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Building a property is serious business and that means getting serious about your finances. Whether it’s your first home or not, going it alone or working as a team, it can be overwhelming figuring out where you’re at and where you need to be financially.
But don’t panic, we’ll walk you through a simple step-by-step financial health check so you can ask yourself: am I ready?
What are my assets?
Buying a home is about more than just saving for a deposit. First, let’s figure out the health of your total assets. Add up the dollar value of each of these factors:
What are my liabilities?
You can use ASIC’s Moneysmart site to help you add up your assets and subtract your liabilities, figuring out your net worth here.
Check your credit
Even if your net worth is looking pretty healthy, it’s vitally important you double-check your credit rating. Something as seemingly innocuous as an overlooked utility bill from 10 years ago can trip you up when a bank assesses your suitability.
Check your contact details are correct and that all loans or debts listed are yours. The credit reporting agency may be able to fix minor mistakes, otherwise you should contact the creditor directly to dispute the listing.
Context is key
Once you’ve figured out your financial health and checked your credit, it’s worth doing a bit more homework to make sure you’re ready to build.
After you’ve scoped out your financial health and your personal home owning goals, measuring that against the bigger picture nationally, you’ll have a much better idea whether you are ready to buy, or if you need a bit more time to work on your bottom line.
Whatever you decide, Smooth Start is here to help guide you. Get in touch with us to find out how to kick start your journey to home ownership.