Buying a house can be an exhilarating experience. Every home owner in NZ has felt the rush of surveying houses for sale, finding that perfect bargain and making the life changing decision to buy. The vast majority of us have then gone through the process of applying for a home loan to make that dream a reality. When deciding on a home loan, there are a number of factors that the savvy buyer should take into consideration before signing on the dotted line.

When finding a house, you will inevitably shop around until you locate the best fit for your needs. The same should always also be true for a home loan. Be sure to search far and wide for the most competitive terms and suitable structure for your financial situation. When buying a house, what you are really signing up for is a loan. It only makes sense then that you would apply the same level of care and reasoning to your choice of loan provider as you would to choosing your new address. Just as there are a plethora of houses for sale in NZ, so too are there an a number of reputable home loan providers who will be willing to talk you through anything you need to know and work with you to put you in your new home.

It is also important to take ownership of your own financial situation, and stay objective in deciding whether you can feasibly pay back the loan. Take any offer and work out what your monthly repayments would be, and be sure to include the possibility of interest rate increases if the terms include a floating rate. This will often seem cheaper in the short term, but you should also factor in the possibility of having to make larger repayments in the future. If you are sitting on the borderline of just barely being able to afford a loan then it is usually a good idea to take a step back and rethink whether you can actually afford this house.

Though you may be emotionally attached to a new property, there are plenty of lovely houses for sale within NZ and it is better to find one that you can definitely afford rather than signing up for an untenable loan. Your real estate agency can often help talk you through the home loan process, assisting you in drawing up a budget and facilitating a dialogue between you and your loan provider. So long as you stay smart and only sign up to what you can actually afford, you are bound to find long term happiness in the house of your dreams.