Have your finances in order so that you're ready to act as soon as something takes your fancy. Meet with your lender or mortgage broker to have your loan pre-approved and determine exactly how much you can borrow. Also factor in your additional costs such as stamp duty so that you know exactly how much you can afford to spend. (More details visit www.aimsloans.com.au  or speak to Cinon Real Estate Network consultant to arrange the best loan to suit your needs.)

Do your research by inspecting as many properties as you can. prepare a short list of preferred areas that suit your lifestyle. Keep in mind affordability and accommodation requirements. Viewing properties online and asking questions – our sales people are here to assist and navigate you through the buying process.

Define your ‘must haves’ in a property. e.g. parking, internal laundry, views etc and try to refine your search to properties meeting the majority of these criteria.

First time buyers may be eligible for benefits under the First Home Owner Grant Scheme.
For full details go to www.osr.nsw.gov.au/benefits/first_home  . First time buyers may also receive exemptions and relief on stamp duty. Go to www.osr.nsw.gov.au/benefits/first_home/general/fhplus  to find out if you are entitled.

A solicitor or conveyancer will need to read the contract of sale on your behalf. When you find a property that suits your requirements, ask your agent to send a copy of the sale contract to your solicitor or conveyancer. If you don't have one, we can recommend a trustworthy contact for you.

We recommend you undertake both building and pest inspections on any property you're seriously considering buying. Make you aware of any major defects and pest concerns eg: white ant, termites. If you're looking at apartments then a strata or company title search is imperative – your solicitor or conveyancer can arrange for this.

If you're planning on buying at auction, we recommend you review the NSW Office of Fair Trading’s Bidder’s Guide to make sure you fully understand the procedure and legalities.
Go to www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/About_us/Publications/Property_and_tenancy/ftr31biddersguide.html
 

Houses and apartments will attract council and water rates payable quarterly. Apartments will also attract additional strata or company title quarterly levies which contribute to the overall maintenance of the building.

Overseas buyers should take a look at the website www.firb.gov.au   and check with a legal advisor to ascertain what property they are eligible to purchase in Australia.

Once negotiations have been finalised, you will be required to sign the sale contract and pay a 10% deposit. Your deposit will be held in trust in an interest bearing account until settlement.
Interest is normally equally divided between you and the vendor. The vendor will sign their sale contract and the solicitor/conveyancer or agent will exchange the contracts.

Some helpful hints to understand the process and terminology of a property purchase:

• Offer and acceptance – where an offer made by the purchaser is accepted by the vendor.
• Exchange – when the sales contract has been signed by both parties (purchaser and vendor) and the purchaser pays a 10% deposit to purchase the property.
•  Pre-settlement inspection – you will normally inspect your purchase in the days leading up to settlement to make sure it's in the same condition as when you last inspected it and that the inclusions and exclusions are as agreed in the contract.

Settlement – there is generally a period of 42 days from the exchange of contract to the time that you as the new owner take possession of the property ie the settlement date. The balance of the purchase price needs to be paid at settlement.