Five mistakes to avoid when buying property

Buying a new home can be an exciting time, whether it’s your first or your fourth property transaction. But it can also be a little nerve-wracking.

Given it’s often one of the biggest investments that people you may make in your lifetime, you want to get it right. But mistakes can happen, and here are five you might want to avoid if you’re buying a new place soon.

Not doing enough research

It’s helpful to be as informed as you can be about a property that you’re thinking about buying. There is a lot of information available online now, so you can arm yourself with everything you need to identify a good deal.

Sites like Trade Me Property and Homes.co.nz will let you check out comparable sales to get an idea of what’s a reasonable price. You can also check council records for information about potential changes or developments in an area that could affect a property you’re looking at.

Letting your emotions get the better of you

The décor is perfect, the kitchen is a dream, and you can already imagine your children climbing that tree in the back garden… sometimes your heart runs away with you when you visit an open home.

While it’s great to be excited about a new property, it’s worth trying to keep your emotions in check a bit. Some emotional distance will reduce the chance of overpaying for a property or skipping over potential problems with it.

Not doing enough due diligence

If the pressure is on, it can be tempting to make an offer with fewer conditions in the hope that it’ll stand out and get you through the door. But it can be worth giving yourself the extra time to do things like a building report, valuation and check the LIM report before you buy. Problems identified at this stage can save you a lot of money in the long run.

Not getting finance sorted early enough

You’ll also save yourself a lot of headaches if you can get your finances sorted early in the process. This means you know roughly how much you can spend, and you can offer or bid confidently. We can help you determine how much you might be able to borrow and help you get your application into top shape.

Not acting

While there are lots of reasons to be careful, don’t let worries hold you back completely. Hanging back on the sidelines waiting for the perfect property – or the perfect price – can mean you never act. It’s very hard to time any market, and housing is no exception.

If you see a property you like at a price you can afford, it may be a chance worth taking: just make sure you don’t put in an unconditional offer without having finance approved for that purchase first. Once again, we’re here to help.