Guide to Buying your First Home

3 INTRODUCTION It’s up to you This is a saying that I learnt when I was very young and use it as a reminder any time I have had challenges or set goals in my life. You are the only one who can make a difference in your life, so set yourself goals such as to purchase your first home. Think of things you have been spending your wages on and come up with a sustainable plan to cut back on those unnecessary items and start saving. You will be amazed how quickly you will begin to accumulate the deposit required and before you know you will be moving in. In later life, you will see this as one of your greatest achievements. Visualize that dream and make it real – start today. Buy What You Can Afford This is where most people get it wrong – it is called your first home because that is exactly what it is – it is not your final dream home. It is a matter of just getting started in the housing stakes and keep up with inflation. So many people are trying to buy a home they can’t afford and so spend their life renting. First home buyers today want 4 bedrooms and a study, 2 or 3 bathrooms, rumpus room, family room, lounge, dining, double garage and we even hear of some say they need a pool. This is simply ridiculous by the time they get close to being able to afford this, prices have risen, and home ownership quickly becomes out of reach. These people find themselves as lifetime tenants renting until they die. Simply, they are just dreamers imagining what will never be. When I commenced in the property industry in 1982, I was selling new homes with land to young first-time homeowners. They were buying house and land packages for around $39,000 - the homes were approximately 100 square metres with 3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom and a carport. This was what they could afford – not what they dreamed of one day owning. They were so excited when they shifted in, what an achievement, they owned their own piece of land with a brand-new home and they were destined never to pay rent again. These were very basic brand-new homes and at the time in an area considered to be on the fringe of metropolitan Melbourne. In 2020 this area is now no longer on the fringe of Melbourne, and these people have