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What is the best age at which to buy a house?

Any property investor will tell you, “the sooner, the better”. Here’s why investing at a young age is not only wise but more viable in the current climate.

Article summary

  • The average age for home buyers ranges from 34 to 37.
  • Investing early gives you access to a valuable asset that you can borrow against or use to generate rental income.
  • First-time home buyers can benefit from home loan deals such as the 100% home loan, and subsidies such as FLISP.

Property investors will tell you “the sooner, the better”; and the average age for home buyers in South Africa continues to decrease, ranging from 34 to 37 by the end of the lockdown period.

Rising home loan approval rates and better home loan options are some of the factors that have contributed to this,

Why it’s best to invest at a young age

Home buying is no longer restricted to people with families, or retirees.

Purchasing a home in your 30s (or even 20s) will give you access to an asset that you can borrow against, or use to generate income through rent.

It’s possible to have your bond paid off by the time you reach your mid-40s, and even earlier if you make extra repayments (you can use our Extra Payments Calculator to determine how an extra payment will affect your home loan term and monthly repayments).

So it makes sense to invest early, considering that home loan repayments are not so far above, or in many cases lower, than what you’d pay per month to rent a property. Millennials who don’t invest in property early risk falling into a rent trap.

Why it’s easier to invest at a young age

Factors that have led to a reduction in the average age of home buyers include:

  • Increased rate of bond approval. Home loan approval rates for first-time home buyers reached as high as 83% pre-lockdown.
  • Increased competition between banks has led to higher home loan approval rates and better home loan packages.
  • Remote working is becoming more popular, especially in the post-pandemic period. This has allowed young professionals to take advantage of lower prices in remote areas, instead of having to rent an apartment close to a business hub.

Furthermore, certain home loan packages and subsidies provide invaluable assistance to first-time home buyers, such as:

  • 100% home loans, which remove the need for a deposit — the main barrier to entry for many first-time home buyers. At evo Home Loans, 80% of our 100% home loan applications are being approved, with four out of five applicants successfully securing a 100% home loan.
  • FLISP, a government subsidy aimed at low-income home buyers. If your income ranges from R3 501 to R22 000 a month, and you meet certain other criteria, you can apply for a subsidy which can then be used as a deposit, or paid into your home loan account (reducing your monthly repayments).

A tip for first-time home buyers: Get prequalified

It’s clear the property market is more friendly to first-time home buyers, and if you want to benefit from this opportunity, it helps to get prequalified. This provides you with an idea of what you can afford, and proof you can afford it, which in turn improves your chances of home loan approval.

To make the home-buying process that much easier, evo also offers a range of home loan calculators to help make the home-buying process easier. Get prequalified for a home loan with evo, then, when you’re ready, you can apply for a home loan.