The top mistakes made by first home buyers

The first time out of the gate you can not be expected to understand all the rules. But there are a few common missteps first-time home buyers make which are easy to avoid.

No matter how many men and women caution you to take the emotion out of this process, if you are going to purchase your first home, you’re likely to have feelings. It is naive to expect us to detach from a decision so private.

However, you can keep your feelings under control, and you have to if you would like to be sure that you’re not cared for and so you can spot issues and risks before you purchase.

Consider leaning on a friend or third party that will assist you to remain objective and sound out your thought processes.

Remember: this is a massive purchase.

When you are doing the numbers on purchasing your first house, build in some buffer but have an obvious idea of your real, immovable limits. When you are staring down other buyers in an auction, and the adrenalin is pumping, it is far too easy for even the most rational people to take up the hand for an additional $5,000 we don’t have.  Consider looking at buying a home for sale by owner, this is a great way of keeping costs down.

Exercise financial discipline and do not over-extend yourself. The ideal home will not be a consolation if you can not afford to supply it or, worse still, can not pay your mortgage payments and living costs because you have carried away.

The purchase price tag on the house is merely the beginning. Before you’ve bought, you will want to factor in the expense of pest and building inspections.

There may be fees levied by your mortgage brokers, such as program, valuation and compensation fees.

And then you will need to look at moving expenses, insurance, council rates and the cost of ongoing care many things you did not need to think about when you were leasing.

There may be fees levied by your mortgage brokers, such as program, valuation and compensation fees.

Ensure you’re conscious of the costs you’re going to be confronting and funding for them so there are no nasty surprises and you’ve got loads of income to enjoy your new lifestyle.

If you’re prepared to buy, you will need to become pre-approved finances from a creditor. Failing to get your paperwork in order can mean that you might overlook when you can least afford it.  There are a number of lenders out there now offering competitive rates, and finding a no commission real estate agent is not going to happen, so to keep money in the sellers and buyers pockets, look for DIY property sales.

Failing to get your paperwork in order can mean that you might miss out.

You’re going to need proof of your loan and plan to pay the deposit immediately.

Though some sellers and brokers do accept offers on their property subject to funding, an unconditional offer will always be preferable.


If you have been house hunting some time (and for many people, it takes a while), you can get search tiredness. You are tired of getting everything ready and getting pipped at the post in the last minute by someone who came in with a higher offer.

If you are frustrated and tired, it becomes very tempting to purchase the next property that comes along, if it ticks all of your boxes or not. It may not need to tick all of these, but it still should tick the most significant ones, or you will be miserable in the home and wish to proceed.

Remind yourself what your top priorities in a house are — take a break from house hunting for those who will need to — then begin again with renewed vigour.

It is one of these things that can not only save you money but save your life. Faulty wiring, shaky foundations, pest infestation there is a selection of items which may be wrong with a home which you won’t catch with the naked eye.

Always get a trained professional to provide a property you’re contemplating buying the once-over. For just a few hundred bucks they could catch the things you won’t see — but that may cost you a lot of money in renovations or repair if you charge ahead oblivious.

A fantastic realtor. An attorney, construction inspector, mortgage broker. A trustworthy open-for-inspection buddy. Even if you’re buying in your own, you should not confront the procedure alone. There are pros whose job it is to cover those places you did not even know you did not know.

On top of that, you will have that network to your next property transfer — whether it is buying an investment property, leasing out of selling the home you’ve just purchased, or only undertaking renovations.