When Is The Right Time To Buy? Wrong Question!

With all the noise from the media, internet chat rooms and well-meaning friends and family, it can be difficult to figure out when is the ‘right time’ to buy a property.

Putting aside the obvious issue of financial capability, the right time to buy is when the right property presents itself. Now, I can hear you thinking, how will I know what the right property is?

Without getting into the nitty-gritty about the fundamentals of property investing for the long term, the basic principles of supply and demand are paramount. You are better off to buy a property that is in limited supply and high demand. These properties tend to be older style architecture, quality builds in blue chip locations that have high land values.

Timing your purchase can be a double-edged sword: if you wait for when you think the market is at the bottom of its cycle, chances are there isn’t a lot of stock around as vendors are waiting for a better market. And by the time you have realised the market has bottomed out, the only way to be sure of this is by seeing upward movement. This situation leads to buying a property under time pressures which can be a recipe for disaster.

Having your finance pre-approved while you diligently track and research the market is your best bet for investment success. This allows you to patiently wait for the best quality property within your budget to hit the market. You already have your finance and market knowledge behind you to ensure you can proactively negotiate a successful purchase.

If tracking the market sounds too overwhelming or time-consuming, then consider engaging a professional to coordinate the process. For a relatively small fee, there are numerous independent Buyer Advisory companies ready to jump into action and give you peace of mind that the asset selected is the most suited to your needs. Independent and qualified Buyers Agents will be able to offer experience and professionalism for one of your life’s biggest financial outlays.

Frustratingly, we see time and time again, potential buyers twiddling their thumbs waiting for a magical sign that ‘now’ is the time to buy. You won’t get that. Rather, we see these same potential buyers, years later still not having bought and missed out on years of growth and potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars. Hindsight is 20/20.

The moral to this tale is if you have a long-term financial plan and that plan includes owning investment property, back yourself, enter the market when the right property presents itself even if that is when others are shying away. Property investment is a big picture investment; market timing is not crucial, asset selection is.