Buying a First Home: Needs vs Wants
Buying your first ever house is a daunting process. One of the most daunting elements of all is working out how on earth you are going to find the money for the deposit, and ultimately purchase a property where the mortgage requirements that you will be committed to remain feasible for you.It is well documented that house prices are many times earnings and even with the recent flat market and even minor fall in some places, there has been nothing like the big correction many expected to bring prices more in line with affordability for the average person or couple buying. The result of this? The need for compromise in order to be able to get on the property ladder... very few people can get all that they want when it comes to their first property.
The best way to work out what you can afford to compromise on, then, is to try and come up with a list of your 'dream home'. Then get a blank piece of paper, and create two columns: call one 'needs' and the other 'wants'.
The deal-breakers - the things that you couldn't get a house without - go in the needs column, whilst the others - ensuites, a nice back garden and so on, go in the wants column. Going through this process will help you focus on what it is that you actually want, and if buying with a partner will give you a greater understanding of what each of you wants, and ultimately help you get the right house for you. You could even break your list down into individual categories such as 'garden' with a list of things you need and want in a garden. Categories are an efficient way of displaying information.
Most importantly, it will give you a clear steer when looking at properties or talking to an estate agent as to what you really must have and that which you simply want. By ensuring that your need list is realistic and not just a flight of fancy, you may bring a lot more properties into an affordable price range. For instance, if you up your commute to work from 30 minutes to an hour, and you currently work in the centre of a city, then by doing this you bring into play properties another 30 or so miles from the city, and this invariably means places where you can get a lot more property for your money as broadly speaking the closer you are to the centre of a city the more expensive.
So get writing that list, and see what you need and what you merely want when it comes to buying your dream home!
