B UYING your first home is one of life's great rites of passage. It's daunting and exhilarating. Get it right and you'll progress up the property ladder.
As soon as you decide to buy your first home you'll be on a steep learning curve. There is a lot to learn, from how to get a mortgage, to the ins and outs of sale and purchase agreements.
You'll need to learn to translate real estate speak into English and vice versa. There's a useful glossary at www.realestate.co.nz/resources/glossary-of-real-estate-terms to help you.
Unless you're buying a property privately, you'll soon meet some real estate agents. Their job is to sell properties listed with them.
Real estate agents are paid commission, which means they get paid only if they sell the property.
They must, however, comply with the Real Estate Agents Act 2008 and exercise skill, care, competence, and diligence. If they don't, you can complain to the Real Estate Agents Authority, which can be contacted on: 0800forREAA (0800 367 7322).
The authority also has a register of real estate agents so that you can check that your agent is licensed and has a clean disciplinary record.
Agents work for the seller, not you. Quite naturally, they're very focused on getting you to sign on the dotted line and buy their property. Ultimately, you need to do what's best for you, so don't be railroaded into buying a property that isn't right.
It's a good idea to maintain a friendly professional relationship with your real estate agent as well. They may alert you to a suitable property coming on to the market.
When buying your first property _ or any property _ it's a good idea to get a LIM (land information memorandum), which contains important information about the property. Also get a building report and see a lawyer before signing a contract. Not every house in New Zealand is as well built or preserved as it should be and you don't want to buy a property that is hiding expensive faults.
Most sale and purchase agreements are standard documents, but it's still worth having yours checked by a lawyer. There could be changes to the wording that are problematic. Also, the lawyer may notice something about the title or LIM that warns you off the property, or enables you to negotiate the price.
Before you can buy a home, you'll need to arrange a mortgage. You may want to find out how much you can borrow before you start house hunting. Your bank's mortgage adviser can help you work this out, or you could use a mortgage broker. Their job is to compare mortgages from different lenders and find the best one for you. It doesn't cost you to see a mortgage broker.
They earn commission from the lenders.
A good mortgage broker will also help you consider your budget and make you aware of other assistance for home ownership such as loans from family and government schemes, including KiwiSaver, the Welcome Home Loan and the Gateway scheme, which can help make buying your first home easier. The bigger the deposit you can get together the better.
Mortgages of more than 80 per cent are difficult to get _ and you'll pay a ``low equity premium'' as well if your deposit is less than 20 per cent.
Finally, visit your library or local bookshop.
Other useful information can be found on the internet at sorted.org.nz. _ Diana Clement
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