For a first-time property buyer, when you don’t yet have a solid understanding of the ins-and-outs of the property industry, taking that first step towards home ownership can be daunting.
There’s a lot to consider before stepping onto the property ladder. And it isn’t as simple as going from the bottom to the top. You have to climb one ring at a time: do your research, ask questions and put yourself in the hands of people with in-depth industry knowledge.
One concern that comes up for most potential property buyers is the issue of affordability. Carl Coetzee, CEO of BetterBond, says that it might be wise to consider co-ownership ‒ an accessible and certainly a more cost-effective way for people to enter the property market.
“Assessing affordability is the first rung on the ladder to qualifying for a bond. One way to make it more affordable is to purchase property with a friend, partner or parent,” says Coetzee.
The bond originator encourages people to apply for pre-qualification as the very first step to securing a bond. Pre-qualification is the process whereby the size of the bond the individual qualifies for is determined. A pre-qualification certificate can be issued within 24 hours and is typically valid for three months, assuming your financial position remains the same in those three months.
Coetzee adds that a key benefit of pre-qualification is that it demonstrates to sellers that you are a serious buyer as you have already gone through the process of thoroughly assessing how much you qualify for.
BetterBond handles clients’ home loan applications (at no charge), submitting to multiple banks to find the best deal available. They also offer free services online, including an affordability calculator which calculates the size of bond you could potentially qualify for based on your current income and expenses.
So, what are the pros, cons and considerations of property co-ownership?
According to the Stats SA General Household Survey 2018, around 35% of South African households own their property (with 18.3% owned by an individual and 17% owned jointly).
Coetzee explains that there are obvious benefits such as sharing the costs and maintenance of a property, but it is very important for applicants to know exactly what they are getting into.
“There are certain things you should consider when deciding if co-ownership is for you. For example, is the person you are looking to purchase property with someone you are willing to enter into a financial agreement with? Trust is very important,” he says.
“You have to ask the right questions and ensure you are well informed before going into this kind of partnership. Once you have decided to go ahead, a written agreement must be drawn up at the outset outlining every detail of the arrangement,” Coetzee explains.
“All terms must be agreed upon in this legally binding contract to avoid any potential issues or confusion down the line, especially if all partners are equal in the contract as no one party then has the authority to make decisions unless all are in agreement.”
The co-ownership agreement should entail who will live on the property; who will pay or contribute towards deposits and initial payments for the property; how ownership will be shared (it is automatically equal if not stated otherwise); who will be allowed to draw funds from the bond; what will happen in the event of the death or incapacitation of one of the co-owners; what will happen if one or more parties in the contract wish to part ways or sell the property; how profits or losses on the property will be split; and anything else that might result in potential disputes.
“Co-ownership makes it significantly easier to enter the property market, especially in light of the current economy where money is tight for most. But before entering into such an agreement, you have to consider all factors of the arrangement carefully and in great detail,” says Coetzee.
“Clarity is key to a successful co-ownership agreement. All co-owners must agree on how things will work upfront, leaving no room for ambiguity.”
Feature image: Pexels
So you’ve been given the title of Maid of Honour and it’s such an important role in the wedding, it comes with several duties. With great power comes…
For some, the classic island getaway is perfect for a honeymoon. But for the couples who are always looking to shake things up, that may be a bit boring. Newlyweds these days are often looking for alternative ways to celebrate their marriage.
Some have opted for honeyteering, and others have chosen to have no honeymoon at all. If neither of these options suit you, perhaps some weird and wonderful hotels around the world will tickle your fancy.
Check out these creative and different-from-the-usual hotels around the world:
– Gladstone’s Library
Gladstone’s Library in the UK offers bookworms a getaway with a difference. The library boasts 26 boutique bedrooms, a bistro that offers breakfast, lunch and supper, and an ideal location.
It is situated just outside the famous walled city of Chester, and is on the doorstep of the Welsh countryside, so you’ll have many tourist opportunities on your book-lovers’ honeymoon too.
Surround yourself with 150 000 books, in the UK’s only residential library for a honeymoon like no other.
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– Bjorli Snowhotel
This hotel is made from 15 million litres of water. Impressive, right? Igloo accommodation is definitely a break from the usual and will be an unforgettable experience.
Bjorli Snowhotel also comes with an ice bar and a ice chapel, if you’re interested. Their rooms feature ice beds, mood lighting and fleece-lined sleeping bags to keep you warm.
Situated only 1km from Bjorli ski resort, you’ll be in for some snow activities too. It is also a 45-minute drive from it’s sister hotel, Dovrefjell-Sunndalsfjella National Park, which comes with a hot-tub, sauna and indoor pool that visitors can use.
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– Kokopelli’s Cave
Spend your honeymoon on the inside the vertical cliffs of the 60 million year olf Ojo Alamo sandstone, in a cave house that over looks the La Plata river valley.
From the bed and breakfast, you have an unmatched view of awe-inspiring southwestern sunsets over the beautiful La Plata River valley and the four states of Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Colorado, in the USA.
The Cave is man made and was originally intended to be a an office for Bruce Black, the owner, who is a consulting geologist. When his plan didn’t materialize, it was made into a bed and breakfast.
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Hotel Costa Verde
As if a honeymoon in the tree-tops is not different enough already, Hotel Costa Verde takes things to the next level and offers a stay in a refurbished vintage 1965 Boeing 727.
Have a honeymoon that makes you feel on top of the world and opt for the airplane in the rainforest!
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– Palacio de Sal, Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia
Built entirely of salt, the first of its kind, Palacio de Sal (Salt Palace Hotel) is in perfect harmony with the white desert that surrounds it. This one is a truly unique experience.
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– Dog Bark Park Inn
This hotel, built in the shape of a beagle, is a well-known landmark in Idaho, USA. Being ranked in the top 20 most fun and exciting places to stay by the London Times, it is surely not to be missed. This is the one time that being in the doghouse is a good thing!
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– Bonus – Underwater suites at various hotels
If you’ve ever wanted to know what it’s like to breathe under water, this is probably the closest you’ll get. Live out all your fairytale, little mermaid fantasies and spend your honeymoon in an underwater suite!
There are various hotels around the world, in Dubai, Jamaica, India, London, and Mexico, that offer this option. You won’t struggle to find a good option for you. You may, however, struggle to get a booking as most hotels only have one underwater suite – so get planning now!
Atlantis The Palm – Dubai
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The Manta Resort – Jamaica
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Image: Instagram / hotelcostaverde
Choosing your bridal bouquet may seem like one of the simplest things to do for your wedding but it may not be. Flower types, matching with your dress,…
After her 1989 wedding, Dayton native Beth Griswold had her wedding dress preserved in the hopes that future generations would wear it after her. For years, the dress stayed in a box for safekeeping. However, when she finally opened the box three decades later, she found the wrong one.
The wedding dress, a traditional satin gown, had been professionally preserved and sent back to Griswold shortly after her wedding.
“We were told not to open up the dress. If you open up the dress, it will void the warranty. So for 30 years, I didn’t open up the dress,” Beth tells wdtn.com.
Griswold’s wedding dress was a family heirloom. It once belonged to Griswold’s mother, and the plan was for Griswold’s daughter Jessica to also wear the dress when she was ready to marry. The time had finally come for Jessica to be the third generation to wear this dress when she got engaged to her college sweetheart.
“My grandma had worn the same dress that my mom did, and it was beautiful and I loved it. And so, since I’ve been little, I’ve just anticipated I would wear that dress,” says bride-to-be Jessica Griswold.
Finally, the mother and daughter duo opened the box together, but what they found was unexpected. Griswold had been sent someone else’s wedding dress.
“As we’re opening it, I looked and there was all this glitter, and I was like I don’t remember having glitter on my dress,” says Beth. “As we opened it more, and took it out of the box, we realized that it wasn’t my dress.”
Devastated, Griswold contacted the preservers for help but they were no longer in business.
“They have no records. We don’t know if it got mixed up– It could be anywhere in the country,” says Beth. “The person’s dress who we have probably doesn’t even know that they don’t have their dress.”
The mother and daughter are now searching for the original dress, and continue to hold hopes it will come back to them.
Feature image: Pexels
This San Antonio couple found out that even the best laid plans often go awry. While on a cruise ship, their plans to marry on the Jamaican shore…
While they may not always end in Happily Ever After, these wedding reality shows are guaranteed to keep you entertained in the run up to your big day. They might also make you feel happier about your own wedding plans when you see what a disaster these can be by comparison.
Here are the best wedding reality TV shows we love to watch:
– Love is Blind
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The recently released Netflix series follows a few single people as they enter the ‘experiment.’ In 10 days, they date a host of people from within ‘pods’ that only let them hear each others voices. By the end of the 10 days, six couples came out engaged without ever having seen each other. This might seem wild enough on it’s own but the series goes even further. The couples then move in together and meet each others families before walking down the aisle to be asked whether “love is truly blind” and they commit to the partner they have known for about a month. As expected, the drama is high as the couples find out who the other person really is.
-Married at First Sight
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Married at First Sight has been around since 2014 and is still going strong on TLC. The premise of the show is that couples are chosen and paired up and meet for the first time at the end of the aisle. After getting married, the couple are filmed settling into their new life and after six to eight weeks, they decide whether to stay married or get divorced. Despite being criticised for being a westernised version of arranged marriage for entertainment purposes, it is addictive and keeps you hooked trying to guess who will make it.
– The Wedding Bashers
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Wedding Bashers combines the voting fun of Idols with the high stakes pressure of a wedding. Four wedding experts go to different couples weddings and judge them on the entire event. They vote on the weddings, with their vote counting 50% with the South African audience voting from home. If you’re in the middle of planning your wedding, rewatching the first two seasons might be a great way to pick up some ideas, or realise what not to do.
-Our Perfect Wedding
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Another South African wedding show, Our Perfect Wedding airs on Mzansi Magic and follows a couple planning their “perfect wedding” as they check off the items on their wish list. It’s a simple show that follows all the drama going into planning a wedding, with the couple declaring at the end whether or not their wedding was truly perfect. On top of being entertaining, watching other couples go through the entire wedding process might help you realise that your wedding will always have some stumbling blocks but in the end can still be perfect.
-Extreme Engagement
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Unlike the others, this show doesn’t hop straight into marriage. An engaged couple travels the world to experience marriage customs from a variety of cultures. The main goal is to see whether these extremely differing styles of marriage will bring out the best or the worst in their relationship. While it has been criticised for its problematic depictions of other cultures, it is interesting to witness the ways marriage is different all over the world. It might just give you a little time to think what marriage means for you.
– Kom ons trou, nou! (Let’s get married, now!)
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Although it’s in Afrikaans, this show has subtitles so you can follow on this wild ride. In every episode, a woman who is tired of waiting for her partner to propose secretly plans their wedding and then proposes to them in front of all their surprised guests. There really isn’t much to learn from this series, since you’ve already got the proposal and are planning the wedding but it’s pure reality TV entertainment.
Feature image: Instagram / Love is Blind