Get in the game guys.
Did you know that single women are more likely to own a property than single men? Over the last few years, single women account for around 20% of all home buyers, while the majority, more than 60% are dual ownership.
While this is great for young women, especially those in the millennial age group, it doesn’t bode so well for men with aspirations of getting on the property ladder. So what is stopping young men from saving and getting a mortgage? It seems it’s the whole saving thing that puts men off. Financial planning, keeping track of spending, putting money into savings, and leaving it there is something that women are generally better at. This means men need extra help in achieving their financial goals.
Set up automatic saving
Saving is hard. Committing yourself to save a set amount every month and foregoing others is tough, but there are ways to make it easier. For example, several online banking apps have functions whereby they ‘round up’ the change from any transaction you make, and automatically put it into a savings account. If you spend $7.50, you can choose to round it up to $8 or even $10 depending on your preferences.
This way of saving is great as you aren’t even aware you are doing it half the time. But this on its own is not enough. You need to be saving at least 20% of your monthly income to set yourself on the proper path towards owning your own property.
Stop buying things out, that you can do at home
Ok, so this might be a bit tougher to stick to, but it’s a small and effective change. Quit buying coffee in cafes, use a reusable plastic bottle, and give up pre-packaged sandwiches and similar. If you can make it at home and bring it with you, you don’t need to be paying inflated prices when you are out and about.
Make coffee in a flask or drink it at the office, prepare a packed lunch, and fill your bottle from the tap. These little changes to your routine can save you hundreds of dollars each month.
Check out your options
How much deposit do you need for a house in your neighborhood? What are your preferred terms? What kind of interest rate are you hoping for? Do you know what a mortgage is? If these questions sound like gibberish to you, it seems you need to do some more homework. Even before you’re ready to buy, getting a firm understanding of the market and financing is a smart move and can help you achieve your goal quicker.
A mortgage calculator site such as Trussle can help you in understanding what sorts of deals are available. You just input your salary, partner’s salary (if applicable), deposit amount, and what your monthly outgoings are. Then, with a click of a button, the calculator tells you how much you can afford to borrow and even suggests providers that can help. This is a great way to gain a better understanding of your options and to help you work towards your ultimate goal.
Look at your online shopping habit
Even men are susceptible to the lure of online shopping; apps, gadgets, music, clothes, the list goes on. When we shop online and part with our cash with just the click of a button, we often don’t realize how much we are spending over the course of a month or year. Instead of cutting it out completely, you can put yourself in online shopping jail every other month.
This means that for one month, you don’t buy anything and instead you create a list of what you want to buy when you are out of ‘jail’. By the time the next month comes around, when you look at your list, you will see that you no longer want many of the items and will therefore save yourself money. Be sure to stick to it on a month-by-month basis and your dream home will soon be in reach!
You see? Just by making a couple of very small changes, you will find yourself able to save money to put towards buying your home.