This handy 5 step checklist for buying a house will help you in the process of how to purchase property in South Africa. Because buying a good home is not always an easy thing to do. Aside from the obvious financial capital and legal risks involved, there are also negotiations, inspections and appraisals to think about.
The 5 step checklist for buying a house:
- Making Offers and Negotiations
- House Inspections
- Hire an Appraiser
- Closing the Deal
- The Final Walkthrough
So without further ado let’s breakdown this checklist and go into more detail about how to buy your new home.
Making Offers and Negotiations
You might think that inspecting the actual property comes first. However the truth is that it’s always better to make an offer before inspecting the actual property in question.
Because if you are serious about a buying a house then the first thing that you will need to deal with is the owner of that home.
Talking with the seller or one of his or her representatives will allow you to figure out if they are worth trusting. Or if they’re hiding something.
For example you can talk about the seller’s reasons for selling the property. Or if there were any problems and irregularities in the past that you should know about.
At this stage you should remember that you’re still gathering information. But you also have to remember that this is the kind of information that will help you avoid unnecessary problems later on.
Aside from negotiating with the seller, you can also ask your real estate agent about the other houses that were recently sold in the same neighborhood.
Use the prices of these houses as reference for making your bid. Don’t forget to start a little lower.
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Be Clear with the Property Seller
Next, be very clear about your requirements. For example make it clear to the seller that you’re only interested in a house that has working features and minimal damages.
This will help you negotiate terms in your favor. Lastly, make it a point to have a deadline.
Some sellers may want to prolong negotiations as a way to manipulate the price. Make it clear to them, and to your real estate agent, that you’re not willing to tolerate delays.
This way you will have no problems in managing the direction and time table of your purchase. Remember that you can always renegotiate terms later on. But for now what matters is that you’ve set up some necessary parameters with your seller.
House Inspections
The second tip in our checklist for buying a house in South Africa is about house inspections.
Because once you have found a seller that you can trust, it’s time to start inspecting the house.
To do this, it’s best not to rely on your real estate agent. Because their primary goal is to close a deal. Therefore that makes them unreliable sources when it comes to assessing the value of a particular home.
Instead, what you should do is hire the services of a qualified inspector.
An accredited, self-employed expert from a reputable organization is just the kind of help you need when it comes to inspecting a home.
The more houses a particular expert has inspected, the better. A general inspection from a qualified professional will cost. But this amount is worth every penny. Particularly if you are having a hard time with negotiations.
Also be sure to attend all the inspections. And try to consider additional assessments if the situation requires more than just the standard inspection.
Once all the necessary information about the property has been gathered, you can then ask the repairman to give you an estimate for all the necessary repairs. Take this information and use it to consider your options.
Hire an Appraiser
Third on our checklist is hiring an appraiser. Although a professional inspector can tell you a lot about the current state and value of the home that you want to buy, only a qualified appraiser can tell you its actual value.
When you hire an appraiser be sure to provide them with a copy of the sales contract so that they can verify the property that’s being sold.
While the appraiser does his or her work, ask your realtor to provide you with a list of comparable properties to study. This way, you will be able to know how much other recent sales cost. And how much money you will be expected to pay to the seller.
If you are a first time house buyer we found this handy guide on the Private Property website that’s full of useful tips on buying a new house in South Africa.
Closing the Deal
In closing a deal on your new home you will need to consider the complications involved in the transaction.
If there are no irregularities involved then you are clear to proceed. However if there are legal or financial problems present, which is often the case with repossessed properties, then you will need to hire a lawyer to help you out.
Also try to consult with your realtor about any additional fees or anything that may be related to the local neighborhood. You wouldn’t want to deal with these complications once you’ve moved in to your new home.
The Final Walkthrough
Even after you have closed the deal you will still need to make one final inspection of your home.
This is done to make sure that everything is in order and that there are no confusions. This is particularly important if you expect the seller to leave for places where he or she will be difficult to reach.
In your final walkthrough you will need to make sure that all appliances, plumbing, heating and electrical wiring are working properly.
What this means basically is that you will need to check every toilet, faucet and electrical socket in order to make sure that they’re fine. If the home includes smoke detectors or air conditioning you should check them out as well.
In addition be sure to check for molds and vermin around the house. Your home’s inspector will have identified these during the preliminary stages of the negotiation. But you shouldn’t rule out the possibility that he or she might have missed something.
If it turns out that there are certain irregularities in your new home then you can always get a closing credit for anything missing or broken. Once everything’s settled, you can then move in.
To Summarize
In summary we’ve looked at 5 points as a checklist for buying a house in South Africa.
Buying a new home is never easy or simple. There will always be complications involved, which is why you need to be methodical with your approach.
So the items we mention above will help you cope with this process. Therefore ensure that you will be able to get a new home without having to deal with any unnecessary complications.
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