thedutchman
Expert Member
wanna buy my flat at canal walk ?? 2 bed, 2 bath, balcony, sea view, robbenisland, tablemountin 
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Tips for buying a house first time?
- Thread starter xrapidx
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I'd never pay that for rent in Jhb - not even in places like Houghton Estate, Sandton... I'm in Cape Town
Yeh - think so - I didn't mind the previous place I was renting - that wasn't too bad - but this place is a bit excessive. It is only temporary though - max will be August this year - then I have to have found a place.
Just can't find that damn thread.
The way it works is like so.... Went through this in detail last week.
If you offer 800,000 on a property - and the bank values it at 1,000,000 - you can then take out a bond of 1,000,000 - which, with a 10% deposit, requires R100,000 deposit. But since you're only paying R800,000 for the property, you have R200,000 to play around with, which means you can use 100,000 for the deposit.
You still only owe R800,000 - but have a registered bond amount of R1,000,000
Does that make sense? Sounds confusing...
wanna buy my flat at canal walk ?? 2 bed, 2 bath, balcony, sea view, robbenisland, tablemountin
does it take two dogs, and is 160m2+?Ou grote
Honorary Master
I'd never pay that for rent in Jhb - not even in places like Houghton Estate, Sandton... I'm in Cape Town
Yeh - think so - I didn't mind the previous place I was renting - that wasn't too bad - but this place is a bit excessive. It is only temporary though - max will be August this year - then I have to have found a place.
Just can't find that damn thread.
The way it works is like so.... Went through this in detail last week.
If you offer 800,000 on a property - and the bank values it at 1,000,000 - you can then take out a bond of 1,000,000 - which, with a 10% deposit, requires R100,000 deposit. But since you're only paying R800,000 for the property, you have R200,000 to play around with, which means you can use 100,000 for the deposit.
You still only owe R800,000 - but have a registered bond amount of R1,000,000
Does that make sense? Sounds confusing...
I think u started mentioned it in that how much do you earn thread.
So want a house, town house, flat?
What area?
blunomore
Honorary Master
I'd never pay that for rent in Jhb - not even in places like Houghton Estate, Sandton... I'm in Cape Town
Maybe you just have an aversion to JHB
Sandton Proper is indeed crazy with its prices, though. A 80 square metre flat with 1 bedroom and 1 bathroom in the Michelangelo Towers goes for R4 million.
It is of course a cliche, but the best advice I can offer is the old 'location, location, location'.
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Just checking my understanding. Not trying to be funny or point out mistakes. In this example wouldn't you owe R900k?
thedutchman
Expert Member
no
well, okay, two dogs, you mean, two tiny little things that will break if you step on it! but they are so cute, i know 160m2 + will be difficult to get around CC. maybe you have to look at pinelands..
Ou grote
Honorary Master
I thought I was paying a lot of rent!
Dude , buy a place!
Some tips :
1. Look into buying a new property from a developer and you save quite a bit of fees (like transfer duties) I've noticed a lot of places advertising "reduced prices" as property developers adjust prices -never was like that before.
2. Yes , yes it's a pain, but serious you won't regret saving a deposit before doing your purchase, even if its a small one, it will knock years off your bond!
3. Bargain. When you see something you like, try not to get emotionally attached just yet. First bargain. Point out a few good things about the place to the seller, and then point out all the crap things about the place, ie. loose tiles, only 1 parking, no pets, bad brick work, noisy street, small spaces, repairs that will be needed.
Then bargain hard. Everyone I know who purchased a place saved a couple of grand on bargaining. I've heard of guys who've got sweet deals, by being extremely fussy about this.
4. Make sure you are getting a good deal , by comparing houses in the area. Use this as a tool when bargaining, "I saw this place down the road with an extra budgie for Rxxxxx less"
5. Did I mention bargain ? When I bought my place, I even asked the lawyers for a 10% discount on their fees (apparently they get/got those requests quite often.)
I got my discount without hesitation, even thought it felt a bit awkward requesting it, every bit helped
6. If you put an extra couple of rand into your bond from the first month you start paying the banks back, you will also knock off years off your bond. (Saving compounds monthly!)
7. The estate agent might be cute and friendly, but shes not really on your side, she's there for her commission! When I made my first offer I was told "Ooo no, that's so low, I don't think they will accept, but I'll ask"
My first offer was accepted.
(damn I should have offered lower!)
8. Ask the estate agent to make sure there is an approved electrical certificate before signing anything. ( An electrician usually goes around and fixes all the ends and odds that are not up to safety standards.
9. Only go house hunting with a bond pre-approved letter from your bank -you don't want to find something you like, only to realize it can take weeks to get approved. Chances are, it will get snapped up by someone else.
Happy hunting !
Dude , buy a place!
Some tips :
1. Look into buying a new property from a developer and you save quite a bit of fees (like transfer duties) I've noticed a lot of places advertising "reduced prices" as property developers adjust prices -never was like that before.
2. Yes , yes it's a pain, but serious you won't regret saving a deposit before doing your purchase, even if its a small one, it will knock years off your bond!
3. Bargain. When you see something you like, try not to get emotionally attached just yet. First bargain. Point out a few good things about the place to the seller, and then point out all the crap things about the place, ie. loose tiles, only 1 parking, no pets, bad brick work, noisy street, small spaces, repairs that will be needed.
Then bargain hard. Everyone I know who purchased a place saved a couple of grand on bargaining. I've heard of guys who've got sweet deals, by being extremely fussy about this.
4. Make sure you are getting a good deal , by comparing houses in the area. Use this as a tool when bargaining, "I saw this place down the road with an extra budgie for Rxxxxx less"
5. Did I mention bargain ? When I bought my place, I even asked the lawyers for a 10% discount on their fees (apparently they get/got those requests quite often.)
I got my discount without hesitation, even thought it felt a bit awkward requesting it, every bit helped
6. If you put an extra couple of rand into your bond from the first month you start paying the banks back, you will also knock off years off your bond. (Saving compounds monthly!)
7. The estate agent might be cute and friendly, but shes not really on your side, she's there for her commission! When I made my first offer I was told "Ooo no, that's so low, I don't think they will accept, but I'll ask"
My first offer was accepted.
(damn I should have offered lower!)
8. Ask the estate agent to make sure there is an approved electrical certificate before signing anything. ( An electrician usually goes around and fixes all the ends and odds that are not up to safety standards.
9. Only go house hunting with a bond pre-approved letter from your bank -you don't want to find something you like, only to realize it can take weeks to get approved. Chances are, it will get snapped up by someone else.
Happy hunting !
Not looking for a specific area - where ever I find a good bargain
I mostly work from home - so as long as its a decent area.ABSA screwed up my last offer - The place was advertised at R1,899,000 - The bank valued it at R1,650,000 - but took to long - I offered R1,400,00 which the owner said they would have accepted, but they signed a long term lease the day I made the offer (last week Friday). Thanks ABSA!
Looking for a house
Maybe you just have an aversion to JHB
Jhb. sucks - lived there on two separate occasions for a year each time - horrid place (no offense Jhb. people.
What he said
no
Little rats (they're not mine).
thedutchman
Expert Member
do you work from home or do you have to be somewhere every morning ??
I thought I was paying a lot of rent!
Dude , buy a place!
Some tips :
1. Look into buying a new property from a developer and you save quite a bit of fees (like transfer duties) I've noticed a lot of places advertising "reduced prices" as property developers adjust prices -never was like that before.
2. Yes , yes it's a pain, but serious you won't regret saving a deposit before doing your purchase, even if its a small one, it will knock years off your bond!
3. Bargain. When you see something you like, try not to get emotionally attached just yet. First bargain. Point out a few good things about the place to the seller, and then point out all the crap things about the place, ie. loose tiles, only 1 parking, no pets, bad brick work, noisy street, small spaces, repairs that will be needed.
Then bargain hard. Everyone I know who purchased a place saved a couple of grand on bargaining. I've heard of guys who've got sweet deals, by being extremely fussy about this.
4. Make sure you are getting a good deal , by comparing houses in the area. Use this as a tool when bargaining, "I saw this place down the road with an extra budgie for Rxxxxx less"
5. Did I mention bargain ? When I bought my place, I even asked the lawyers for a 10% discount on their fees (apparently they get/got those requests quite often.)
I got my discount without hesitation, even thought it felt a bit awkward requesting it, every bit helped
6. If you put an extra couple of rand into your bond from the first month you start paying the banks back, you will also knock off years off your bond. (Saving compounds monthly!)
7. The estate agent might be cute and friendly, but shes not really on your side, she's there for her commission! When I made my first offer I was told "Ooo no, that's so low, I don't think they will accept, but I'll ask"
My first offer was accepted.
(damn I should have offered lower!)
8. Ask the estate agent to make sure there is an approved electrical certificate before signing anything. ( An electrician usually goes around and fixes all the ends and odds that are not up to safety standards.
9. Only go house hunting with a bond pre-approved letter from your bank -you don't want to find something you like, only to realize it can take weeks to get approved. Chances are, it will get snapped up by someone else.
Happy hunting !
1.) Mainly looking for house - so that limits from the developer
2.) Problem is - a 15% deposit on R1,500,000 is R225,000 Then add R80,000 for transfer duties, etc. - who has that kind of money saved?
3.) Thats what I'm trying.
Most places I start off with an offer of -25% asking price, which is usually about -15% bank valuation price.4.) See 3.
5.) If I can choose the lawyers, I'll get most of it virtually free - but its the sellers choice.
6.) Yip - Plan on paying off what ever I buy WELL before the loan is up.
7.) Its a guy - and he tries the same, "I don't think they'll go any lower".
8.) I make sure EVERYTHING is in the offer to purchase, like working stoves, pool filters, lights, etc.
9.) A lot of banks aren't doing this anymore. ABSA told me what price range I can look for based on my income and expenditure, but said they won't do "pre-approved". I was about to do an RA - but they advised me to hold off until after the bond is approved, as it affects my affordability
See my post above yours
Mainly work from home - but do go into the office quiet often these days actually - traffics not an issue to me though -I'll just go in at 11 and come home at 8
It's a buyers market, and the last two properties I purchased I insisted that I chose the conveyancer and it was written as a condition in the formal offer to purchase - this way my lawyer did the bond registration (only on the one property) and the conveyancing at a large discount.
It is usually the agent that resists this because they get kick-backs from the lawyers.
thedutchman
Expert Member
thats true, no one is getting their houses sold, so if you can get a loan from the bank you can demand the lawyers, you can demand a good price cut, lol, i just had to laugh, 1.5 million for a house, with a swimming pool 
where ?? not in cape town
where ?? not in cape town Yes, the lawyers are settling for discounts of 20~30% these days, but remember that its only their fees that are discounted and the larger portion of the conveyancing cost goes to the deeds office for registration which of course cannot be discounted.thats true, no one is getting their houses sold, so if you can get a loan from the bank you can demand the lawyers, you can demand a good price cut, lol, i just had to laugh, 1.5 million for a house, with a swimming pool
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Firstly you only have yourself to blame for your current predicament of having no savings while spending R11K on rent! That's obviously a decent place you're living in and you didn't plan for the future.
I found the cheapest little place I could find (1 bedroom, 1 bathroom, granny flat on someone's property) and started saving and saving and saving ...
Okay enough with the lambasting.
I've just bought a house in Pretoria (200m2 freestanding house + 1000m2 stand for R830K) so here are my experiences and suggestions.
1. If you haven't saved a deposit and you really need or want to buy now (while it's a buyer's market) then beg and borrow from someone who can help you with the deposit.
2. Save up for the "transfer costs" (conveyancing fees, attorney fees, bond registration fees, etc.) if you can't get someone to help you with that too.
3. Try to buy from a developer or a CC that is VAT registered. If the seller is VAT registered, by law they have to include the VAT in the purchase price.
On my house of R830K the seller has to pay SARS R60K in tax and I am exempt from paying the transfer duty to SARS (I saved R16500).
4. Work through a decent bond originator. Preferably SA Home Loans.
There is a lot of paper work to do and it really helps when someone who knows how it's done can handle the process for you. Buying a house is one of the most complex, obfuscated processes I have ever seen.
I applied through a bond originator and after 3 weeks of waiting I applied at SA Home Loans. I had the final grant from SA Home Loans before Nedbank, ABSA or FNB had even started the evaluation of the property (and they had a 3 week headstart)!
SA Home Loans attorneys are 50% cheaper than other bond originators attorneys.
They take about 5 days from application to final grant of the bond!
Their rates are usually more competitive than what you'll get from the banks directly or through another bond originator because there is no commission involved.
(Their rates are based on JIBAR and not prime but you can go read about it.)
5. Be prepared for a little stress. I found the waiting and anticipation rather stressful while the bond application was in process.
I found the cheapest little place I could find (1 bedroom, 1 bathroom, granny flat on someone's property) and started saving and saving and saving ...
Okay enough with the lambasting.
I've just bought a house in Pretoria (200m2 freestanding house + 1000m2 stand for R830K) so here are my experiences and suggestions.
1. If you haven't saved a deposit and you really need or want to buy now (while it's a buyer's market) then beg and borrow from someone who can help you with the deposit.
2. Save up for the "transfer costs" (conveyancing fees, attorney fees, bond registration fees, etc.) if you can't get someone to help you with that too.
3. Try to buy from a developer or a CC that is VAT registered. If the seller is VAT registered, by law they have to include the VAT in the purchase price.
On my house of R830K the seller has to pay SARS R60K in tax and I am exempt from paying the transfer duty to SARS (I saved R16500).
4. Work through a decent bond originator. Preferably SA Home Loans.
There is a lot of paper work to do and it really helps when someone who knows how it's done can handle the process for you. Buying a house is one of the most complex, obfuscated processes I have ever seen.
I applied through a bond originator and after 3 weeks of waiting I applied at SA Home Loans. I had the final grant from SA Home Loans before Nedbank, ABSA or FNB had even started the evaluation of the property (and they had a 3 week headstart)!
SA Home Loans attorneys are 50% cheaper than other bond originators attorneys.
They take about 5 days from application to final grant of the bond!
Their rates are usually more competitive than what you'll get from the banks directly or through another bond originator because there is no commission involved.
(Their rates are based on JIBAR and not prime but you can go read about it.)
5. Be prepared for a little stress.
I found the waiting and anticipation rather stressful while the bond application was in process.
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Ou grote
Honorary Master
So now that you're settling down, your gf must be thinking about the future...
A future with u...
A future with u...
thedutchman
Expert Member
i bet you she is already looking for the "perfec" rings and she probably already knows, where she wants her dress to be made, oh boy!!! make sure the house is in your name, otherwise she will take it away
Well xrapidx, it sounds like you got your bases covered and just need to doo eeet!
I must agree with Paul_s though, in the long term, a deposit is better, even if that means downgrading your accommodation for 8 months or so. But that means moving and you said you don't want to do that.
Be patient and I'm sure the right buy will come along.
I must agree with Paul_s though, in the long term, a deposit is better, even if that means downgrading your accommodation for 8 months or so. But that means moving and you said you don't want to do that.
Be patient and I'm sure the right buy will come along.