Prospective first home buyers in community get free-expert advice

Many prospective first home buyers in the Indian community in Christchurch were delighted to hear some precious advice on how to arranging capital from a seasoned expert.

“For turn-key projects – house and land packages, you pay a deposit upfront and the remainder when the property is complete. It's important to note that you may be able to purchase such a package with as little as 5 percent deposit.

"And your KiwiSaver first-home withdrawal or KiwiSaver HomeStart Grant can make a part or all of your deposit,” informed Mr Nathan Miglani, from Loan Market, while addressing the gathering at a free first-home buying seminar organised by the Christchurch-based social organisation Indian Cultural Group (ICG) on April 10.

The seminar was part of a series of informative sessions ICG organises, dealing with issues of health, finances, and women empowerment. On the need for this particular initiative about buying property, Mr Sandeep Sachdev, President of ICG, added,

“Arranging finance for buying a property is a complicated process, especially for first-home buyers. That's why we brought in Nathan to spread awareness among the Indian community on their options.”

Explaining what he calls eight keys that banks consider before approving mortgages, Mr Miglani noted, “Credit history, security against the loan, terms of the loan, repayment arrangements, the purpose for buying the property, capacity for repayment, and upfront deposit, are the main considerations.

Most first home buyers don't have 20 percent deposit, but you will need at least 5 percent of genuine savings to qualify for a brand new turn-key property.”