When is the right time to buy an apartment?
Is now the time to buy an apartment if you are a tenant?
Recently, very often the question arises whether now is the time to buy an apartment, or is it still better to wait for a drop in prices?
From many years of experience working as a real estate agent in the real estate agency Euro-interiors I can say that The right time to buy an apartmentWhen you need an apartment. If we take for example a childless couple who wants to start a life together, and they have to go to rent. Monthly rent for an apartment of approx. 40 m2 on the outskirts of the city is approx. 500 EUR. At the rental price, they also pay utilities that depend on their consumption, but also the apartment in which they live. The age of the apartment, the location of the apartment in the building, etc. If they are renting an apartment for one year, they spend 6.000,00 EUR on the rental of the apartment. If they stay in the apartment for more than one year, for example two years, the amount they gave for the rental of the apartment already goes up to a high 12.000,00 EUR. When we add to this the constant increase in the prices of apartments at a loss are much more than 12.000,00 EUR. Certainly theirs The right time to buy an apartment That's when they need an apartment. Of course, this should be taken into account and whether they are creditworthy? For our couple from the beginning of their storyThe right time to buy an apartmentIt was two years ago. In addition to allocating a large amount of money for renting an apartment, apartments have become more expensive, and in addition, banks have increased interest on housing loans and, therefore, the conditions for obtaining housing loans. In my job as a real estate agent at Euro-interiors agency, I often meet young people who are stuck in subtenancy and who have spent much more than 12,000.00 EUR on subletting and renting an apartment. So my advice for them is to actively look for an apartment and to respond to that apartment that is acceptable to them both by the price of the apartment and the location of the apartment and the square footage of the apartment. Unfortunately, often young people are looking for an ideal apartment, most often they want the apartment to have at least two bedrooms, and such an apartment is most often affordable for them. We at the real estate agency Euro-interiors advise them to buy the apartment they can afford, so if and when the apartment becomes small they can always sell it and buy a larger apartment.
Is now the right time to buy an apartment if you live with your parents?
Also in my job as a real estate agent in the Euro-interiors agency, I also meet young people who are not willing to pay high prices for subtenancy, do not want to rent an apartment, but live each with their families and separate for their own apartment. Most often, they can also allocate much more than 500,00 EUR that they would give for renting an apartment. They are in a better position when it comes to finances, because the money they would spend on renting an apartment is allocated and saved for their own apartment. Thus, they cost themselves significant funds with which they can pay part of the purchase price or equip an apartment. Such young people often have slightly lower expectations, and it is easier for them to decide to buy an apartment that is smaller, but meets their conditions, and this is most often the price and location. They are generally willing to buy a smaller apartment with the aim that when their family grows they will replace it with a larger apartment or house. But they are also now thinking whether it is better to wait or buy an apartment now? My answer is that if they find a suitable apartment, the price and location available should also be purchased. Life together is far more beautiful than being apart, and it is really easier for two.
Is now the right time to buy an apartment if you live in an unsuitable apartment?
This is most often the case with clients who live in a smaller stateand I can afford a bigger flat. Most often, they have already paid off a small apartment and are creditworthy to buy a larger apartment or house. There are various options, selling a small apartment and buying a larger apartment or house, or another option is to buy a larger apartment or house, and put a smaller apartment for rent (in which case they repay part of the rent). Of course, you need to be very careful here, because the loan is raised for many years 15 or 20, and maybe more, and there is no guarantee that a small apartment will always be rented, nor that the rental prices of apartments will be so high. Perhaps this is where it is best to apply the golden rule that the loan installment should not exceed 1/3 of the total income. Thus, it is possible to always have money for the loan installment, and if it is possible to save something, one can always approach the earlier repayment of the loan. The answer is that you should buy a property when you need it. Children grow, have their needs and sleep in one room with learning if it is two schoolchildren, and the thought that parents sleep in the living room is not the best solution. It is not uncommon for clients who have decided and gone from a smaller apartment to a larger one or to a house tell us that they have literally been reborn. They no longer listen to the constant quarrels of their children, because everyone has their corner, their children achieve better results in school because they have their peace of mind while they learn. Finally they have enough space to accommodate all the closets and all the wardrobe, they no longer have to drive to their parents summer/winter non-seasonal wardrobe,...
Is now the right time to buy an apartment or do we expect a drop in real estate prices?
It's really a very difficult question. As a real estate agent with over 25 years of experience in the real estate agency Euro-interiors in the suburbs of the city of Zagreb, I think that there will not be a big drop in apartment prices in the near future. Namely, we still have very few quality apartments on offer, and a large number of buyers looking for an apartment.
So I'm going back to the beginning of this blog. The right time to buy an apartment is when you need an apartment, when you can afford to buy an apartment whether you have some funds, or you can afford to take out a home loan. I would definitely recommend to young people that a smaller own apartment is better than a sub-tenant apartment, as well as a separate dwelling in which everyone lives with their family. So if you buy an apartment for housing and because you need it, the answer is that the right time to buy is when you need the apartment.
Check the offer of our properties atwww.euro-interijeri.hr
published 05.07.2024