A Guide to Buying and Moving in to Your New Home

One of the most exciting parts of becoming an adult is independence and your ability to decide on so many aspects of your life. One of which is finding a job to sustain your everyday needs first and then maybe go big and purchase your very first car or property of your own. Before buying property, it’s always important to consider the risk factors to be able to make a sound judgment on the steps you will take. Such risk factors include market risks, cash flow, location, land/title, and improvement risks.

For home buyers that are looking for a brand-new home, house and land packages are actually a good way to go. There are two ways in which you can buy a residential property. A pre-owned property or a customized one. When we’re talking about a pre-owned property, it’s pre-existing which means all you could do is to make improvements but it is what it is. A customized one means that you could build it according to your preferences and needs.

So, when you have finally decided to purchase a house and land package, what steps should you take? Allow me to provide you with some ideas.

Look for an Estate

Probably the easiest way to go about this is to look for an estate where developments take place. There are two types: a greenfield site and a brownfield site. The biggest difference between the two is that the former is undeveloped within or outside a city, while the latter is previously developed land that will be regenerated. Developers buy land released by the government or buy them privately and then build infrastructure before selling them off. What you need to do as a buyer is to make sure that the estate you are looking at aligns with your lifestyle and your needs. You should be able to have answers to questions like ‘Is it near a shopping centre?’ or ‘Is it near public transport and to my place of work or school?’ such questions are necessary because they will dictate how much you are going to like the area, especially in the long run.

Find your block

No two blocks are the same and you should keep that in mind. Blocks differ in size and orientation, as well as their proximity to the amenities you would need. These factors play a huge role in how you will be able to build your house in terms of costs. For instance, the orientation affects the energy costs because of the natural light that goes inside your home, as well as the heating and cooling aspect. Make sure the land you chose is ready to be built on and the best way to do this is through your local council.

Do enough research

Doing research is important to know more about your developer and builder. Make sure they are reputable and ask for proof of their previous projects, as well as customer testimonials. Inspect their work and if you can, ask their previous customers about their handiwork. Speaking to local real estate agents is also a smart thing to do. This is also necessary so you can get the price right. Some builders have the tendency to overprice especially if they find out that you have no idea about the whole thing. Now after the construction of your home and it has been turned over to you, the next thing you should do is to make sure that all utilities are set up and working properly. Before moving into your home, your house must be equipped with the things you need.

Make a checklist

When you have so much stuff going on, it is normal that you tend to forget some stuff. The best thing way to prevent this from happening is to make a checklist with all the things you need to accomplish before you move into your new home. Here are some of those that must include in your list.

Contact details – you will need to update your contact details, including your driver’s license, and let the government that you will be moving into a new home and location. You may also want to take care of mail redirection in case.

Sort out keys – This is a no-brainer; a new set of keys will be in your possession and you need to make sure that you have duplicates. Don’t forget to hand back your keys to the owner if you are renting.

Clean up – if you are not able to do it, organize cleaners to clean up your old home. This would minimize the worries that you forgot something important. Disconnect utilities – this is pretty standard procedure, but homeowners tend to forget it. You may want to settle all your backlogs of payment before moving to ensure a clean slate as you enter a new chapter of your life.