Home Start Up Costs
Buying your first home can be a
costly business with consumers taking out what is probably the biggest
loan so far in their lives with their mortgages. Add to that solicitor’s
fees, a deposit and survey costs and the money really starts to
mount up. However that’s not the whole story, particularly
for first time buyers who according to the National Association
of Estate Agents have doubled during March. The Halifax have released
information stating that furnishing your new home could cost up
to £8,000, not easy when you have already outlaid a lot of
money just to buy the property. Rather than panic, do without or
use expensive credit cards or store credit the answer to the question
of how to afford this could be a personal loan
but it’s worth thinking carefully before taking on extra financial
commitments.
One important question we should
ask ourselves before jumping into more debt is what do we actually
need for our new home? According to the Halifax there are must-haves,
nice to haves and luxury items. For example moving into a new home
with no bed, no ability to cook for yourself and washing items would
be impossible. So drawing up a list of essentials is a priority
and could cost up to £3,751. After that you would probably
want to investigate what items you don’t actually need but
would make life a lot easier and more comfortable such as wardrobes
and washing machines which could add another £2,277 to the
bill. Then depending on how much you have actually spent so far
and your finances you can move onto luxury items that for some consumers
could cost an extra £2,165.
Careful planning of what items
you need immediately, where you will buy them and how you will finance
it is essential. There’s no point going on a massive shopping
spree and realising you have no money left to buy items you haven’t
thought of but really need like utensils, bed linen or lampshades,
all easily forgotten when purchasing big items. Likewise investigating
different types of store credit beforehand may lead you to realise
that while a personal loan is a big commitment it might
work out cheaper than funding furniture on store credit and small
items on credit cards. Lastly in the same manner you shopped around
for a mortgage that was value for money and a home that met your
requirements at a price you could afford shopping
around for items for the home is equally important. Price can
vary hugely between different stores and regardless of whether you
can afford to buy household goods outright or are using a personal
loan or credit card to finance them you want to make sure you get
the best price available.
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