Home Owner's Blog

Buy vs Rent in New Zealand

 

When is the right time to buy a house?

 

Often asked and the contra question has always been - why do you want to buy a property? For different reasons you will find different answers. Most people asked this question because of stories in the media and the confusion about property value, purchase price and related costs. To be upfront with you, owning a family home is not a getting rich strategy.

 

Owning a property is an excellent way to improve lifestyle, build up wealth or just to own a little paradise you can’t rent.  Why would the fuss about the housing market bother you? On long-term the price increase driven by inflation works for you. For stepping onto the property ladder there are only two important questions;

 

· Did you do your homework for making the right purchase decision,  and

· Can you afford house and location to live in?

 

 

The road to realize dreams

has got three money rules

 

· Never rent or buy that you can’t afford,

· Keep always spare money for rainy days, and

· Don’t spend money you don’t own (hire purchase).

 

 

I encourage you to treat everything in your life like an investment. If you develop that attitude, even spare time activities or hobbies will pay you for that enjoyment on long-term. That accelerates your success rate, is motivating and fun! And if you buy a home & income property or an energy efficient home, that will cumulate substantial money over years to come.

 

 

Buying today is better than doing it tomorrow because prices go up as mentioned above due to inflation. Take for instance the petrol price from today that is three times so much at it was 13 years ago.  The latest valuations sent by the City Council are three times the purchase price I paid 14 years ago. Sure, you can’t rely on that example but the formula is simple - we pay more than our parents did and our children will pay a higher price as we would today.

 

Note — property investors wear different hats and it is important to adopt a different mindset, when looking for an investment property. That is why we split this article series in Tenant’s Blog, Homeowner’s Blog and blogs for landlords or investors.

 

 

As home buyer, don’t rush, do your homework and if in doubt take professional advice (email us, happy to help).

 

Klauster

Home owner’s blog—Klauster takes a specific view for home owners and people who are looking to buy a home, when is the right time to buy, money rules and purchase price