the right place
‘We want to future-proof our home in line with our family plans. It’s important that our space can grow as our life does.'
FAUZIA HUSSEIN
Highforest first home buyer
Buying your first home is exciting and daunting in equal measure, making it so important that you go in with eyes wide open, understanding what’s involved, the risks and opportunities, what you need to do and know, and where to find expert trustworthy guidance.
Information has never been more accessible but the sheer volume of often conflicting advice can often feel overwhelming.
It’s why Mirvac has created a go-to guide for first home buyers. Our First Home Buyer Hub, contains information about finance, grants and incentives, contracts and settlements, design and construction, even a guide to moving house. You’ll also find tips and tricks from seasoned and trusted property professionals.
The average age of first home buyers has been rising steadily and today stands at 36.* That statistic alone has implications for companies like Mirvac who are developing new apartments, housing and land estates, according to Mirvac’s General Manager Sales and Marketing, Lisa Taylor.
“We often talk about the home ownership journey as the property ladder,” says Ms Taylor “Because today’s first home buyers are often mature, professional people, we see them increasingly skipping the traditional first step, an entry level apartment, and going straight to the second rung, buying a home they can occupy over the long-term rather than working their way up.”
* Cotality Westpac First Home Buyers Report
As mature buyers who are thinking about other important milestones, like marrying and starting a family, these first home buyers are placing greater importance upon quality amenity, community and being close to good transport links, shops, schools and space.
At new apartment and masterplanned community launches Mirvac continues to see newcomers to the property market who have set a goal and are determined to reach it.
Dhruv Saggar and Fauzia Hussein, who plan to marry this year, went straight to the second rung of the ladder when they bypassed the one bedroom apartments and jointly purchased a more expensive two bedroom apartment off the plan at Highforest in Sydney’s West Pennant Hills.
“We want to future-proof our home in line with our family plans,” says Fauzia, who is currently working as a law clerk while completing her studies to become a lawyer. “It’s important that our space can grow as our life does.”
‘Many of the people buying their first home today are mature, professional people, who may already have started a family or have immediate plans to do so.’
LISA TAYLOR
Mirvac General Manager
Sales & Marketing
There are other factors that played into their decision to buy a larger apartment - a comfortable space, security and storage.
Both still live with their respective parents, Fauzia in Penrith and Dhruv, a litigation lawyer, in Beecroft. With luck, the timing of their wedding will dovetail with the completion of their apartment allowing the couple to begin their life together surrounded by forest and birdsong.
“We wanted an area like this that is very peaceful,” says Dhruv. “Being in the city all day, it is nice to come back to nature. What we love most is the safe community feel; we can see our children in the community here.”
There are several State and Federal programs to help first home buyers get into the market. Mirvac has its own carefully tailored scheme, The Right Start, designed to overcome the deposit hurdle by requiring a reduced deposit and take advantage of the time between exchange and settlement when buying off the plan.*
The initial scheme, introduced in 2017, was offered only on selected projects for apartments priced at or below the cap for government first home buyer assistance. It has since been broadened in recognition that today’s first home buyer may be at a life stage where a one bedroom apartment doesn’t meet their needs.
“At Highforest in Sydney’s West Pennant Hills, where we offered The Right Start, the one bedroom first home buyer product was some of the quickest to be sold,” says Ms Taylor. “But we also saw a number of first home buyers looking to commit to larger apartments where they anticipate raising a family and putting down long term roots.
“That is reflective not only of the older age of first home buyers but also the increasing desirability of apartment living when it ticks all the boxes for location and amenity.
“In our masterplanned communities, we offer a diversity of lot sizes so that first home buyers can gain entry to a prestige estate by buying a smaller, more affordable lot. It’s a family friendly option that balances affordability and lifestyle.”
The most important determinant for any home buyer, including upgraders, is quality, making sure the developer is reputable and has a solid track record.
“The First Home Buyer Hub synthesises the important information into one place to support people who are contemplating buying property for the first time,” says Ms Taylor. “It has useful tips from property experts that newcomers to property will find helpful.
“Buying a home can be daunting but it also brings huge rewards. For most people it’s the biggest financial decision they will make and so we want to make that process as rewarding and stress free as possible.”
OurFirst Home BuyerHub, contains information about finance, grants and incentives, contracts and settlements, design and construction, even a guide to moving house.
Eight years on no regrets
In 2017, with first home buyers locked out of the market by high prices, Mirvac introduced The Right Start, an initiative to tackle housing affordability.
The program addressed the high deposit hurdle by allowing first timers to exchange with a reduced deposit. Over the course of the past eight years, the lives of the original Right Start buyers have changed. We speak to two first home buyers about the challenges and triumphs of taking the big plunge.
CLAIRE PYE
Claire Pye still has the framed photograph of the day she bought her first home. Flanked by two girlfriends, her broad smile expresses all her elation and joy after putting down the deposit on an apartment at Pavilions Sydney Olympic Park.
A lot can happen in the space of eight years. She was Claire Morgan back in 2017, single, 29 and working as a case manager for an insurance company. Today she is married, employed as a manager, and living with her husband Jonathan and 18-month-old son Oliver in a rented house while renting out her apartment.
Before purchasing at Pavilions she undertook all the necessary due diligence, researching the reputation of larger developers to produce a shortlist of just two who she felt confident to buy from. Mirvac was on the list and Claire grabbed the opportunity to buy at Pavilions through The Right Start.
She enjoyed the three years she spent living in her own home knowing that it would form the bedrock of her future financial security.
“It was one of my biggest achievements and I have no regrets,” she says. “I’m looking forward to keeping my apartment and owning a house for my expanding family.”
FRANCIS FLORESCA
As vacancies tightened and the cost of renting soared this past year, Francis Floresca felt only relief that he had made his move into home ownership eight years earlier, buying a one bedroom apartment off the plan at Pavilions Sydney Olympic Park.
Even as his mortgage repayments increased he hadn’t a single regret, and was able to manage higher interest rates thanks to the disciplined budgeting and saving habits he acquired through The Right Start program.
“I thought, thank God I did it and I don’t have to face those high rents,” says Francis. “I am very thankful that I am paying off my own place. I’m used to paying off more than I have to. I knew low interest rates wouldn’t last and I was mentally and financially prepared to handle it.”
In 2017 when he bought his apartment, Francis was a newly graduated early career teacher. Today he is a head teacher at one of the top performing public high schools in NSW. With career progression his income has increased, helping him to cope with the higher repayments.
“Owning my home has given me a deep sense of security and independence. Having a place to truly call my own has been incredibly empowering.”
Francis credits the lush green spaces at Pavilions, the envy of friends in neighbouring developments, with contributing to his physical and mental wellbeing.
He has no plans to move in the immediate future but is looking to acquire another property to solidify his long-term financial stability.
He has one piece of advice for those about to enter the market. “Educate yourself about how things work and make sure you have a basic understanding of how to get a mortgage. I was lucky that I had my family guiding me but not everybody has that.”
*The article is intended as a guide only to provide general information. Mirvac is not a provider of financial or investment advice and this information should not be relied on as such. Before acting on any information in this publication, purchasers should fully consider the appropriateness of the information, having regard to their objectives, and financial and tax situation and needs, and seek their own advice from appropriately qualified advisers. Mirvac has made all reasonable efforts and inquiries it believes necessary in preparing the publication but is not responsible for confirming the completeness or accuracy of such data and information. Purchasers must rely on their own continuing enquiries about purchasing decisions. Mirvac expressly excludes any and all liability relating to, or resulting from, the use of or reliance on, any information contained in this brochure by any person.
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