Information For Caloundra Home Buyers

Congratulations!  You have decided to purchase a home, or are thinking about buying one.  You'll be joining the ranks of millions of Australian families who realise that home ownership offers a number of benefits including building equity, saving for the future, and creating an environment for your family. When you own your own home, your hard-earned dollars contribute to your mortgage. Over time, your home will increase in value and the equity you build is yours. 

However, buying a new home is an activity that most of us only do a few times in our lives; as such it can be very stressful on the buyer. The good news is that much of this stress can be relieved by a little bit of forward planning. Whether you are a first home buyer or a seasoned investor there are a few simple actions that will make life much easier when the time comes to buy.   

•  Make sure you talk to your mortgage broker before you start looking for your new home. A good broker will let you know how much you can afford to borrow, advise you whether mortgage insurance is needed, calculate your repayments and determine the deposit you will require. If you are planning to use equity from an existing property for your purchase your broker will be able to advise you on appropriate investment strategies. By pre-arranging your finance you will be in the best position to purchase, whether at auction or through private negotiation.

• It is wise to engage a solicitor to scrutinise any contract prior to signing it. It is also worthwhile getting your solicitor to write any special conditions you wish to have inserted into the contract. This is important as real estate agents are no longer able to write ‘subject to’ clauses for you. They may have some ‘catch all’ clauses that may be suitable for your situation, but it is much better if you consider your particular needs and have your solicitor draft these special conditions in advance. 

• Ensure that you speak with your preferred building and pest inspectors before you go to contract on your new home. This will enable you to allow a realistic timeframe for these inspections to take place. It can increase stress levels to stellar proportions for all parties if time extensions are sought for the ‘subject to’ clauses.

•  Ensure to insure. It is vital that the purchaser arrange insurance for the property as soon as the contract is signed. Confirm insurance details with your mortgage broker as the mortgagee’s interest is often required to be recorded on the cover note.

• Assume responsibility for following up all ‘subject to’ clauses. Make sure they are all completed to your satisfaction. Once finance is confirmed and ‘subject to’ clauses have been met your solicitor will notify the seller’s solicitor that the conditions have been met and the contract will become unconditional.

•  The week before settlement is due contact your solicitor to make sure everything is progressing satisfactorily and to schedule. It can cost you dearly if settlement cannot take place at the agreed time due to an error on your part.

Please contact me if you have any questions about buying a home in the Caloundra area.

Below, select desired reports and complete the form provided.