Buying your first property can be an overwhelming experience. It can be hard to work out what to do first, what to do next and whether you've got everything done when it comes to crunch time. Here's a step by step process for first home buyers to simplify the stress!

Step One - Find out how much you can borrow & obtain a Pre Approval (talk to us!)

Step Two - Inspect properties in your price range
Once you know your borrowing capacity you can then search for and inspect properties in your price range.

Step Three - Attain contract of sale for property you are interested in purchasing
Once you have found a house or unit that you are interested in purchasing you should ask the real estate agent for a copy of the contract of sale as you would like to make an offer In most cases you would obviously make an offer that is less than the listed price. This offer should be made in writing and is conveyed to the real estate agent. The real estate agent is compelled by law to pass the offer on to the seller. Once negotiations are complete, and you and the seller have come to an agreement on the price you will be required to put a deposit down.

Step Four - Organise full finance approval & organise pest & building inspections.
After the purchase price has been agreed upon you should then attain full finance approval carry out inspections and have your legal representative conduct searches.

1. Full loan approval - To arrange formal loan approval you should immediately fax the front page of the contract to the person or organisation that arranged your pre approval. They will then organise a valuation. If the valuation is satisfactory to the lender and the mortgage insurer full approval should be achieved.

2. Pest & building inspections - You should immediately get in contact with a building & pest inspector who can conduct these inspections. Although a pest & building inspection may cost you up to $600 it is worth it when you consider you are purchasing real estate that could possibly be costing you hundreds of thousands of dollars. It will give you peace of mind about your purchase.

3. Searches - your conveyance/solicitor conducts these. They include title searches and strata searches (if you are purchasing in a unit complex).

If you are purchasing by way of auction, pest & building inspections and the searches should be carried out before bidding. The formal loan approval is usually attained after you have bid successfully, as the purchase price is not yet known.

Step Five - Sign the loan letter of offer and mortgage documents
Usually within a week of full finance approval you will receive from your lender a loan contract and mortgage documents. You should read this documentation very carefully before signing and returning to the lender. The main things to look out for are the loan amount, interest rate, fees and repayments. If you find any errors in the documentation you should immediately contact the person or organisation that arranged the finance. To avoid any delays with settlement you should carry out this step ASAP.

Step Six - Settlement
The date of the settlement is the date that you take legal ownership of the house or unit. Once your conveyancer is satisfied that everything is okay to proceed settlement will be booked. Your solicitor will contact the bank. Your solicitor or conveyancer will usually inform you a week prior to settlement of any extra funds to be supplied by you (for any extra costs such as stamp duty). You are generally not required to attend settlement. Once all of this is complete you will receive the keys from the real estate agent and then you can move in.