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Renting is a great temporary option to utilise while you get to know Brisbane's suburbs , decide where you'd like to live and check out the property market. Here you'll find tips on house hunting when moving interstate, an overview of finalising the property deal and general information about auctions.
House
Hunting in Brisbane
Real estate
agents will offer a property for sale at almost any price the vendor stipulates
even if it is more than just a bit optimistic compared to a market valuation.
Rest assured, there are plenty of houses for sale in south east Queensland! Being new to Brisbane, it can be difficult to assess
whether a property is overpriced or a bargain to be snapped up. Therefore it's
important to ask the agent tough questions to gauge how realistic the asking
price actually is. Friends or family can also be helpful if they have recently
bought and sold in Brisbane. Take a notepad and a tape measure
with you when viewing your potential new home as rooms can look deceptively
large or small depending on how they are furnished. Take a digital camera or camera phone with
you, especially if viewing many properties. The photos will act as a good
reminder. When you start to compare properties it will make the job so much
easier than relying on your memory.
Most agents
will show you around a property, not the vendor as it is the agent who is being
paid to sell the house. They will often take you out themselves to view a few
properties at one go. This can save you driving around to properties to see
where they are first before arranging a viewing, saving double visits and time.
On the other hand you may have questions the owners would be better able to
answer or end up visiting properties that you would know from the outset are
not going to meet your criteria. Be honest and open with your real estate
agent, remember, they are working hard to make sure you get the poroperty you
want, not the other way around!
Open-house
viewings, where a house is opened for a specific time for you to have a look
around, usually last a couple of hours on a Saturday or Sunday. Anybody, often
neighbours, come along to check the place out. This can be a less pressured way
of seeing a number of properties all on one day to get a feel for the market
and what's on offer. Open-house viewings are usually listed in the local paper
for the coming weekend.
Making the
Deal
When you
make an offer on a property in Queensland you do so via a formal signed
contract. This contract commits you to go through with the purchase at the
price offered (if accepted by the vendor) subject to conditions such as
buildings and pest inspection (which includes termites), land survey (if
boundaries are unclear), valuation etc. If the offer is accepted by the vendor
he/she will also sign it and then begins the statutory cooling off period
during which either party can withdraw from the contract without penalty. A
deposit of 5-10% is paid to the vendor at this time. It is possible to withdraw
from a purchase before completionof
the contract (aka settlement), but there may be a financial
penalty. This ensures that only people with a serious intention put forward
offers and vendors only accept if they're really serious about selling at that
price. Gazumping or pulling out at the last minute is less common here and
nerves are not as frayed. The contract also includes a preferred settlement
date, often as little as 30 days, so you can be in you new home pretty quickly.
Auctions in Brisbane
Another way
to get a feel for the property market is to attend auctions. Weekends are the
days when most auctions are hels and these are generally advertised in the
local newspapers. When you get to the property, you'll find a huge board
outlining the conditions of sale which are usually re-iterated by the
auctioneer. This includes things like the requirement of a deposit and the
disposal of the cooling off period which exists to allow purchasers to pull out
of the sale for a minimal penalty cost under a normal house sale but not at
auction. If planning to bid at an auction, make sure you have the funds in
place to pay. Keep in mind that if you bid the highest and you've reached or
passed the reserve then the house is legally yours to buy. If the
house does not sell, but reaches bids that are very close to the reserve price,
the auction ends and the highest
bidder is then able to consult with the auctioneer to negotiate a sale price.
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Brisbane Shopping
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The new DFO at Jindalee opened 16 November 2007. There are many outlets at Jindalee's DFO. Here is a list to help you find what you need (and want).
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Fun Stuff
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When looking to dine out in Brisbane, it is helpful to understand the different
precincts for
restaurants in Brisbane.
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Brisbane's Story Bridge is a major Brisbane landmark, one that helps define Brisbane as a river city, almost as much as the Sydney Harbour Bridge defines Sydney down south.