Rotorua siblings Charlie and Eleanor Harvey have bought their first home. Photo / Caroline Fleming
Rotorua siblings Charlie and Eleanor Harvey have bought their first home. Photo / Caroline Fleming
Rotorua siblings Charlie and Eleanor Harvey are feeling "incredibly lucky" and relieved to have finally battled their way onto the property ladder.
The brother and sister missed out on four properties, getting beaten out on conditions and quick finance turnaround, before securing the keys to their first home after monthsof searching.
"We're aware of how incredibly lucky we are to actually get on the property ladder," Charlie, 27, said.
The budget
The pair had a budget of between $400,000 and $500,000. A large chunk of the deposit was in KiwiSaver and they didn't have the luxury of a First Home Grant because they bought above the cap of $400,000.
Charlie had made plans to travel overseas last year but when lockdown happened he realised he was going to be in Rotorua for longer. He began looking for his first home in April.
"But I quickly realised it was going to be a much bigger feat than I anticipated. Mainly because you're fighting against people with a lot more money than you and much bigger budgets to play with."
Every home was selling "way above" asking prices and the banks had started to tighten up lending, he said.
"So, me just on my own meant that I was going to be fighting a real uphill battle."
Not long after, Charlie's sister Eleanor announced she was moving back to Rotorua from Whakatane at the start of 2021.
"We combined forces and that meant we had a lot more deposit power and a lot more serviceability power with the two incomes."
The first offer was in August on a home in Owhata.
That one sold for about $30,000 more than what the pair had offered, which was already $50,000 over the property's rateable value.
"That was a real shock because we were playing with a totally different ball game. So there was a real adjustment of expectations."
House 2
The second home in Owhata had them excited after a developer had bought a cul de sac and was clear they did not want investors, Charlie said.
"We wrote a letter to the developer saying who we were, what we did."
The pair put an offer on but again missed out due to their 15-day finance conditions.
House 3
October ticked by and the pair looked at a home in Whakarewarewa.
They put in an offer but were beaten out again by conditions.
"That was actually quite disheartening because we were now in a market where people are willing to forego LIM reports for houses next to geysers. People are willing to take these kinds of risks to get across the line."
House 4
But the pair kept hunting and ended up back in Owhata.
"We were starting to really realise we were going to have to buy a place that was going to need some work."
House number four needed new installation, carpet and a fresh lick of paint.
"Again, we offered a good price and we were beaten on conditions."
House 5 - sold!
At the end of November, they found Ann St.
The two-bedroom 1920s home was listed on Thursday, Eleanor viewed the property on Thursday night, they put an offer in on Friday, which was accepted on Saturday.
This was all before the property's first open home.
"It was a bit of luck that we saw this place at the right time and we put an offer in immediately.
"We managed to get our finance down to about seven days, got the builder's report ... and just held on for dear life."
The pair went unconditional just before Christmas and have now been in the house for about a week.
"It was pretty surreal," Charlie said. "It was just sheer relief that we'd finally managed to lock something down.
"We realised there's no room for light-footing in an offer. You go full gas or you don't bother, because you will get beaten by someone."
Eleanor, 26, said the whole process was "like an emotional roller coaster".
She said it was frustrating missing out against buyers who had fast finance and were willing to forego conditions including LIM and builder's reports.
"There were times when we offered what the seller wanted but we weren't prepared to buy it without knowing all the information. I feel like it's a seller's market and it's forcing buyers to have to compromise.
"We just feel so lucky we found this place just at the right time."
What the agents say
Eves Rotorua agents Jodi Ratahi and Kerif Smerdon said it was becoming very common for first home buyers to miss out on homes multiple times.
Ratahi said it was hard for first home buyers as finance conditions of up to 15 working days was becoming too long in the current market when properties were getting in multi-offer scenarios.
Eves Rotorua agent Jodi Ratahi. Photo / Supplied
"Also, it pays for us to give a lot more guidance than normal through transactions as first-home buyers have little knowledge of the process."
Ratahi's advice was to apply for KiwiSaver early and get pre-approved.
"Be prepared to compromise on your ideal property," she said.
"The other biggest bit of advice we tell first home buyers especially is trust your gut instincts. You will know if it is the right property because it feels right."
