Pre approved last Friday. Feeling like a lamb.

Everything is negotiable. Including the cooling off. If the market is hot the seller doesnt need to give it to you. In a cool market they probably will.

suggest you forget all your assumptions as they are not based on experience. Read the nsw experiences here and learn from them. Dont start your sentences with but i thought.

There is no perfect market. In a cooling market, finance might be riskier but you get better prices. Think 2017 at the top of the boom would have been ‘better’?

 

Important Question - Does Greater Bank credit assess their pre-approvals? Many banks don't so they're basically worthless and shouldn't be relied upon as a guarantee of getting finance.

 

Thank you very much @KingBendtner

These are primarily the reasons that I/we have decided to act now.

Thanks for your advice. I have notice that it is prudent to ask for clauses like "subject to obtaining finance with bank X, and subject to satisfactory pest and building inspections and do intend to include these conditions with any offer that I make.

I have seen this "due diligence" phrase used a lot in the context of purchasing property and have always wondered what is actually meant by this. Would the article that I link to below be a fair explanation? I realise that it is a real estate site.
Due diligence debunked: What it really means, and why you probably aren't doing it right

"negotiate hard" is another phrase that i have seen when purchasing property is concerned. Assuming that it is a "buyer's market" would that be simply offering a low purchase price to begin with and asking for more favourable settlement terms or is there more to this that I should be considering? Speaking of a longer settlement, what would be the advantages of asking for such a thing? Please excuse my ignorance. I am trying yo learn as much as possible in a quick time but this stuff is not familiar to me.

 

Usually a finance clause is rare in NSW, because you are supposed to get everything done during the cooling off period. Note that usually the 0.25% initial deposit is not refundable.

A longer settlement may be good where:
1) you need time to sell an existing property,
2) you need time until the end of your lease
3) you just need more time to prepare before you move.
4) You lock in a purchase price and don't have to start paying the mortgage until you settle. This works differently in a buyers market.

For the vendor, it may be good if
They've bought elsewhere and want to match settlement dates.
They need more time to move out.

It may be that the vendor wants a faster settlement. If you can accommodate that, they might be flexible on price.

Point is, there is no 'ideal' way of doing things. You just have a lot of pieces and you put things together based on what you want.

 

I do not know what a proper credit assessment looks like. I feel like our situation has been scrutinized quite closely:

I spent nearly four weeks going back and forth on the email with the lender. He asked me many questions, clarifying points, asking some questions more than once. We provided bank statements for financial year, pay slips for last two months, detailed expenses questionnaire - which he went through over the phone with us. We spent nearly an hour on the phone going over our financial situation. He appears to have opened my credit file because he asked me about a credit card that was opened in my name in 2010, which I know nothing about. We provided birth certificates and drivers licence.

Is that a proper credit assessment?

 

It sounds like it may be.

 

I am not going to elaborate too much but keep it simple.
Due diligence = market research, knowing what 'value' means in your targeted area/suburbs.
Negotiate hard = understand why the vendor's selling, any preference for long/short settlement, get a feel for the competition.

Top tip: Once you've shortlisted and view a property you like, make sure you visit another property that the same agent has listed in your area. "oh hey John... we meet again... I think I've met you in bla bla street..."

 

Im waiting for November /December.