Buying Tips

Buying a home is not only one of the largest purchases you're likely to make, it can also be one of the best long term investments - so it's important that you get it right. This means doing all your homework and making sure that the property you are buying is the right one in terms of price, location, value, size and lifestyle.

Preparing to Buy

As a prospective purchaser, you need to do some homework: decide what you want in terms of size, location and price range. Contact our office and ask us to let you know when suitable properties come up. Regularly check the local and daily newspapers. There are also a number of internet sites devoted to listing properties for sale. It is a good idea to attend some auctions and check the published results of auctions in your area.

Inspecting a Property

Inspections should be made at the advertised times or by appointment with the real estate agent.

You may consider having a property inspected by a builder or architect to assess whether there are any defects that might affect your decision to buy. This is particularly relevant if large-scale renovation or extensions are planned.

Both Archicentre and the Housing Industry Association (HIA), among others, provide an inspection service. For a fee, they inspect and report on the state of the property.

Archicentre can be contacted on tel: 03 9819 4577

HIA can be contacted on tel: 03 9280 8200

You need to look at the location and style of the property in relation to your requirements: the size of the property, proximity to schools, access to public transport and so on should be considered.

Once you have found a property that suits you, it is wise to check it out during the week as well as on the weekend, as a peaceful environment one day might be quite different at the other times.