Did you know that 50 years ago in 1965, the average age for first marriage was 21 for females? Fast forward to 2016 and the average age for first marriage is now 30 for men and 28.6 for women. In the 60s, most children were born before the mother reached 30, and the average family consisted of 3.54 kids! Last year, 2016, this had become 1.99 and is still dropping.
Remember when the majority of homes had three bedrooms, one lounge and a single bathroom, all in 100sq metres of floor area? Now you will find that most new homes have 4 bedrooms, two lounges, at least two bathrooms and an office. With fewer people living in them, why do we need them to be so much bigger?
About 100,000 businesses are run from home in NZ, hence the easily justified office. An en-suite is also easy to account for. But what about the other extra rooms? A dedicated guest bedroom is simply easier for many rather than having to rearrange the kids for the night. And research shows that a second lounge or second dining room are seldom used by most.
Think carefully about just how much house you really need before buying, as you may be paying a lot more than you need to for your lifestyle. There is a noticeable move to smaller houses right now, with less grounds to keep up and an emphasis on matching the house to personal lifestyles. Buying for capital gain should not be everything in an owner occupied home and you can choose to buy the home that suits your family’s needs now.
Before you look for a new home…
Pre-approval is the absolute first step. Before you consider a new home or an investment property, have us go through a finance pre-approval plan for you, which can take into account what you believe your current house sale will generate. This will put things in perspective and let you know how much you can borrow, your options for servicing the loan and some contingencies to cover all eventualities.
Pre-approval of finance commits you to nothing! But its value its priceless when it comes to planning your future and avoiding mistakes.
So the OCR didn’t change
The rate the bank pays for money hasn’t changed, so that means mortgage rates are stable for now. But you may still wish to refinance anyway, as you may want to borrow a little more, ease your repayments, make renovations or fix/unfix the term. It’s a good idea to review your mortgage at regular intervals in light of your lifestyle changes, not just the OCR. Please call for tailored advice.
It’s all in the spit and polish
As always, well presented homes are still being snapped up and are getting good prices. The key is the presentation. Tidy gardens, de-cluttered interiors and attention to repairs are very necessary as buyers are getting more discerning.
Seriously consider using a home-stager and a gardener prior to your first open home. Fix broken items; make sure all the lights work and paint any rooms with old fashioned decor. It won’t cost much and the returns will be a faster selling house and a higher sale price. We can advise on who to contact to provide quotes for the above.
The $21 grocery challenge
Our lives are so busy that we tend to shop out of habit rather than necessity. Here’s a fun challenge to help with your food budget that really works. Only spend $21 on groceries for a week! Yes it can be done. The $21 covers milk, some vegetables and perhaps bread. Nearly all households have more than enough stored away for a week, like tins of fruit, baked beans and soup. There will also be leftovers which can be put into omelettes and you may be surprised what is in the depths of the freezer. It forces you to be creative and it works! Looking at this long term, any additional savings could be put towards reducing your home loan while interest rates are low, perhaps reducing your home loan term by years. This also frees up space in your pantry!
Please contact us with any finance requirements you may have as we’re happy to help.
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