Did you know that according to the 2016 Census there are 8.3 million households in Australia?

That is a lot of homes to choose from! I find that most first home buyers get so overwhelmed by the options they take it makes them even more stressed (a classic example of “The Paradox Of Choice” which if you haven’t heard before, check out this TED talk on this topic https://www.ted.com/talks/barry_schwartz_the_paradox_of_choice)

Buying a house is an expensive purchase. If you think about the amount of time you take to buy clothes, or a holiday or a car, you should logically be spending 10x to 100x more time when buying a home! Ok maybe not that much time, but you get the point.

When it comes time to buying a house, it is important that you are ruled more by logic rather than emotion. It is so easy to get caught up in euphoria when buying a house that you spend more on the property than what it is worth (which is exactly why auctions work so well).

Here are 10 things you should be looking out for when buying your first home

1. Location, location, location – This has to be a place that you want to live in for at least twelve months so location is crucial. Also, take into consideration who will buy your property when it’s time to sell.

2. How many rooms? – Seems a basic one but rooms are important, but if your budget allows it always aim to have a “spare room”. Quick tip, I would strongly recommend never buy a one-bedroom apartment, have at least two bedrooms even if you live by yourself as they are a far better investment and you can rent out the other room if you like.

3. Public transport – A big one if you are in the city. Is your house close to public transport but not too close so that it is not noisy?

4. The neighbourhood – If you are a country person like me, you don’t want to be moving into a house that backs onto a nightclub

5. Parking space – Again a big one as our houses get smaller and smaller but think about where to park the car (s).

6. Utilities – is the house connected to power, water, gas and (most of all) broadband internet (isn’t that sad that we need the internet more than water).

7. Structure – is the building structurally sound? Know the number of a good building inspector who can help see things you cannot see with the property. This also leads to a discussion about potential property renovations as well.

8. Insurance risks – this is going to be a problem that comes up more and more but is your area in a high-risk fire or flooding area? Speak to your home and contents insurance provider as this could increase your premium from $1,000 to $8,000 per annum!

9. Developments – is there any infrastructure or big developments happening around the area? This may significantly change the value of your property (for better or worse)

10. Ongoing costs – crucially important if you are in a unit or apartment, but be aware of the ongoing costs associated with the property Buying a property is exciting and stressful at the same time. It is important to take the emotion out of the decision and base your purchase on facts alone. Until next time!