What you should know about buying development property

The pros and cons of buying development property  

If you’re in the market for a new home, you have a variety of choices available to you. Not only do you need to choose between a sectional title and a freehold ownership, you also need to decide if you want to buy it new or under transfer of ownership. This is an important consideration and it can have a huge impact on your financial life over the next couple of years. If you’re thinking about buying new, then you’re spoilt for choice as there is currently a huge number of development properties available in the market. But there are many things to take into consideration.

Buying development property is much cheaper than buying from a current homeowner since you’ll not spending all of your savings on a huge deposit and all the costs associated with buying pre-existing property. You avoid paying transfer duty on the property. VAT is included in the price and transaction costs are paid by the developer. With all the new fixtures and fittings that come with a development property, the maintenance load is reduced and will save you time and money for a good couple of years. A development property enables you to choose the exact specification which means you can include, and exclude, as much or as little as you like.

So, there are some perks to buying development property but, as with most things, there will be some drawbacks too. The finished product, which include the layout, design and finishes, may look somewhat different than what you’ve expected from the artist impression. New homes are built on smaller lots than older homes and it is a reality that most new buildings will have some defects.

There really are a lot of positives to buying a development but it does also still have its pitfalls. As with any huge financial decision, purchasing a development needs careful consideration, and if you do decide to proceed, be sure that you’re buying from a reputable developer.