Many people make the mistake of thinking that the cost of the mortgage will be the only thing that they have to pay when purchasing a property. However, this is most definitely not the case. You will quickly find out that there are plenty of other costs that you need to watch out for when purchasing a property. While the actual purchase will be the most important and the largest by far, there are others that you can’t forget.
Stamp Duty
One of the most important aspects of cleaning up a property purchase can include having to pay stamp duty. This is a special tax that applies to the sale of properties and is usually calculated using the purchase price or market value of the property. It must be paid, and so you have to ensure that you have the cash to be able to pay your stamp duty when you buy the property.
If you need a little help in calculating how much you will have to pay, you can find a stamp duty calculator to be able to work out what you have to pay. Stamp duty is usually tiered. Before a certain threshold, you are only going to have to pay a certain amount. It then climbs at certain intervals, slowing becoming a higher percentage. Therefore, someone buying a property that is worth $500,000 will often have to pay a higher level of stamp duty than someone buying a property worth $120,000.
Occasionally, governments will offer stamp duty holidays or reductions. Though this can make paying this cost easier, caution should still be taken when buying during this time. A stamp duty holiday can sometimes result in more people trying to buy to take advantage of it. This will mean that property prices overall can rise.
Solicitor and Real Estate Agent Fees
There are a lot of people involved in the purchase of your property. Though you and your seller are going to be at the heart of things, you will also be backed up by solicitors and real estate agents who all work hard to ensure that the sale goes ahead as smoothly as possible. From where you sit, the transaction can be quite a simple one. However, it is anything but. Your solicitor and real estate agent will play a key role in ensuring that everything goes ahead as it should.
Depending on the complexity of this exchange and how much you will be spending on the property, the costs you run up can be quite high. If there is a particularly difficult legal issue that your solicitor runs into, it might take a while for them to fix and this will only increase the final bill you have to pay. However, they should be able to give you a rough idea about what the fees are likely to be in your initial consultation with them.
Moving Fees
Once the property is yours, you are going to have to move your belongings into it. A move can be one of the most stressful things we have to go through in life, and it can be quite a shock to the system after the high of a property purchase. However, it is something that has to be done, so you need to ensure that it is handled in precisely the right way.
Make sure that you are able to find a trustworthy moving company who will be able to help you get all of your belongings from A to B. Whether you have any furniture to move or you just have belongings and extras that are going to be a fuss to move, you need to make sure that you find someone who can help you get things to your new place.
Some moving companies also offer a packing service. If you have a lot of possessions to move, or you are a particularly busy person, opting for this service means that you don’t have to worry too much about ensuring that everything is ready for the movers to pick up. It can also mean that you will be settled into your new place a lot sooner.
Don’t Forget to Pay These Costs!
Moving is a massive stress and you need to make sure that you don’t forget about some of the many costs involved here. There are so many different things to look out for, so you need to make sure that you don’t end up forgetting an important cost along the way. You need to be as organised as possible as during this process so you can get through it as easily as possible. Before you know it, you will be relaxing in your new home, but you do have some commitments and payments to get through first.
Article by Born Realist