Written from the trenches of Auckland real estate by Amit Sharma — Bayleys agent, 10+ years marketing experience.
Falling in love before doing the maths. Emotion is fine; emotion without a budget is dangerous. Know your absolute ceiling before you walk in.
Skipping the building report to "save" $700. A building report on a $1.2m home is the cheapest insurance policy you will ever buy.
Negotiating themselves out of a deal over a few thousand dollars. If the home is right, the gap between $1.18m and $1.20m disappears the day you move in.
Trusting verbal promises. Anything that matters belongs in writing in the contract.
Waiting for the "perfect" market. The perfect market only exists in hindsight. The right home for you appears when it appears — be ready.