Vital things to remember when buying an investment property

When buying any property, there is definitely a certain excitement to the prospect of starting off the process of looking at and eventually deciding on a house that you like that is in your budget and suits your needs. Then the tricky businesses of negotiating it down to the best possible price you can possibly get starts which is nerve-racking, but also somewhat exciting process, and all the way up to the moment you have the keys in your hand. However, before you can get to any of that fun exciting stuff there are a few things that you need to bear in mind throughout if you plan on using the home as an investment.

Oftentimes people who have never bought or are new to the game of buying properties to use as an investment, either to rent out as a unit to make money from the rent or too sell later down the track at a profit, can be under the assumption that the process and considerations that you need to put into the project are the same. When in reality it’s a completely different set of circumstances that have very subtle nuances to it. So what are these all important things you will need to consider? Well, let’s take a look at some of them.

house

You are not buying for you

Most people when they look around the house they take in the initial impression of the house and then play out what they think their life would be like inside of it. How they would use the space, where they would put what furniture and where, how much they would have to redecorate and so on and all of these are important when buying a home.

But really you’re not buying a home, you are buying a property and you should always conform to what is the most desirable in terms of renting and resale rather than your own personal preferences and this should affect every single choice that you make about the property, so take yourself completely out of the equation when it comes to your tastes and act as if you were buying for somebody else. Always assume that your renter or next buyer is an average by statistics person who will like what everyone else likes.

And by and large, that is what people buy for. Great selling points are things like easy access to public transport links like buses and trains and also a relatively close proximity to amenities like supermarkets and restaurants. One of the key things you will also want to consider is your local school catchment area. Many people decide to buy a new property for when they want to have children and one of the things that could tip the balance of their interest is the property’s close proximity to a great local school. Also, think about just what kind of features the house has that makes it unique in a good way, spotlights, and fixture are always great ways to point this out.

Finance

investment

Now as with the purchasing process of, well, anything, you have to find a way to finance your new investment. If you don’t have any property either to sell or to secure additional finance against, then you will have to source finance from somewhere else. The easiest way that is done with properties is either to go to a high-street branch of some huge mega-chain of banks, which while convenient is rather unlikely to be a very flexible option. Or the alternative is to seek out the services of a trustworthy and reputable home loan and mortgage broker to find them the best possible rates of interest and terms of their finance.

A good mortgage broker isn’t just there to hand you leaflets that ultimately boil down to a few choices, they will actually sit down and work out the particulars of your finance and try to find out if there are not only different funding options for your home but also whether there are any government grants or interest packages that could apply to a purchaser who is buying as an investment. They can also advise you of the implications the investment aspect of your purchase will have not just on your loan itself but also in terms of sales tax.