Your thinking of packing up the family and moving interstate, but you have no clue where to begin looking for a house. Which suburbs would be OK? Which suburbs should I avoid? Well no need to get stressed, because below are some handy tips to help get you through moving interstate.
1. Know your budget
For most buyers, your budget will dictate which areas you can afford to invest or live in. “The best way to determine your budget is to meet with a mortgage broker or lender and obtain a pre-approval,” says Lisa Parker, buyers advocate from Parker Investment Properties. Knowing your budget is a must before you begin your search.
2. Work out how you’ll want to get around
This is a big one. If you get it wrong, it may jinx the most magnificent house. Because getting around will become a depressing hassle.
Working out your travel choices isn’t too hard, ponder how the people in your house will get to work, school or university. Then experiment, this involves looking at infrastructure and transportation facilities that surround the suburb which will either add or detract to your living experience.
3. Sort suburbs by house price
From step one you’ve already assessed what your willing to spend, this combined with the ideal factors your searching for in a home will allow you to narrow your suburb search.
With the list of suburbs you’ve chosen you are able to sort them by their median price to find which suburbs you can consider. Then print out the list, and highlight the suburbs that are in your price range on a map to give you a picture of the geographical location.
4. Explore neighbouring suburbs
Neighbouring suburbs offer great options for homebuyers and investors. For example, if you go to your favoured suburb and find that you can’t get the type of property your after within your budget, simply moving to either side of that suburb until you find one that suits your budget, you can still have the same qualities and features you’re seeking in a suburb.
5. Isolate lifestyle attractions
Areas that offer lifestyle attractions are always more favourable to buyers and renters when compared with other suburbs that offer minimal amenities. Lifestyle attractions such as walking tracks, large family parks and bushland, creeks, beaches and small community villages all offer a unique point of difference.
6. Don’t always listen to the negative publicity
There are many suburbs across every state that locals may caution against buying in. But sometimes, having a fresh set of eyes without knowing about a suburb’s ‘stigma’ can work in your favour, because you’re looking at the suburb based on the fundamental merits that make a suburb valuable. Lisa Parker explains. “Stigmas will always be forgotten in time – and you will be pleased you bought into the suburb while it was still cheap.”