If you’re thinking about buying a house, then one of the choices in front of you is whether to purchase a property that’s already been lived in or buy off the plan. It can be easy to decide in favour of buying off the plan – after all, you’re getting a brand new home that’s never been lived in before. But there are a number of things to take into consideration before you decide this is what’s right for you
What are the benefits of buying off the plan?
If you’re thinking about buying a house, then one of the choices in front of you is whether to purchase a property that’s already been lived in or buy off the plan. Need tree trimming or removal?
It can be easy to decide in favour of buying off the plan – after all, you’re getting a brand new home that’s never been lived in before. But there are a number of things to take into consideration before you decide this is what’s right for you.
Being able to buy a completely new home and have input into design considerations isn’t too shabby a benefit. Not only does it mean you’ll have a modern home that can automatically accommodate the latest technology without expensive renovations, you also have the chance to suggest small customisations to the home for your own particular needs.
Not only that, but a number of states like Queensland and New South Wales offer a stamp duty concession on new homes and vacant land on which they intend to build on. In NSW, for example, the First Home – New Home scheme exempts first time buyers from duty on any new home valued up to $550,000, and grants a discount on it if the home is valued between $550,000 and $650,000.
One other advantage of buying off the plan is that you pay the current market price for a property that will be finished later, when prices could be higher.
Sounds Great, Where do I Sign? We buy houses in Hurst Tx
Easy, tiger. There’s more to think about. Unfortunately, we don’t have a crystal ball we can use to look into the future. There’s no guarantee that market conditions will get more favourable for those with property. House prices could fall in between the signing of a contract and the completion of construction, and interest rates could rise, too.
Also potentially problematic is the fact that you’re depending an awful lot on the builder or developer, so you need to make sure they’re honest, will complete the project on time and are financially stable. It would pay to do a bit of research on them before signing anything. Go on their website, look at what people are saying about them online and check the history of previous properties they’ve worked on.
You’ll want to also go physically down to the building site and inspect it first hand. Look at the building plans, check out the area it’s in and find out the market conditions for that particular part of town. You might even like to discuss your expectations with the builder or developer.