Re-opening the “My First Home Buyer Journey” blog series (23rd September 2024)

What happened since the last blog post?

When I last wrote “My First Home Buyer Journey” in early February 2024, I had to put the series on hold as my borrowing capacity was not large enough to buy the ideal property and suburb for my needs. Even though I was still saving money for my home deposit, I was looking to work more days. This would boost my income which would increase my borrowing capacity, allowing me to buy a better property in the suburb I want to live in.

Since that last blog post, a lot of things happened in my life. Primarily, I had to leave one of my roles at the end of April 2024. Even though I spent a few more months to finish off my work, this put a massive damper on my pursuit to buy my first home. Not only was my income irregular and inconsistent which would have made it difficult for me to get a home loan, but I also had to focus on finding more work.

It took me four months of searching and applying for jobs before I managed to land another role. That role was in the same university as my other role, allowing me to work full-time in one workplace. This means I would receive my pay under one payroll, making it easier to show evidence of my income. Not only that, but I was also earning more money now than I would have had I stayed in my old role. Combined, these have increased my borrowing capacity which have motivated me to start searching for my first home again.

Because of this, I will be reopening the “My First Home Buyer Journey” series. As I start ramping up my first home search again, I would like to record my journey of finding and buying my first home. The updates might not be weekly as my home search activity may vary throughout this journey, but I will attempt to write regularly where I can. Additionally, I may also write on some recent issues in Australia’s property market from my perspective. I have in mind a recent topic issue in Australia that I would like to write about. It will be in an innovative format that would shed light on the different perspectives behind that particular issue.

For now, I would like to record what I have been doing in my home property search over the past 7 months. Even though I have not started property hunting in earnest, I have taken some steps to research the suburbs I would like to live in and get myself prepared for the property hunt.

What I have been doing in the property hunt?

Over the past several months, I have been thinking about the suburbs that I would like to live in. I have been exploring a few suburbs before and after I decided to put the “My First Home Buyer Journey” blog series on ice. As I came to start in my new role, I have narrowed my focus to two groups of neighbouring suburbs: one in inner east Melbourne and the other in inner south east Melbourne. Both groups are not only near train stations, but they are also close to amenities which would support my independent living. Narrowing my focus on these two groups of neighbouring suburbs would allow me to focus my property research in these areas.

Over the suburbs I have chosen, I have continued to look at all properties that have been sold in the past few months to narrow down the properties and the areas that I would like to buy. I have also been keeping track of the auction results in these suburbs to get a feel of what the property markets are like in these areas. The research work I have been putting in has been massively helpful in understanding how hot the property market is in each suburb. This will allow me to plan how I should approach each property market and how I will set the right price for the property I would like to buy.

Supplementing my desktop property research has been my in-person attendance to a few inspections and auctions. In terms of inspections, I have been looking at what properties in the suburbs are like and how easy it would be for me to walk to the train station and nearby amenities. I have also been observing a few auctions to see how they operate and how people put bids. This will be helpful in planning my approach to auctions and how I should price properties before an auction.

Lastly, having earned a regular income from both jobs, I have submitted my pre-approval application with a bank. I noted earlier that with my full-time job, my borrowing capacity has increased, and I also have a large deposit. However, my maximum borrowing capacity is still not enough for me to buy a property that I can live for a long time, in the suburb that I want to live in.

Hence, I am applying for the Victorian Homebuyer Fund with the bank. It is basically a shared equity scheme where the Victorian government owns part of the property I purchase. Getting in the fund would allow me to buy a better property for myself that I can live in for a longer period of time. The drawback of trying to get into the fund is that it takes six weeks to get pre-approval. That is because I need to get approval from both the bank and the Victorian Government to apply for the scheme. Even though the approval process from the bank does not take too long, there is a long queue to get approval from the Victorian Government to get in the scheme. It is such a long wait to get pre-approval, particularly when the property market is opening up for spring. There’s also the possibility that I might miss out on getting in the scheme as there is only a limited number of spots.

Nevertheless, getting into the Fund is a better option for me to buy and live in a property for a longer period of time. Additionally, I have some time to keep doing my desktop research and attending inspections and auctions to be well-informed of what the market is like in the suburbs I want to live in. By the time I get pre-approval from the bank, I will have been ready to dive into the property market, and make a serious effort to buy the property that I want, whether by private sale or by auction.