nerang First National Real Estate

Buying Hints and Tips

We have collected a heap of Buyers Hints that may assist you in finding and settling on your dream property with as little trouble as possible. Purchasing a home is for most of us the biggest decision we will make in our lives, and for some it can be a very stressful time.  Read a little and check out our Frequently asked Questions (FAQ) section as well as the handy tables at the bottom.

With over 30% of our listings sold in the first week before they make it to the web, window display or any form of advertising, the only way to find out about these properties is by speaking with a Salesperson and registering your requirements. 

First Things First - What kind of home do you want?

The first step is to decide what kind of home will suit your tastes and your lifestyle.

You Must Establish Family Priorities

Start an all-family member housing priority discussion before beginning to look at your options.

Begin with a realistic family requirements 'must list'. Include every member of the family in the discussion, especially the kids. Anticipate potential changes in your family's lifestyle and size, children, grandparents moving in, job changes and these days, the growing trend towards working from home.

What location will be convenient for all family members?

Home purchases are too often based on the type of house without sufficient thought about schools, shops or extracurricular activities important to all household members. If there is more than one wage earner, think about the convenience and cost of both commuting to work.

• Do you need to make special considerations for books, collections, art, clothes, seasonal storage, sports, games, hobbies and valuables.
• Establish the price range you can afford to consider.
• How long do you expect to live in the home. If it's only for a short time, resale value may be of paramount importance.

Next define individual priorities

• What are the privacy and needs of each family member?

• Do some children or family members enjoy sports, hobbies, activities that require allocated space inside or outside the home?

• Anticipate the inevitable, short-term changing needs of your family. Keep in mind that the space needs of children change dramatically as children mature. Privacy and their own space become a priority especially during high school years. Are your leisure activities based away from or around the home?

Why consider a house that requires time, expense and effort to maintain if most of your free time is spent away from the home and/or time and money to do both are not available?

What can you afford?

Before you actively begin to look for a home, there's one more very important thing you need to determine - what you can comfortably afford to pay for your new home.

A lending institution will apply a Qualifying Ratio, the percentage of a home buyer's gross income that can prudently be allotted for debt, based on your income or incomes.

The most commonly used rule of thumb is 28% or 36%, which limits the sum of monthly mortgage principle, interest, tax and insurance payments (PM) to 28% of the home owner's gross monthly income and further limits the total of all long-term debt payments to 36%.

Even before you start looking at homes, First National can help by assisting you to determine both your priorities and your potential price range. They can also assist with First National Home Loans.

Because finance is drawn from a number of banks and lending institutions, you can be sure that First National Home Loans will be very competitive. For more information ask your local First National Consultant.

No matter which lending institution you decide to consider, begin the mortgage dialogue early. You can make the home buying process a lot easier by becoming pre-approved, or at least pre-qualified, before you settle on a particular home.

These terms mean:

Pre-approved: Your mortgage lender has reviewed your formal mortgage application and financial records, completed a satisfactory credit check and approved you for a specific loan amount, subject to an appraisal and possibly an inspection of the home you decide to buy.

Pre-qualified: Your income, employment history and your available down payment qualify you as a potentially approvable mortgagee. You will still be subject to the mortgage lender's approval of a completed application, satisfactory credit check, home appraisal, and home inspection.

We have completed Home Loan Basics   explaining some of the requirements and steps you take in obtaining a home loan and what sort of things you need to provide.

So now you're ready to find your new home

You probably have an image of the type of home you would like. and you may have a list of suburbs you're interested in.

Your Nerang First National Real Estate consultant will help you by identifying your needs in relation to your new home and assisting you to find the home that will suit your family and your budget.

There is many properties on our books and even if we don't immediately have 'that special home", they know of properties coming up for sale and will often be able to fit buyer with seller without the home ever appearing in their window.

If you decide you're interested, go back and take a look at a different time of day. With older houses you may want to get a building report on the foundations, structure, etc.

Nerang First National Real Estate offices are members of Australia's largest real estate network.

Like all First National Real Estate members, the office is locally owned and locally operated. Many of our Members are second and third generation agents in their area.

We are a part of the community we live in so they know local values and you'll find us a wealth of knowledge about the localities they service.

The strength of dealing with a network like First National Real Estate is that your new home can be found no matter where in the world you may want to buy. Most offices have technology links that will enable you to view a potential home on the other side of the city, in another state or even another country.

Email us for assistance for connection to your nearest office. 

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