 And when we're talking credit score, we're talking one of the things that is really for a lot of people is really something that they run away from. Sometimes people don't even want to know what their credit score is. So if we are talking minimum credit scores and minimum numbers that one should have, you know, before going into a home agreement like this, what would you say as a professional who sits in this and does this almost every day? What are those numbers? The minimum credit score that the person should look out for or should have to either qualify or actually be granted this hormone? Good evening and welcome to the Private Property Podcast right here on our Facebook page. If you are seeing my face for the first time, thank you so much for stopping by. And if you're listening in on the Twitter Spaces, thank you also for joining us tonight as we talk a topic that is really top of mind and on the pulse in terms of the property spaces. As usual, I've got an expert who's going to be talking to us and giving us insights on how you can do this effectively. So you can see the topic for tonight is definitely something that you want anybody and everybody who is prospectively looking to come into the property space to listen in. He's talking about how to find affordable housing that suits your needs. So this time right now is the best time to send this link to anybody you think is going to benefit from listening to the conversation tonight. I'm joined by Siam Schoen, who's the sales consultant at Central Development in Johannesburg. Sia, good evening and thank you so much for joining us. Hi. Thank you so much for taking our time to join us and, you know, to talk about this. This is one of those things that we all and I mean, all of us need to really apply our minds to because affordability is one of those things that's very relative. And what is affordable to someone else may not be affordable to to another person. So let's talk what affordable housing is. What does this mean? How do we quantify it? How do we know this is affordable? And how does the category look? So affordable housing, it's basically households. It's defined as households that have an income of between three and a half thousand to run about 23,000 rents per month. So those are the households that will fall in the bracket of affordable housing. Sure. And if we're talking affordable housing, right? Is there a specific kind of house that they get? Or are we saying they are like groups that are specifically targeted with different housing options that we have? So anybody that's looking for obviously good quality housing, but that's cost effective. And starting off run about 600,000. So it's that range that you're looking for a good quality house. But that's cost effective. Talk to us basically. All right. Talk to us typically how the house looks two bedroom, two bedrooms. Are we talking a kitchen, a garage? How typically would an affordable house look? What is determined as a basic house that at least the people in that particular category should be able to afford? All right. So it will basically be, it depends on the plan of the house. So it could be a two bedroom, one bathroom, a kitchen with obviously a living area. Obviously, it has to be of good quality as I stated, but there is no definition that it has to be X amount of rooms, et cetera. But obviously it has to have the necessary however it's built, it has to have an area whereby the house is for a living area. It's got obviously a bathroom, it's got a place where you can prepare food, et cetera. So we can't say it's two bedroom, one bathroom, I mean X amount of bathrooms, et cetera, but it has to be of good quality and of a good standard. No, definitely. And when we're talking about how the property market looks now, a lot of people say that this is the time for buyers. It's a buyer's market currently. So let's talk about how the market is doing in terms of these affordable or low cost housing that are on the market. How is the market performing? Are you guys seeing any spike in the uptake and with COVID, and which would be my second question or follow up question to say, with COVID happening and with the market changing slightly, how has the trend been over the past two to three years? So ironically enough, people would assume that obviously when there is a pandemic, you know, and there's not much movement, there's restrictions, et cetera. Our industry being the property industry will be affected negatively, but there is obviously a positive to any pandemic. Such as for example now COVID, COVID really increased the demand of housing, and this was due to the interest rate being so low. So obviously more people could apply, more people could now afford to actually go out there and buy a house. And also we actually saw a move towards people also investing now in homes because they are now starting to work from home. So instead of renting, they now realize that you know actually want, I can actually buy a house because now my house is going to be my office. So I don't need to commute. I don't actually even need to, if I cannot afford to stay in the area where my office is, I can find another alternative because I am working from home. And when we're talking credit score, we're talking one of the things that is really, for a lot of people is really something that they run away from. Sometimes people don't even want to know what their credit score is. So if we are talking minimum credit scores and minimum numbers that one should have before going into a home agreement like this, what would you say as a professional who sits in this and does this almost every day? What are those numbers, the minimum credit score that the person should look out for or should have to either qualify or actually be granted this hormone? So that will be a score of around 620 in banking terms. That's an average risk. So anything more than 620 is more than okay. I mean, you can apply for a home loan, but anything less than 620, it's a bit risky. You need to work on your profile. That is what we actually advise our clients. So average risk, 620 in upwards is an acceptable score. Sure. I like the fact that you spoke numbers there and you know when we talk about working, some people might not understand what is necessarily that term work. So those things that you would advise that one does, I like the fact that you also mentioned that they need to decrease credit as much as possible in terms of the debts that they have. Talk to us about those practical things that one can do in order to increase their credit score and typically how long would this take because for some reason I'm just perceiving that there's someone out there who's really watching tonight and wants to know what are those things that they could do starting tonight or tomorrow, where they could start increasing their credit score to ensure that they are above average and they are able to qualify because they are looking at the description you gave us and the person feels like I fit this like a glove. So just help us with that please. Okay, so I would say firstly for, especially first time home owners, they wouldn't know where to start. We always advise our clients, for example, if you buying for the first time, you don't have credit, you don't know where to start, you don't know where to go. Start by opening one or two accounts. Preferably a credit card because credit card is actually good credit, meaning that you know you get a credit card, you use it, but with most banks, if you paid within 30 days, you actually don't get charged any interest, but you will be building up a credit record. Also take out, as I said, a store account, any store account, and you take up that store account, you pay it on time, you even pay more than the minimum payment, etc. That is how you actually build up a good credit score. For those that already have a credit profile, make sure that you pay your creditors on time. This is vitally important. People might think that paying seven days later or 10 days later doesn't make a difference as long as I've paid, but that is not true. You need to ensure that you always pay your creditors on time and you honor your payments because when the banks look at your profile, they always want to know that this client will be able to honor this bond payment. So that is what we always advise clients to do. No, thank you so much for that. And it's such really actionable intelligence. So if you just joined us, we are talking low or affordable housing and that suits your needs and how to find it, where it is, and if you qualify for it or not. And I am joined by Xi Yamshung who is the sales consultant at Central Development in Johannesburg. So the poll for the week this week, or the poll for the day rather, my apologies, is are you currently living in your dream home? And before I even take the answers from our Facebook family, I want to ask you, Sia, are you living in your dream home currently? I'm living in my transitional home. So sometimes you don't start off living in your dream home. You live in a home that you can afford. That will be comfortable, but also comfortable in your pocket. And then the more you get more income, etc., that's why now you start looking at your dream home. Your first home is not always your dream home. Correct, correct. No, definitely. I hope you're on private property regularly, you know, checking your dream home because we definitely have it on our listings. Of course, I've actually been checking more than my dream home. So Anelda Everton, who is one of our regulars, one of our top fans, shout out to you, Anelda says she's number one for now, but number two is waiting, which is her dream home is in Cape Town. Her dream home is definitely in Cape Town. And Kenneth Mutela says, yes, he currently is living in his dream home, but he needs one more. That's that's how the poll went. And if you ask me, I'm not really sure. I think I think I'll go with you on this one that I'm in my transitional home. Before long, I will be living in my dream home, but we can make you move into your dream home if you are a prospective buyer. The housing that we are talking about today may just be your dream home, even if it's just for now. So let's talk a little bit more about area and location. Every time I speak to people in the property industry, they always talk about location, location, location, whether we're talking property valuations, whether we're talking buying and selling, investing, location is so important. Let's talk about location. You mentioned some locations specifically to your developers and you said that this is some of the things that you guys are working on in Johannesburg South. And we just want to know now in terms of location with this kind of housing, how important is location and does this affect any way in terms of the way people buy and the way people move and and how things happen there. As you've already said, location, location, location, location is so important because it needs to be accessible in terms of schooling, it needs to be accessible in terms of, you know, amenities where people shop, where people work, etc. And the banks, they even give, you know, an area the approval depending on the surroundings, you know, the area also impacts, you know, when you decide now to move to your dream home, when you decide to sell prospective buyers will also look at the area. So, even when we develop a central development, we always look at area because, you know, people need to be able to not only travel to and from work, but also be able to build their lives around the area. That's why we always built around, you know, areas that are close to schools, clinics, hospitals, shopping malls, etc. can go on and on. But area is always key when you are looking to buy, make sure that you look at the area because it will even impact the future value of your home. Sure. And with this, you spoke specifically, and I know that our conversation really up till now has been focused on people who want to buy to live in. You know, is there any opportunities that exist in this space for people who are property investors and people who want to buy houses to flip them, or buy houses to improve them, sell again, or buy houses, you know, to let out. Is there any opportunities for such people? Definitely. We tend to think that investing in property is for certain people or people that are well off in life, which is so untrue. Anyone can invest in property. When I say anyone, even with as little as 5,000 rents, for example, you can buy an investment property. We've had so much uptake in our current development of really digital security village whereby we think an influx of young investors, people that have never even bought before that are staying at home. They're comfortable to stay at home, but they want to invest in property. Property investment is the most, how can I put it, it's worth creation. You buy a property, you rent it out to a tenant, the tenant pays your bond, you don't even have to ever move into that house before you can move on and buy a new property. So there's absolutely a space in affordable housing for investors and there is a demand, definitely. Thank you so much for that. If you have a question and you are watching us tonight, please do ensure that you throw those questions on our comments and we will definitely feel them. And talking about questions from social media, I have one for you Sia and this person is asking, if I'm a foreigner and I want to buy a house, what documents are needed and do I qualify? Yes, you do qualify. It depends on actually your work permit. But if you are in South Africa and you are having a work permit, you can definitely qualify to buy a property in South Africa. So the question is a bit vast, what we can do is even the person asking the question, they can get my details and then we can look at their documentation and then we can take it from there. They don't have to necessarily buy from us, but I mean, just to assist, we can do that for them, look at that documentation and tell them, yes, you do qualify to buy, this is how much you'd qualify for. But with people that are coming outside of South Africa, I have to do advice that even if you do qualify to buy, in most cases, the banks will ask for a deposit. So you must be ready that you will not be getting a hundred percent bond, they'll be deposit required, so you just need to prepare yourself financially. But in terms of documentation, it's so vast that I won't be able to cover each and every document, but if they wish, they can just get my details and then we can look at their documentation and advice. And we've really been having a good conversation in terms of how low cost housing and affordable housing can be accessible to anybody and everyone, whether you're a property investor or somebody who's prospectively looking to go into the market and get that home. So let's talk about advice that you would give to somebody who's prospectively wanting to go into the market, wanting to buy this house, either for investment or for them to live in. What would you advise them to do and what are those things that they need to look out for? In the day and age we live in, people always need to make sure that they protect themselves against scams, fraudulent activities and all of these things that are out there in the industry. So just talk to us what advice you would give them and those pitfalls and downfalls for them to look out for. Okay, so I would encourage everybody, especially first time home owners, make sure that you buy from a reputable brand. When I say reputable brand is a reputable developer, such as central development, make sure that you buy from a reputable brand, make sure that you do all your checks and balances. Make sure that you do your research, do research, whoever you decide to go with and to buy with. I also would advise them that start with something you can afford. Start with something you can afford. Your first home doesn't have to be your last home. That's what I can afford. Buy with your future in mind. You can always use your first home as an investment. So you can buy your first home as you become more, you know, you have more money in your pocket or more, you know, you grow in terms of your career or in terms of work, etc. You can then move from that home, put it up for rental. So use it as an investment and obviously go and purchase elsewhere. That's why it's very important that when you buy, think future-wise. Don't only buy for now. Think about what would I want in the next 10 or 15 years. Also, a lot of people have this misconception that because a bond is for 20 years, you need to pay it all over 20 years. You can always pay your bond before a 20-year period. You can pay your bond in 15 years, in 10 years, in 12 years. It all depends on you. Every time you have additional funds that will be a bonus or whatever it may be, take that money, pay it towards your home loan. It really does make a difference in ensuring that you actually finish off your home loan before time. Thank you so much for that. Really, really appreciate you taking our time and the nuggets you gave us tonight were absolutely amazing and very actionable in terms of the way people can now start coming into the property market and starting that investment journey or even that house that they're going to live in for now. Thank you so much for joining us here tonight and have a good evening. Thank you so much for having me. Thank you. It's a pleasure. And we've reached the end of our episode tonight where we were speaking about how to find affordable housing that suits your needs. Thank you so much for joining us tonight. And hopefully you have gotten some information that will really change the way you are going to approach your next property purchase. Until the next time we see you right here on the Private Property Podcast. Have a great night.