On face value, the notion of pooling your financial resources with family or friends in order to buy a property makes perfect sense.<\/strong><\/p>\n It immediately increases your buying power, and for many first home buyers, it\u2019s potentially one of the only ways they can afford to get into the market.<\/p>\n But is it a good idea to buy a house<\/a> with a friend or family, and what happens when things don\u2019t work out?<\/p>\n Here are some of the things you need to consider first.<\/p>\n Sit down and work out an agreement to cover things like someone moving out. Picture: Getty<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The attraction of buying with another person is obvious: it reduces how much you\u2019ll personally need to save in order to purchase a home, and increases how much you have to play with as you enter the market.<\/p>\n Parley Property Advisory director Luke Assigal says it\u2019s a very viable option for many buyers who otherwise wouldn\u2019t be able to afford it.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are benefits \u2013 you combine your borrowing power, so you can buy a lot more,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n \u201cThis allows you to get into the market sooner (than if you had to save the additional money), and you\u2019re going to get good capital growth, depending on the areas you\u2019re looking at.\u201d<\/p>\n Learn more about capital growth trends:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n When people buy a property as an investment, many do so with the intention of using the equity in that property to purchase another one in the future.<\/p>\n But beware: if you\u2019ve bought a property with someone else, lenders<\/a> will calculate your debt based on the full value of the house.<\/p>\n Assigal says it\u2019s a scenario that often catches people out.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s one of the pitfalls of buying with someone else,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n \u201cIt may be a problem if you\u2019re looking at buying another property in the future. A lot of people aren\u2019t aware of that.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s critical that both you and your family member or friend are clear from the start about your goals for the property you\u2019re about to purchase, and that those goals align.<\/p>\n There\u2019s no point in buying a property together, only for one party to want to sell up 18 months later, when you\u2019d really hoped to hang onto it for 10 years or more.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just about making sure both parties have the same vested interest,\u201d Assigal says.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s hard to think 10 years in advance, or even five years, but if you\u2019ve both got a clear plan from the outset, it makes it easier to talk about when someone gets married or wants to leave.<\/p>\n How do you know when it\u2019s the right time to get in and get out?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n For Jess*, teaming up with her parents to buy her first home seemed like a brilliant idea, allowing her to enter the market years ahead of when she otherwise would have been able to.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was good in that it got me in the market at a stage in life when I couldn\u2019t afford to do it alone,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n \u201cEverything was split 50-50: expenses, upgrades, landscaping, repairs, and so on.\u201d<\/p>\n But things took a turn when it was decided that Jess\u2019 sister and her husband and kids would also move into the house as renters.<\/p>\n Jess quickly found herself on the outer, and was then asked to vacate the house.<\/p>\n \u201cThings weren\u2019t working out and I was the one that got asked to leave, but was still expected to continue to pay my share of the mortgage<\/a>,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Assigal says having a legally-binding co-ownership agreement drawn up by a conveyancer or solicitor is critical in case things don\u2019t work out.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you have an agreement in place, then you can go back to the document and it\u2019s on paper. Otherwise it can get dirty,\u201d he warns.<\/p>\n
\n <\/p><\/div>\n Realestate au <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"![\"buying](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.realestate.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/03151831\/buying-with-family-friends_2000x1500.jpg?resize=2000%2C1500&ssl=1\")
<\/p>\nThe benefits of buying property with friends or family<\/span><\/h2>\n
Consider your future borrowing power<\/h2>\n
Be clear on your goals<\/h2>\n
Have contingency plans in place<\/h2>\n