The Savvy Girls’ Guide to Buying a Second Home
For most of us, buying our first home was stressful enough. The thought of doing it all over again can send us running for the hills. However, buying a second home can be a really smart move. You may be purchasing it as an investment or someone to have a vacation. Either way, there are plenty of reasons why you should do it. If you want to buy a second home, but don’t want the stress, this is the guide for you.
Why Buy a Second Home?
If you’ve got the money then why wouldn’t you buy a second home?! Seriously, there are so many reasons why this is a smart idea. Firstly, it’s an excellent investment. Especially with house prices currently so low. You can make a huge profit from selling when the market rises again. Perhaps you want a second home for vacations? This is another ingenious idea. You’ll be saving a fortune in accommodation costs, by having another home. Not only that, but you can rent it out when you’re not staying there. Meaning you’ll be making money on top of everything else.
Can You Afford a Second Home?
The first thing you’re going to want to do is call up your mortgage company. They’re the guys who are going to be able to tell you if you can afford another property. They will also be able to give you a rough idea of how much it would cost to remortgage your current home. If you’ve got savings set aside for this purpose then you’re already one step ahead. Just make sure that you’re able to afford the repayments. And, have a safety net in place should anything happen.
Finding Your Second Home
So, where are you going to buy this other property? It’s a good idea to do some research into the different areas you’re interested in. For example, real estate in Georgia may be more within your budget than a villa in Hawaii. Make sure you book some time off work to actually go and look at these places. Especially if they’re in another city. Don’t ever make a decision before going to visit the building. It may need work doing that hasn’t been mentioned.
Renting it Out
Most people will buy their second home and then rent it out. If you’re going to do this, make sure you have given it a spruce up first. You want the best return on your investment! A lick of paint and some modern additions should be all it needs. Unless you’ve bought a fixer-upper, in which case you’ll need a much bigger guide for that. When you rent out your property, you become a landlord, which has its own things to think about. Make sure you know all of the rules and regulations surrounding rental properties.
And that’s all there is to it! You probably already know how most of it works, having bought your first home. However, there are a few other things to think about on top of the usual. When the time comes, you can easily sell up and make a profit. Just wait until that market shoots back up!