Hello Grasshoppa,

With the current pandemic situation, I have cancelled 2 of my overseas holidays & currently I’m on my Cuti-Cuti Malaysia trip with my family in Cameron Highland. It’s been 10 years or more since I last visited here & currently I am writing my blog while overseeing the beautiful golf course. Despite the traffic jam & overcrowded weekend, Cameron Highland has exceeded my expectation. OK back to our main topic for today on Things To Consider Before You Buy A Brand New House.

Just a quick background on my experience of buying a house. I bought my first house in 2009 after searching high & low for a house. During that time, my thought process was pretty simple, I just want to own a house as my parents never own any until I was 19 years old. That resulted in us moving from 1 location to another & we have never stayed in a permanent location for more than 5 years. I remembered that when I started to survey for my first house back in 2007, each time after seeing the house, I was stuck with a roadblock which is the house deposit. In 2009, I managed to buy my first house by paying RM1000 deposit. At first, I thought that it was a good buy because the location is right beside the first Penang Bridge & they have a theme park opposite my house. When it was completed, I was unable to serve the loan due to my financial issues & I was forced to sell it off to pay some of my debts. Thankfully I am able to sell it at quite a good price with some profit & after so many years, the condominium condition is not well maintained & the theme park somehow did not happen.

After I cleared my financial debt, I managed to buy another house which I am currently keeping it & I have no plans to sell or rent it but I am doing a mini-renovation from time to time to make it a living condition house. Due to the location & surrounding, I have no plan to stay there as well but I may consider staying there during the weekend. Looking at the situation of my new house, do you really think that it is necessary for me to own a house? Below I will be listing some of the things that you can consider before you buy a brand new house.

1. Why Do You Need It? 
Some people will say it is for their own stay while some, for investment & some, even buy because their family members are growing. For me, I am buying it currently just for the sake of having a house & having a long term investment since the area is a newly developed township.

2. Can You Afford To Pay It Long Term?
A common situation that some people have is when they buy it with the loan instalment which is 50% of their salary & expects it to increase over time. This is common because housing price is getting expensive but the majority of Malaysians salary is not that high. Imagine if you have an RM5,000 salary & you are buying an RM500,000 house. You have to pay around RM2,500 a month for your house instalment. To make a commitment to a house, you have to have to think of your affordability plan for the next few years.

3. What Happens When Your Family Grow Bigger? 
This is mainly for those who are having family planning. Can that house be the home for your new family member? If not, what is your next plan?

4. How Long Do You Plan To Stay? 
As housing prices are getting more expensive, is the house you are planning to buy will be your house for the next 10-20 years? If not, do you plan to sell it or rent it when you buy a new house?

5. Do You Have Extra Cash Allocation For Memorandum Of Transfer (MOT), Renovation or Miscellaneous Cost? 
Buying a house requires a minimum deposit as low as RM500. You may be prepared for the monthly instalment & the maintenance fee but are you prepared for the MOT, renovation cost & other miscellaneous costs? Miscellaneous costs include TNB, water bill deposit & other housing-related costs.

Conclusion :

Is your house buying decision, based on the pressure that you have from your surroundings? Or it is a need for you to get it? When I was young, I always had a thought of getting my own place to stay but I never had a chance to stay at my first house before & since the completion of my second house, I barely stayed there. It was occupied for almost 3 months during the MCO when my friend left his old job. Since he moved out, I only stayed there once. Maybe with the township that is building up, I may be spending my time there more frequent but as for now, I don’t see myself staying there for long term.

Buying a new house can be emotional as we are always excited when we purchase something & purchasing something that is significant will always make us feel good. But remember, buying a house is not 1-2 years commitment but more of a long term commitment that can go up to 35 years. Don’t just buy it for the sake of owning it or because of you wanting to jump into the property investment frenzy.

OSS!