To buy or not to buy that is the question

The last few weeks have been quite hectic for me personally to say the least! We put our house on the market, sold it and bought a property all within 4 weeks! While my wife and I were traipsing through open for inspections with the view to buying our next property, it struck me how different it felt when I was on this side of the fence…..Being the buyer….

 

I found I was looking at properties very differently to what I usually do. Whenever I inspect a property on behalf of a client, I have my trustee checklist where I allocate points to each room based on a pre-determined set of critical criteria. It’s all about the re-sale value, the potential for growth, rental demand, what works need to be done on the property, what and the list goes on….

The last few weeks I found myself looking at things like, where we were going to have our morning coffee, where my son was going to play cricket, where my other future hypothetical children would sleep, if my dog would like the house etc… all emotional, mushy stuff. (I’ll deny it if you ever ask me!)

Two completely different points of view, but both equally important when buying your home. I almost wished I had thought to bring along a buyers advocate, so that someone could look at things objectively and tell us where to draw the line without getting too carried away.

Luckily, my wife and I managed to get a hold of ourselves and be disciplined in our purchase, because we both firmly believe that you make money on a property at the time you buy. If you pay too much for a property, it can take years to recover from that set back. A home at the end of the day is an asset and probably your biggest asset. Why shouldn’t you buy wisely and make money out of it?

Due diligence regarding the area you are buying in, when and how often  the property you are looking at has changed hands,  comparable sales in the area, planned infrastructure upgrades in the area, transport links , access to schools are some of the critical things you should be looking at when buying your home.

Another tip to remember is, if you are buying at Auction; make sure you are very clear what your maximum budget will be. Better still get someone else who is not emotionally involved to bid on your behalf. The real estate agents will be in your ear all through-out trying to get you to increase your bid and it is very very easy to do just that when you can see the home of your dreams slipping away right in front of your eyes…

I am speaking from experience when I say; you make money when you buy, so buy wisely. If you are not sure, seek professional help!