House buying in New Zealand - a personal experience

Determine what you want and need in a house

Before you start the process of looking for a house, write down a list of things that you "need" in the house and another list of the things that you "want" in the house. The list of "needs" should include those things that you view as critical requirements. The list of "wants" are "nice to have" features that would be great to own, but not necessary. For example, it would be nice to have an indoor bowling alley but "I don't really need one". However, "I do need a three bedroom house that will enable my family of two children to have a bedroom each."

• Style of kitchen - gas or electric
• Number of bedrooms
• Number of bathrooms
• Number of separate toilets
• Additional rooms - rumpus room, conservatory, studio, home office
• Garaging - double or single, with / without internal access, off street parking
• Luxury features - swimming pool, spa pool, spa bath

Factor in future requirements:
Try to consider your requirements for the next 5 years. For example, consider extra bedrooms if you are planning a family. Try to put these future requirements in order of importance. Try and order "must haves" (needs) and "nice to have" items (wants). Unless you are very wealthy you will need to make compromises - like forgetting about a house with an indoor bowling alley.

How much are you prepared to renovate?
Are you prepared to renovate or repair the house? There are varying degrees of house renovation. Which category applies to you?

• I don't ever want to do house renovations
• I am willing to do minor house renovations such as wallpapering and painting but not more detailed work
• I am a home handyman who enjoys knocking out interior walls or rebuilding bathrooms in my spare time
• I am willing to pay a professional tradesperson to make minor renovations to my house
• I am willing to pay a professional tradesperson to make major renovations to my house

Many houses will need at least some remedial work to correct minor flaws - if you can find a house that you are 90% happy with, you are ahead. You need to determine just how much house renovating you are willing to undertake when buying your home and you should keep this firmly in mind when searching for your new house.

Location is one of the most important decisions that you will have to make when buying a house.

For example, if your key requirements are "a sea view", there is no point in considering a house that has a "valley view". If another key requirement is "close to airport", then you will be only interested in houses that are close to the airport and offer a sea view. It is most unlikely that you will consider houses outside of these parameters, no matter how appealing they may be.

Other location parameters include local facilities – public transport, shopping, dining, schools, hospitals, sporting and leisure venues, entertainment and proximity to natural features like beaches and parks.

Having a narrow list of suburbs that offer your key requirements will make the house hunting process a lot quicker and avoid wasting time. This is particularly true if you are planning on buying a house in a city or in a large town with many suburbs.

If you are visitor to New zealand, the Travelhops New Zealand travel guide has information on most New Zealand locations suitable for property research pursposes.

Scout potential areas by car and foot:
Once you have determined what you require in a location, get a map and spend some time searching for the suburbs or areas that might fit your location criteria. Be open minded - sometimes you can surprise yourself when you find a suitable area tucked away that you never knew existed.

Spend time driving around the suburbs that you have selected to get a feel for what they offer. Get out of your car and walk around a few streets. Evaluate the neighbourhood based on the quality of houses. 

• Are the houses in the area well maintained? 
• Are there lots of barking or roaming dogs in the street? 
• Is the suburb popular with students who have loud parties? 
• Is there a gang headquarters around the corner? 
• Does the neighbourhood consist mainly of young families? 
• What standard of cars are parked on the street? 

And so on.....

Location, location, location:
Remember the old cliche "Location, location, location". Your real estate investment will be better protected over the longer term, and be more likely to increase in capital value, with a good location. To get the best capital gain, consider buying the worst house in the best street.

Renting in an area before purchase:
Consider renting in a "target suburb" before purchasing so that you can get a good feel of the area before purchasing. You may discover that you don't like the area. For example, you may discover that the suburb has infrequent public transport, or early morning traffic congestion that makes commuting to work too stressful.