First Home Buyers.. here is what you have been waiting for.. a step by step process guide from our very own Codie Sanders as she navigates her way through purchasing her first home. Codie discusses more on the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme (FHLDS) and what she had to do to secure her spot.
Part One:
Codie discusses why she decided to use the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme and how it will help her get into the market. She also discusses the type of lender she has decided to use and why.
Part Two:
Codie chats about her process so far, and where she had to start, from getting her documents together then what happens next with her application…
Part Three:
Codie’s application has been submitted with lender of choice, now what?
Part Four:
Codie checks in whilst working from home amid the COVID-19 Pandemic to give us an update on where her loan and First Home Loan Deposit Scheme is up to….
Part Five:
Codie updates us with part five, of her own first home buying process… and it’s some exciting news She has had an offer accepted!!!
Part Six:
ITS OFFICIAL…. Home contracts were signed with a 5 business day cooling off period to allow us to get independent pest and building inspection and it also allowed our lender to do a valuation on the property. We were happy with everything and the property exchanged unconditionally!! Yippee. WE SIGNED OUR HOME LOAN DOCUMENTS (Woohoo) and now its the waiting game until our settlement date. Most home contracts generally settle 42 days (6 weeks) after your contracts are signed – this varies depending on your specific contract.
Part Seven:
YAY!!! The day has come.. S E T T L E M E N T D A Y
Settlement day is when the keys get handed over. The lender, broker, real estate agent and both vendor and purchaser solicitors do all the nitty gritty and it is where funds are transferred, deeds are transferred and all the legal stuff is done… but for me its when we FINALLY get to move into our FIRST HOME!
The Process:
To recap, we started this journey at the start of March 2020, when we decided to buy a home. With the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme on offer it was too good not to, as we only had a 5% deposit and it was a good opportunity to get into the property market without paying Mortgage Insurance, and stop paying dead money on rent.
It took about a week for me to collate all of the documents required to be able submit to the lender, the assessment team looked over the deal as soon as I handed all the documents in and we went over suitable options. We then prepared an application to submit to the lender we chose. From the day we started it took around 2 weeks for our application to be submitted and we got conditional approval.
At around the 4 weeks mark we heard that we successfully had a spot with the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme and it was now time to work towards Finding a house and Formal Approval.
After many weeks house hunting, and including a National COVID-19 lockdown thrown in there we GOT AN OFFER ACCEPTED!
We got the contracts sent to our conveyancer and they co-operated with our broker (Ben) and basically took care of the rest to get the Valuations done, Formal approval and discussed all the things we should know, signed contracts and all we had to do as first home buyers is count down the days until we were home owners and plan our decor.
in total the process took around 4 months for us, however it flew past and felt like only weeks. It is good as a first home buyer if you are thinking about making the step to start your own journey to know realistic timelines and what to expect. If you find a house one day and like it, chances are you wont be prepared to successfully purchase it unless you have been pre-approved first, as lending has changed A LOT since our parents may have strolled into a bank and walked out with a cheque. There are many lenders with offers that change each month, and have different criteria for different clients, that is why it is BEST to talk to a broker to find you the right deal, with the best lender for your circumstance.
If you would like to talk to a myself, from a First Home Buyer perspective, or you would like to talk to one of the Nectar Home Loans Hunter team to answer any questions or get your First Home Buyer journey started call us at the office on (02)4040 0910