HOW TO SAVE, AND MAKE MONEY BUYING OFF THE PLAN WITH AUSSIE

Did you know you can secure an off the plan

property with as little as a 10 per cent deposit?

The balance won’t be due until construction is complete, maybe a year, or two, or three, down the track.

“This gives you time to get the remainder of your finances in order, or save more money to reduce the amount you need to borrow,” says Janine Ashmore, Senior Broker and business manager for Aussie in the Northern Territory.

“If you were building you would need to pay for the land and pay the builder throughout construction while possibly also paying rent. For some people this is easily managed, but for many this can be a strain.”

Getting in early can also save you money. Janine says the first properties sold are often the cheapest as developers are under pressure to recoup costs.

“It also means you have the pick of the bunch, and can choose the place with the best view, northerly aspect or furthest distance from a busy street.”

Off the plan properties in highly-sought after areas can even make you money, with increasing property values and strengthening markets during the construction period.

Janine says she and her team at Aussie can help clients select the right finance options for their investment.

“We also work with some of the top developers in the Northern Territory, which makes the process easier and gives our clients some confidence in their off the plan purchase.”

Janine is one of four Aussie brokers in the Northern Territory, supported by one support staff member and soon to be joined by two more. Collectively, the team shares almost 40 years of lending experience.

It’s a career Janine says she was drawn to ‘like a duck to water’.

“I had studied law while having my children and while setting up for a legal career, decided to study finance for a better knowledge of the field.”

Janine has worked in the home loan industry for 11 years now and in that time has received two Australian Mortgage Awards for her expertise.

She says helping people achieve financial security for retirement and assisting young couples to buy their first home are the highlights of her work.

“It’s a fact that superannuation alone won’t be enough for the quality of life we all enjoy while working,” she says. “A lot of my clients are starting to reap the rewards now after 11 years of owning their own home they are on their way to owning their first investment property with several others in their portfolio. It’s great getting people excited about a financially secure future.”

Final word of advice for people buying off the plan:

Always find out first your capacity to borrow and ability to purchase. When you know you are in a position to do so, usually with a pre-approval in hand, you can look at properties to find out which ones will suit you. Never sign any contracts without having your finance sorted first.