Buying your first home is never an easy decision. Not only it is most people’s biggest financial commitment, it can also be time-consuming and frustrating.

One of the most common question asked by first time home buyer is when will be the best time to buy a property in Penang. There is always the right time, but no best time. The right time is the time when you can comfortably afford a unit that suite your lifestyle.

In fact, owning a first home is a very rewarding experience and you can make the process smoother by having the right information at your fingertips. If you are not sure where to start with, here are the three aspects that you need to contemplate before placing your down-payment:

1. Ponder over a realistic lifestyle

The very first thing you should do is to ponder over a realistic lifestyle that you would envision. How you would like to live day-to-day, your plans for the short-term future and your budget will determine the home you buy.

Is it important that you live close to family, work, schools, shopping mall and other amenities? Consider how far you are prepared to live from those places if there is good accessibility. In some cases, one may choose to stay further away from work in seek of better lifestyle for his/her family.

Remember, not necessary an ideal lifestyle that can last for two to three decades, neither is the best one. Think about a realistic one that will works for you in the next 10 years.

2. Know your affordability

Before you start focusing on where and which house to buy, work out your budget first. One of the most common conscious mistake people made is to first look for a dream house, setting an unrealistic expectation and then blame it to the unaffordability. As our young nation continues to evolve and grow, housing affordability issue is inevitable. But continues blaming the house prices will not make your life better.

So, work out your affordability, figure out your existing expenses, estimate your potential loan repayments and associated costs. Look realistically at whether your income can cover it all comfortably. Once you know how much your budget is, then you can start looking for a house within your budget that suite the lifestyle. In some cases, some fundamentals may have to be sacrificed.

3. Perform your own research, don’t rush

Deciding and placing a down-payment for your very first home is definitely very exciting. Many people tend to get overjoyed and rush to make a decision. This is usually influenced by friends and colleagues who have also bought a unit from the same project.

Bear in mind that everyone has different needs. A house that suites your friends and colleagues may not necessary suites you. It’s always good for you to perform your own research, a least do some study on the surrounding area.

Penang is fortunate to have plenty of affordable housing to choose from, and there are more to come in 2016. The attractive element is that the price will stay below RM400,000 and you don’t have to worry about price going up soon. Hence, take time to perform some research, you may be able to find some good units from the secondary market too.

– Ken Lim
(Founder and Principal Reviewer, PenangPropertyTalk.com)