A house is a huge financial commitment and involves a ton of decision-making. If you are contemplating buying a house anytime soon, I’m sure you’d want to be thorough with your research because it is an asset with low liquidity. The fact that you won’t be going around purchasing houses like you shop for groceries makes it a critical decision, so to say.
Considering the population density of our country, the demand for houses is never-ending. There are numerous projects in development and many more underway. The buyers have a variety of projects to choose from. However, choosing the right developer isn’t the only decision you’ve to make. In this article, we’ll run you through 5 things that you must consider before buying a house.
- Analyzing your needs:
Whenever you want to purchase something, there’s a definite agenda as to why you want to purchase it. We make a few purchases to satisfy our wants, while some are absolute essentials. Home buying definitely comes under the essentials. Every individual or a family has different needs. Hence, what suits you, may not be suitable for somebody else.
As a result, we need to analyze what our needs are so that we can devise a plan on how to achieve them. You might be looking for a house to start a family, to settle in a particular location, or to simply invest. Your needs define your path towards fulfilling them. Having a clear vision of our needs helps in the effective decision-making of buying a house. - Evaluating the budget:
Once you know what you need, you need to figure out whether you can afford it or not. For that, you’ll have to run through all your assets and liabilities to get an idea of your financial situation. Your income, savings, investments, and debt all together will give you a rough estimate of your budget.
Furthermore, you’ll have to think of a financial plan to accommodate your home loan EMIs. This is an important exercise as it can make or break your financial well-being. There are chances that you might have to optimize your spending to cut down on monthly expenses to afford a house that you wish to buy. Thus, managing your expenses is a crucial part of budgeting. Also, the process of buying a house can be made easier with a thorough budget. - Purchase plan:
The next step in buying a house is to finance the purchase. Depending on your situation and the time at hand, you can either opt for a home loan or invest your way to owning a house. Most people prefer a home loan as it gives you decent financial assistance at a low-interest rate and enables you to own a property in the present.
One easy tip that’ll save you money on the interest paid back to the bank is to choose a short tenure for your loan.
Let’s consider a loan of INR 50 Lakh at the rate of 7% for 30 years. You’ll end up paying almost INR 70 Lakh in interest. However, for a tenure of 20 years, you’ll end up paying close to INR 43 Lakh. This is a huge difference.
Consequently, if you choose a shorter tenure, your EMI will increase. So, choose a tenure that’ll suffice both your conditions. - Additional expenses:
Any property that you purchase incurs stamp duty and registration charges. Apart from that, a down payment is a must which can be anywhere between 10-20% of the property value. The interior and decor may cost you a few lakhs depending on your needs and wants. Also, home furnishing and accessories tend to be cost-intensive. All these expenses add up to your property purchase and require definite provision for them to be taken care of.
There are also certain expenses post buying which mainly constitute the maintenance costs. Whether you plan on buying a house to reside in or as an investment to rent out, you’ll have to pay for periodic maintenance to delay the wear and tear of the property. - Configuration of the house and location:
Yes, you read that right. Configuration of the home that you wish to buy is an overlooked and underrated parameter in the grand affair of buying a house. There are no one size fits. You can buy an apartment ranging from 1BHK to 4 BHK or even a lavish penthouse if you may. However, zeroing down on the perfect configuration for your budget in the location of preference is a mammoth task.
You want a bigger living room, but the balconies are small. The kitchen is just right, but the bedroom doesn’t fit your match. When all of it does fit your criteria, it’s out of your budget. There could be endless possibilities of a mismatch. The only true solution to your problem is having a greater sample space.
Check out as many properties as you can to find the apartment that suits your desired configuration. It is a buyer’s market. There’s always something out there for you. Explore Address India’s website for the best residential properties in Dehradun.