THINK IT THROUGH WITH BANKSA

Thinking of buying property off the plan?

First, BankSA NT mobile lending manager Leonie Attrill suggests you ask yourself four questions…
• Am I willing to tie up funds for a deposit, or pay for a bank guarantee while the property is being built?
• Can I afford to lose my deposit if I can’t go ahead with the purchase upon completion?
• What would happen if my circumstances changed during construction?
• If the completed property is valued at less than what I paid for it, how would that effect my finances?
If you can’t answer those questions, don’t worry. Leonie and the BankSA teams at Darwin City, Casuarina and Palmerston are ready to help.
Bank SA will celebrate 30 years of helping Territorians next year, and currently has 35 staff working across the NT.
Together they offer a full service proposition including personal and commercial banking and lending solutions, home and investment lending, insurance products and financial planning.
In her role as mobile lending manager for the Darwin area, Leonie assists people with home and investment loans, offering flexible day time, afterhours and weekend appointments at clients’ homes and workplaces as well as the branches.
In the industry for more than 13 years, Leonie has worked in a variety of roles in finance and banking, previously managing branches and working as a district manager and lending manager.
“My passion is helping clients make their own dreams come true through providing financial solutions and advice,” she says.
“There is nothing more rewarding than seeing your client move into their first home or buy their first investment property or build a property portfolio and know you were a key part in making that dream become a reality.”
A growing number of BankSA’s Darwin clients are buying property off the plan, which Leonie says requires some special considerations.
“When someone purchases a property off the plan they are essentially buying at today’s prices a property that will be finished in the future,” she says.
“Because off the plan purchases may take months and sometimes years to complete, it often means financiers are unable to provide a full approval for the purchase until it is completed. This is a risk borrowers need to take into consideration when purchasing and paying a deposit for an off the plan purchase.”
Leonie says there can also be advantages to buying off the plan, including the $26,000 First Home Owners Grant and increased property value.
“If you purchase a property off the plan at today’s prices and it takes a number of years for the property to be built, that property may be worth more than you purchased it for upon completion.”
Leonie encourages anyone considering buying off the plan to first sit down with an experienced lender to review their financial circumstances.