Want to buy a new house. Should I do it now?

@nushydude I don't quite agree with the premises that "obviously" has to be new just so you get the FHOG, it is in no way a foregone conclusion that this is the best option for you overall.

Personally I do think 6 months is a bit early in a new countey/city to be making a pretty long term decision that will be expensive to "fix" if you don't like it or circumstances change.

Also, consider the personal/social aspect, especially if you're planning on having a 2nd child.

Buying some property rights on the outskirts because it's new and yput can get 4 bedrooms etc but having very little local amenity around will not be great if your wife enjoys the inner areas more.

for example at rhe end of it she could end up with 2 babies to look after, without family and friends to support etc, in the kind of suburbia that makes makes you consider a lobotomy to cope..

Also, what if you buy one of these homes far out and your job chabhsaßß

 

Respectfully disagree about purchasing after being in a new environment for 6 months is not a good idea.

This is all about doing your due diligence before making a purchase. If all boxes has been ticked and price is within OPs range then its a decision that is unlikely to be a regretful one

 

In 6 months and with a baby to look after, a new coun try to adjust to, new circle of friends, new job, did I mention a baby to look after, a wife currently not working due to said baby, the fact that they have only lived in 1 single area in the entire city and so would not exactly be in the positi9n to make an informed decision..... how good would the quality of DD be?

 

I say it because i have been thru it and it is my personal experience.

Plus additionaly the income and saving he has was exactly where I was 6yrs ago.

He is going thru exactly what I did

 

I suppose if they buy it and they later figure out they really don't like the area, they could always rent it out (after 6 months for the grant) and rent elsewhere. I'd therefore hope there is rental demand there though.
Watch out for the baby factor however! Could make finances difficult and if the breadwinner happens to lose their job, things would get very tough. Don't want a forced sale.

 

Better lots t usually priced higher.
Less than 1m slope or preferably no slope the better. Preferable regular block size, corner lots or odd shaped lots can cost slightly more and u have limited floor plans to fit. Soil type etc I am not really sure how u can determine that before buying...wider frontage usually cost a bit more...lots near a T section is cheaper..coz they get headlights every time a vehicle enters the section/estate. And overall location park/water front lots r usually expensive....
Btw, after reading other posts it raises a good question on risks and mitigation...specially if u lose ur job ? New land,house,kid,new country,job pretty exciting and also could be overwhelming

 

We definitely do not want to be stuck there forever. What I am more concerned about is not getting what we want (we aren't picky), but getting what people generally want, so that we can easily make it an IP in the future.

2nd baby is already here. She is 2 months old.

It is not a big issue. We currently live in Oakleigh East. She still cannot walk to access anything. Need to take the bus or I have to take her in the car. This country is so darn big. I feel this problem is there unless you live right in the middle of a town, a place in which will probably need all of our arms and legs to own.

This is a concern, but if I limit my job search to South East of CBD, I should be within 1-1.5hrs away. It was worse back in my country where I had to travel for about 2hrs to get home, standing in a bus. Cannot get worse than that.

Forget about the baby. Baby is already here. She will be at least a year old before we move to a new place.

Yes there is the risk of losing the job. We are already saving every penny we can to make a 2nd deposit, so that we can sustain at least 3 months without a job. The risk of losing the current job however is slim to nil. Issue arises if I switch jobs and then something happens. Probably I should change jobs soon and stabilize in it before doing this? (We still would have the whole deposit intact for any emergencies.

When you put it like that, it makes be scared to be honest.

My wife says that I should switch jobs soon, wait a few months and go for it. The thing is, switching jobs is not easy. Probably I should aim for a pay raise first.

However, we lived in Japan for 5 years and a new country is not that new for us. Just that this whole process of buying a new house is new. We will always have to make new friends.

 

Don't want to scare you. Just stating it as I see it. Every one has a diff SANF if u build buffer that's ok, get adequate insurances like income protection etc.

 

We have decided to go ahead with it.

Do people usually buy mortgage protection insurance as well?

Yesterday I talked with a builder whom my friend recommended (they had built his two houses and their costs are very reasonable) and they said they can certainly work with a budget of 375K. They found me a 350sqm land in South Siding - Officer for 215K. That leaves 160K for the house. The land gets titled mid next year, so we have time to save up more for the house if needed. They asked me to put a holding deposit (because if you wait, you would lose it in an instance) and then go check it out and the surroundings to see if that is a suitable area/good land. We would have a couple of weeks to change our minds. I still haven't put the holding deposit. The builder directly contacted the land sale agent and asked to hold it until I talk with them and pay a holding deposit.

Any thoughts on this area?

The only issue is the initial deposit, if the contract is signed, is 10% of the value of the land which will be $21,500. Is this still considered as part of the deposit for the loan?

 

Congrats, which estate? And which builder?
Yes it is part of deposit. U pay 90%later.
Can u negotiate on 5% down?

. ,
QUOTE="nushydude, post: 273982, member: 6729"]We have decided to go ahead with it.

Do people usually buy mortgage protection insurance as well?

Yesterday I talked with a builder whom my friend recommended (they had built his two houses and their costs are very reasonable) and they said they can certainly work with a budget of 375K. They found me a 350sqm land in South Siding - Officer for 215K. That leaves 160K for the house. The land gets titled mid next year, so we have time to save up more for the house if needed. They asked me to put a holding deposit (because if you wait, you would lose it in an instance) and then go check it out and the surroundings to see if that is a suitable area/good land. We would have a couple of weeks to change our minds. I still haven't put the holding deposit. The builder directly contacted the land sale agent and asked to hold it until I talk with them and pay a holding deposit.

Any thoughts on this area?

The only issue is the initial deposit, if the contract is signed, is 10% of the value of the land which will be $21,500. Is this still considered as part of the deposit for the loan?[/QUOTE]

 

South Siding in Officer. Builder is Victorian House and Land Specialists.

I'll see if I can bring it down to 5%. How can I do that? Any tips?

But still, I don't have the preapproval.

 

Just ask.
Also check aspect, they had land for 177k not long ago...and prominence,cherrington, and Banksia estate.
If ur happy with current builder than fine, but no harm in shopping around.

 

I'll check if there are better options in those estates. Thanks.

One of my friends said that Clyde North appears to have better growth potential that Officer. Could there be a truth in that?

 

Nobody can tell future values. General rule as of today is closer you are to Berwick the better.

 

Technically, ClydeNorth is closer to Berwick, because with Officer, you have Beaconsfield in between. But distance wise, Officer might be actually closer.

 

That is correct. There are no suburbs between Clyde North and Berwick.. But may not mean anything.

 

After further discussions with brokers, it appears the maximum amount of money a lender would lend me would be around 305K. This is insufficient to go for a H&L package. Yes, I can go for a cheaper property now, but that would shrink my savings and I am worried that it would be difficult to rent out/sell because it will be smaller. So, yes, we are going to wait a few months and see where things go. Hopefully our income will improve within a year and we will get a good idea about the best compromising area (because there will always be compromises) to settle down in.

Thank you all for your input. I will open up a new thread when it is time to pursue this again.

 

Best of luck and keep strong

 

Thank you.

 

I would wait longer to save more or work for a pay rise, so you can move closer in.

I cant believe that 90 mins each way to work is considered acceptable down south.. you are spending a full waking day commuting each week. Time that could be better spent with the family. It may seem OK with a nice shiny house for a year or two, but longer term it will get to be a bit of a drag. And while it may seem hard to hold off for a year or more, think how many hours of your life you will save over 5-10 years.

People say "you won't regret it", but I know a few that have, and their biggest concern has been the traffic/distance to get anywhere. Want to move closer and out of the estate rat-race, but due to new homes going up all the time, their place hasn't appreciated much. Will only break even.