Neha is a run-of-the-mill millennial home-buyer. After years of renting and taking it slow, she was ready to take the plunge and buy her own home. There was just one tiny issue: she was getting lost in between finances, middle-men, loans and open-houses. “If only there was a simple way,” she thought. There is!
If you’re a home-buyer looking for your future abode, here are a few pointers that’ll help you go about home-buying, the millennial way:
Review Your Finances
Shopping for a new home can be tricky if you haven’t done your math. Having a financial advisor who will help you with your credit score, mortgage rates, and answer all of your queries will make this process much easier. A personal finance instructor lists out the down payment, your closing costs, moving costs, move-in costs, and maintenance among many others. Lending institutions usually follow the 28/36 rule, which means that your mortgage payment, property taxes and insurance should not take up any more than 28% of your monthly income. Add to that your total debt payments, including college loans and credit card debt, which should not total more than 36% of your gross income.
Study The Market
Before getting into the process of purchasing your home, knowing what’s going on in the real-estate market is a must. The amount of competition has increased manifold over the past decade with more buyers and sellers entering the real estate zone. This is a good thing as it gives you more variety in terms of housing options as well as makes sure you stay up to date with the happenings of the real-estate world, due to the increased number of buyers. Knowing when you buy your home is also something that is very crucial and can be easily understood through a vivid knowledge about current market trends.
Visit Open Houses
Even though we live in a digital age, knowing how a property looks in reality, as compared to its pictures is necessary. Look up houses online and shortlist the ones you like best. You can take a couple of days out of your schedule to go visit these properties so that you can get a better understanding of them. Know the types of utilities and amenities the place has to offer helps you finalise your dream property.
Know Your Neighbourhood
The right location makes all of the difference when it comes to buying a new home. Make sure that your house has good connectivity with your everyday needs, be it schools, hospitals or even entertainment centres. Also, make sure that the area you select is a prime locality, because owning a house in such areas automatically translates to high resale values in the future. The best way to do this is to find out the value of the surrounding properties through market research.
Gain Buying Experience
The best thing about buying your first home is probably the fact that the entire process familiarizes you with what goes down when one decides to invest in real estate. For millennials, getting familiar with this process is extra important because buying a home is usually the first major step that is taken towards them investing in properties. The best advice that one can give a millennial is to be patient and wait for the perfect opportunity to grab the best deal.
There you have it. Now you know everything about what it is to buy a home as a millennial so get out there and start looking, as your dream home might just be around the block.
