When you buy property, it can take a significant toll on your wellbeing. It’s important to do what you can to effectively manage stress.
The process of buying a house affects the mental and emotional wellbeing of 51% of Australians, according to data from one of the world’s biggest insurance providers, Allianz.
Stress can have adverse health effects on our wellbeing. Mental and emotional stress can be transferred to our physical wellbeing. It’s important that we can identify when it’s impacting us and takes steps to reduce long-lasting and negative effects.
Whether you’re a first home buyer, buying a new home to live in, or investing in real estate; we’ll be sharing some strategies that can help you to cope with stress when buying a house.
Stress management techniques for when you buy property
Working with the right team
When you’re in the market to buy property it’s imperative that you work with the right team of professionals. These people do the hard work for you and reduce your stress. This gives you more time to focus on things that matter, like enjoying the freedom your new property can give you.
It all starts with having the right property specialist and broker. It doesn’t matter if you’re buying for investment or owner-occupied purposes - these people will help you understand your limits, align your finances and property needs with your goals, and identify how it works with your long-term strategy.
Furthermore, you’ll need a team comprised of some of the following professionals (dependent on whether the property will be an investment or owner-occupied home).
Solicitor/ conveyancer
Accountant
Property manager
Removalists
Set yourself realistic timeframes
Having a rough understanding of the market you're buying in can help you set realistic timeframes. In fact, buying a house can take anywhere between 6 weeks to 12+ months. In the current market it can even take longer with the high demand, especially if you’re building a property.
Being realistic around timing can prevent you from beating yourself up and reduce your stress of the process.
Get a pre-approval home loan
Seeking the assistance of a broker who can help you get a pre-approval home loan will give you the confidence and reassurance around your buying power. A pre-approval is when a lender agrees to lend you money but hasn’t proceeded to the final approval. It can also put you in a favourable position with the seller, in comparison to buyers that don’t have one.
A mortgage broker/ finance specialist can help you navigate the most suitable loan products on the market from a wide range of lenders. Furthermore, they can assist you with getting a pre-approval home loan.
Have savings for upfront costs
It doesn’t matter if you’re a first home buyer or buying another property, you should always have flexible savings for upfront costs. These costs include LMI, transfer duty, conveyancing fees, and more.
The last thing you want is to stress over these often-missed costs. It’s important that you have enough savings to cover these expenses.
There’s no such thing as perfection when it comes to investing
If you’re looking to buy property for investment purposes, you should always prioritise logic over emotions. Don’t look for property with features that are aesthetically pleasing. Instead, look for property that will generate you the best return or align with your long-term wealth creation goals.
Other techniques
· Understand what you want, but be flexible
· Ask lots of questions
· Practice gratitude
Conclusion
There’s a plethora of stress management techniques that you can implement when buying a house. REIF can provide you finance and mortgage lending support, plus more. We also have access to a range of professionals that can support you in the house buying process.
If you require any assistance, we'd be happy to support you. Please reach out on the details listed below.
Ph: 1300 130 932
Email: clientservices@reif.com.au
We explore this topic in our eBook 'Guide to Buying Your First Home.' Check it out here for FREE!
