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-   -   buying a house (https://britishexpats.com/forum/new-zealand-83/buying-house-628793/)

concretepump Sep 2nd 2009 3:21 pm

buying a house
 
just a general question

how long if you had money in the bank , would it take to buy a house from start to finish three weeks six weeks hopefully someone might know cheers

lapsed kiwi Sep 2nd 2009 7:01 pm

Re: buying a house
 
Three or less - we did it in three. Depends on your seller of course, but poeple tend to get less tied up in chains etc here
Just make sure you get a good inspection done and have your satisfaction with the results of this as a condition in the sale and purchase agreement

TeamEmbo Sep 2nd 2009 9:52 pm

Re: buying a house
 
Ours took 6 days. That included arranging a mortgage and getting a survey done and one of those days was a bank holiday. A lot can depend on the sellers as well and their circumstances, ie whether they have to find somewhere to shift to. You can make your offer subject to certain conditions - a moving in date for one. The process here is a lot simpler and quicker than UK.

nero Sep 2nd 2009 10:15 pm

Re: buying a house
 
Very quickly, scarily so when you are used to UK timelines. :ohmy:
It took us about 3 weeks which made our purchase time in the UK of one year look ridiculously long. When you say yes here and sign on the dotted line - you have bought! So make sure that if you have any uncertainties they are listed as possible pull out clauses.

Genesis Sep 3rd 2009 1:28 am

Re: buying a house
 

Originally Posted by TeamEmbo (Post 7898431)
Ours took 6 days. That included arranging a mortgage and getting a survey done and one of those days was a bank holiday. A lot can depend on the sellers as well and their circumstances, ie whether they have to find somewhere to shift to. You can make your offer subject to certain conditions - a moving in date for one. The process here is a lot simpler and quicker than UK.

We did it in 10 days. Which was nice.

Jan n Neil Sep 3rd 2009 3:55 am

Re: buying a house
 
You can get your mortgage approved in 1 day :rofl:

Harps Sep 5th 2009 1:41 am

Re: buying a house
 
It's very different from the British system and I must say the houses aren't well built here (most are wood with no insulation and no double glazing and you'd be lucky if they had a wood burner to heat the house up). If it's a good house then generally the seller gives a date where everyone has to put their best offer in (it can be with certain clauses, like 'subject to survey') and then they choose the best offer on that day. If they don't choose yours, you don't get a second bid and you lose it. If they chose you, you sign that day and agree a moving date. Can take less than 3 weeks. It's all on the side of the vendor though. Also be wary of estate agents - they're not bound by the same laws as the UK and are not always honest. Good luck. Strongly suggest you rent first to get a feel.

P2L Sep 5th 2009 6:21 am

Re: buying a house
 

Originally Posted by Harps (Post 7905922)
It's very different from the British system and I must say the houses aren't well built here (most are wood with no insulation and no double glazing and you'd be lucky if they had a wood burner to heat the house up). If it's a good house then generally the seller gives a date where everyone has to put their best offer in (it can be with certain clauses, like 'subject to survey') and then they choose the best offer on that day. If they don't choose yours, you don't get a second bid and you lose it. If they chose you, you sign that day and agree a moving date. Can take less than 3 weeks. It's all on the side of the vendor though. Also be wary of estate agents - they're not bound by the same laws as the UK and are not always honest. Good luck. Strongly suggest you rent first to get a feel.



I have to say that the standard of housing in NZ has improved immeasurably in the past 5 years and should a person CHOOSE to buy a house without insulation or heating, there is now some government assistance now to improve insulation and indeed your heating situation.

If someone has a problem or complaint regarding a transaction or sales person they can go to these people
http://www.reinz.org.nz/reinz/public...dvice_home.cfm

Hopefully this will be helpful to those just starting out ;)

concretepump Sep 5th 2009 9:32 am

Re: buying a house
 
hi harps

we lived in tauranga, for seven months and we did have a rental for $360 per week,
we could be on way back early next year, would stay with friends so would want, to buy as soon as

Harps Sep 5th 2009 9:47 am

Re: buying a house
 

Originally Posted by P2L (Post 7906170)
I have to say that the standard of housing in NZ has improved immeasurably in the past 5 years and should a person CHOOSE to buy a house without insulation or heating, there is now some government assistance now to improve insulation and indeed your heating situation.

If someone has a problem or complaint regarding a transaction or sales person they can go to these people
http://www.reinz.org.nz/reinz/public...dvice_home.cfm

Hopefully this will be helpful to those just starting out ;)


People should also be aware that the government only made insulation and double-glazing regulations statutory for new buildings in 2007/8, so you'd have to CHOOSE one of those houses. They should also be aware that the government assists with 33% of the cost of insulating the house and only for underfloor and ceiling insulation.

lapsed kiwi Sep 5th 2009 7:57 pm

Re: buying a house
 

Originally Posted by Harps (Post 7906472)
People should also be aware that the government only made insulation and double-glazing regulations statutory for new buildings in 2007/8, so you'd have to CHOOSE one of those houses. They should also be aware that the government assists with 33% of the cost of insulating the house and only for underfloor and ceiling insulation.

Not entirely true. A degree of insulation has been mandatory for much longer than that and most houses built in the last 20-30 years probably have some insulation. The rules did become much tougher (ie better) recently though.
Remember, all this can be retrofitted - you just need to establish what the house has before buying, and budget accordingly to bring it up to yuor requirements.
Personally, I don't see lack of DG as a deal-breaker in a house; quite nice to have but not essential, at least not in Auckland and north

Batty Sep 5th 2009 9:51 pm

Re: buying a house
 

Originally Posted by Harps (Post 7905922)
If it's a good house then generally the seller gives a date where everyone has to put their best offer in (it can be with certain clauses, like 'subject to survey') and then they choose the best offer on that day. If they don't choose yours, you don't get a second bid and you lose it. If they chose you, you sign that day and agree a moving date. Can take less than 3 weeks. It's all on the side of the vendor though. Also be wary of estate agents - they're not bound by the same laws as the UK and are not always honest. Good luck. Strongly suggest you rent first to get a feel.

That's a tender process you're talking about. Also, come 17th November the laws governing Real Estate agents will be tougher than in most countries,

Batty Sep 5th 2009 9:55 pm

Re: buying a house
 

Originally Posted by concretepump (Post 7897345)
just a general question

how long if you had money in the bank , would it take to buy a house from start to finish three weeks six weeks hopefully someone might know cheers

Hiya - you'll know that you have to make your offer subject to a LIM report and building inspection being satisfactory to you. These clauses are usually to be carried out within 3-5 working days. These days, because of a shortage of houses to buy, sellers are looking for settlements of up to 3 months so just be wary of that. Good luck.


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