Buy-to-Let Home Loans

Buy-to-let home loans are the smart way for South Africans to invest for their future. Buy an investment property while your children are young and when their college-time for comes around, you can borrow against the investment property to help finance their education. When the home loan is fully paid up, you will not only have a property but also additional income every month.

The way to make money on a house is to buy it and keep it for a long time. It is a lucrative way to supplement your retirement income. Because:

● someone else’s money is helping to buy your investment property;

● when the loan is paid off, the property and the growth value is yours;

● a property can be used as a tax deduction;

● besides the maintenance, it is a relatively unencumbered investment with excellent growth over time.

Getting a Buy-to-Let Home Loan

A successful buy-to-let investment begins with thorough investigation into buy-to-let home loans. If you do your homework and seek the support and advice of an experienced estate agent or bond originator, you will likely do well.

The less it costs you to borrow the investment money the greater your profit will eventually be. The way your taxes are structured will play a role in your margin of profit. Consult with your tax accountant before making any final decisions.

Begin By Researching On Your Own

A buy-to-let home loan is an investment strategy that is growing in popularity with South Africans. If you think property sounds like a promising investment for you search for a buy-to-let home loan lender on the Internet. There are calculators you can use to find answers to preliminary questions.

Questions such as: how much you can afford to invest in a rental property; is a down payment required; what the interest rate will be; the term over which the loan will run; if the loan can be repaid over a shorter period without incurring penalties.

Study the Real Estate Market

There is certain criteria to look for in an ideal real estate investment property. If you look at small to medium sized single-family homes, use this checklist:

The house should be in good condition. It is okay to refresh the paintwork and the landscaping but you do not want to spend money on expensive refurbishments to a rundown house.
The wise choice of house is not the most expensive on the street. The least expensive would be preferable because you will realise increased value if the nearby properties are expensive.
Check the selling history of the neighbourhood. Have prices gone up or down over the last ten years? You want to see a steady increase.
Your investment property will be attractive to many tenants if it is near schools, parks, a shopping centre and public transport. A stable and safe neighbourhood is a priority.
Check the average rental of homes in the area to help determine the possible monthly return on your investment.

It is advisable to view and research several different areas. A real estate agent would likely be helpful in your investigation and save you some time. This is especially true if you decide to invest in commercial property instead of residential. Comparisons will require extensive investigation.

How do Your Numbers Compare?

When you pre-qualify yourself for a buy-to-let home loan, you find out how much you can afford to borrow for an investment property. You will also discover how much the loan repayments will be every month. These will differ according to the interest rates and loan term.

You will need to juggle the advantages of larger repayments over a shorter period – resulting in an overall eventual saving – opposed to a lower affordable monthly repayment over a longer period.

Part of the equation will be whether you can expect to receive a rental to offset the monthly buy-to-let home loan payment.

This exercise will tell you whether an investment property is the right decision for you at this time.

The Right Decision for You?

In South Africa, the buy-to-let loan market is at an all-time high. Rent with capital growth has become a favoured choice for additional retirement income since the returns on traditional annuities and endowments have proved inadequate for retirees to live comfortably. It is somehow reassuring to be able to drive by, look at and or even touch your investment.

Property is as valid as any other investment asset. Over the last few years property asset investments have outperformed many other assets investments. Banks are well prepared to help investors with the purchase of buy-to-let residential and commercial properties. Would this be an investment choice for you?

Yours in Property,

Vincent

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Vincent Du Preez

Owner Homeloan Junction at Homeloan Junction

Vincent has many years of experience in the homeloan industry and provides a fresh look at financing in his blog posts. Full of useful tips and everyday topics.

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