 Senbunani Demilangu evening and welcome to episode 386 of the Private Property Podcast. I'm your host, Uzaman Dunwo Kumailo. It's the Wednesday edition of Private Property Podcast. If you're joining us for the first time, welcome to the family. You're tuned into the only Daily Property Podcast in South Africa catering to your property needs. Doesn't matter where you are on your property journey, whether you're looking to buy, to sell, to build, you're a tenant or you're a landlord, we're simply here to help you along the way. And all our regular viewers on Facebook and Instagram as well as on YouTube, welcome to it. You know how we do. Every single weekday you and I have an appointment where I'm always in conversation with a property expert who helps us navigate our property journey. And of course, talking about navigating our property journey, there's also a host of other great shows that you can look forward to right here across Private Property's social media pages. It's a Wednesday, so Esti Klassen is going to be bringing you the first time home buy a show at 8 p.m. and every Tuesdays and Thursdays, Bari Nwokot brings you the farming podcast at the same time. And on Mondays and Fridays, Chad brings you the home shopper's show, where he takes you through incredible properties that you can find on www.privateproperty.co.za. Now, as many of you can see, unfortunately, my camera has not turned on, I'm having load shedding, my network is buckling, but the show always has to continue because we always want to make sure that we bring you your daily dose of all things relating to property. And that's exactly what we're going to be doing. Come hell, come high water or certainly any load shedding is not going to stop us from making sure we always tackle property matters. Now, one of the other things that certainly isn't going anywhere anytime soon is, of course, the incredible competition that we're running on our Facebook page, go on over there and look at the pinned post on our page, where we're asking you to share the property advice that you've picked up from watching whether it's this show or, of course, the other great shows that are across Private Property's social media pages. And if you do so, you stand a chance of walking away with $500 in cash. And all you have to do to be able to claim that prize is, if we call your name, you have to be watching us live and drop us a message to claim your prize. Unfortunately, we haven't had a winner claim their prize. And so the money has been rolling over in the money bag. I think we're not sitting at $2,500 that is in the money bag. And so whoever's going to win this evening stands a chance of walking away with that cash prize. We'll catch up with who the potential winner is later on this evening. And I'll share some of the great posts that those of you at home have shared with us as we've been running this competition. But to kick start our conversation, it's a Wednesday. So we've got somebody from the Apsa Home Loaves team this evening. We're going to be looking at managing your first time home buying fears. And I'm joined by Zeta Manuel, who's the product portfolio manager for first time home buyers at Apsa Home Loaves. Zeta, good evening. And thank you so much for joining us. Good evening, Zama. Thank you for having me again. It's lovely to always be here and having proper conversations for first time buyers. Thank you. It's always such a pleasure to have you on the show, Zeta. And I think your beat, of course, is first time home buyers. And one thing that we know is that first time home buyers are bound to certainly be scared of the first time home buying journey. Many of us who've walked that path know it all too well. It's scary. It seems very intimidating. Perhaps let's first just explore some of these fears that we know people tend to typically have when it comes to home ownership. Especially those who come from renting as a background as opposed to perhaps be exposed to people who've been buying properties a few times. Thanks, Zama. I think the biggest fear around intake in the property ladder is the buying process. I think as a first time buyer, you're always concerned if it's the right time. Are you searching for the right property in the right suburb? But more importantly, it's taking on the long-term debt, commitment, a long-term commitment from a debt perspective, as well as an ensuring that you can be able to afford the debt that you're taking on. Also, looking at the different economic dynamics that plays a role, you're not always sure if the property and the suburb that you may be interested in may still be in good standing over a couple of years. And I think also what's another biggest fear is that are you making the right decision now at the right time? And I think naturally, those would be fears around the buying process. But we've got resources to help you to alleviate some of those fears and different tools to also help you. And I think perhaps let's explore some of these fears and just how valid they tend to be. Because I know that sometimes, and I was like this earlier on in my property journey before I made the leap of going from renting to ultimately buying, one of the fears was not the most legitimate of fears. And I only share this. And now looking back, it's a bit of an embarrassing thing to admit to. But at the time, I think I was watching 22 looking to buy a property. And I think the very big thing that was weighing heavy on me was, oh gosh, you're single, 22 year olds at the time, they don't buy a property, maybe wait until you get into a serious relationship before you buy. So just stay renting. In retrospect, I mean, I know that many women don't think like that anymore, certainly are buying properties as young as 22. But we're going to look at some of those fears and just the legitimacy of them. Have you just taken us through some where you really do need to almost think heavily around it and others where you kind of know that look, this is not a big fear. This is just one of those things that when you look at it in retrospect, you'll think actually regret not doing it. And especially because that was the reason holding me back. I think psychologically, we would fear the process of buying. I think actually there'll be some elements of anxiety around the buying process. But more importantly, I think that's the fear of the unknown because you're not sure, you know, you're making the right decision. Is it the right property? Can you afford it? But I think what's important is that understanding the resources available you to support you and also looking at reaching out for support and information to help you through the buying process as well. These banks that can share information with you. There's also estate agents as a resource that can help you around property guidance. Banks can help you around the finance and lending component. And I think those are all your support structures. And there's also friends and family who's previously bought homes that can even give you guidance as well around the experience. So I think as a first time buyer, it's about research. But naturally, emotively, you will fear the process. But that's why the resources are there to support you to alleviate those and give you all the tools and the guidance you need to make the right decision. I am this evening in conversation with Zeta Manuel, who's product portfolio manager for first time home buyers at Apsa Home Loans. As we tackle managing your first time home buying fears and I see some of the love that we're getting from our viewers on our Facebook page, Megan from Sculpey, tuning in saying good evening, Farmer Belinda Aydinzen, rather also watching an elder Everton also tuned in there on our Facebook page. Of course, do keep the love coming. We absolutely love seeing it. And of course, later on, as I promised, we aren't going to be going through a few of the posts that some of you at home have sent us for the competition that we're running, looking at some of the key things that you've learned while watching the show. Now, Zeta, I think when we look at where we can go for property advice, and this isn't even one of the competition that we're running, where can first time home buyers go to get excellent property advice that's going to help them make better and more informed property decisions? Perfect. I think we'll start with an estate agent. So an estate agent is there to give you guidance to show your properties that you may be interested in and you may ask the questions. Then there's private property as a search portal. Give you good guidance, you can retrieve property reports to understand the suburbs and some of the statistics and information you may need from an amenities perspective as well. And there's also good information around guiding tips of purchasing information on private property as a portal. When it comes to banks, the banks as a financial lender sits with the financial assistance. However, as a bank at EPSA, we also have great pre-buying tools that can help consumers make the decision. So we've got a great knowledge information hub on our EPSA portal where it actually guides you around information, around articles, around the buying process, what are tips to look out for as a buyer. It's a first time buyer. We've also got a great tool that can help you understand what you can afford from a pre-qualification perspective. So you can complete that to see what outcome you get and what you could afford and you can then start searching. And then we also got an e-learning tool, EPSA My Home Owner Journey, that can help you understand the ins and outs of home ownership and the entire buying process, inclusive of all the attorney costs associated to as well. And our calculators on our website can also help you navigate around affordability, what is the maximum property purchase price you can buy, and all the associated costs like attorney fees to that. So that's the sort of support that a lender can provide. And then this, like I've mentioned, family and friends that also share their experiences around their buying processes as well and give guidance. But I think from a resource perspective, there's a bank, there's the search portal private property, EPSA has great tools on our website to help you as a first time buyer. And ESA agents can also be a great guide and support around especially areas and properties in different suburbs as well. And of course we are, one of the great things is as I was saying is that we are running this great competition where we are, you know, asking you at home what kind of public advice you've also picked up while watching the show. Christine DiCiaba saying, I'm learning daily from the show, came across it recently, listened to the session about the conveyancing process, been hooked since then, thanks private property to many more sessions. Mallory Panther saying, for all your property needs, I've learned things on private property. I never knew existed, HOA, olive farming, Wagner beef with EPSA, and that is Mallory Panther. And the Cosmos and Mubes saying, investment in property is a wise move in one's lifetime. Going for such needs, professional advice that's free of charge, private property offers this. And we've got a comment coming through from Umar Thashinange saying, let's repeat the rule over a few times until we get to 10,000. 5K is also fine. Of course, she's making reference there to the competition that we're running. And Ulrich was saying, my biggest worry many years ago was affordability. I didn't know whether I would be able to keep up with the increasing rates. This was of course way before I learned how to run my numbers. And I think that's quite a big one, affordability certainly is one of those big things that so many people tend to worry about. And we'll talk a little bit about some of the common mistakes that people at home made. But in the meantime, let's give a look at who the potential winner of that 2,500 rounds that is up for grabs this evening. And I hope they're watching. If they're not, we are of course going to have a roll over. But in the meantime, let's have a look who the lucky winner is. And the lucky winner this evening is Wusim Bata. Wusim Bata, congratulations. You're the winner of that 2,500 rounds that is up for grabs this evening. I hope that Wusim is indeed watching and can claim that prize 2,500 rounds up for grabs. Wusim Bata, we'll see if they'll be able to claim that prize before the end of the show. Continuing with our conversation with Zeta Manuel, who's a product portfolio manager for first-time home buyers and after home loads talking about managing your first-time home buying fears. And Zeta, I think let's look at some of the common mistakes first-time home buyers tend to make because we know that first-time home buyers and first-time home owners were prone to make mistakes in when we're navigating that first-time home buying and home ownership journey. Perhaps share with us some of the common mistakes that we typically make. Thanks Abba. I think affordability is one of them. It's a key one. I think ensure that you check and assess your affordability. It's one of the things we commonly make a mistake. We don't run our numbers to better understand can we afford a property and enter into an agreement over a long term. Also understanding your credit record. Ensure that it's a good credit record and if you have any challenges or anything that you need to clear up on there, reach out to the Bureau and get a credit report. You do get one annually free from trans-union experience so you can understand your credit standing. And then I think not having enough money saved up for the associated cost-to-home ownership, such like attorney fees, once-off electricity, utility expenses, as well as moving costs, and then assess your budget to ensure that you can actually accommodate additional expenses. And also once you're a home owner, you need to always have disposable income and savings set aside for unexpected maintenance costs from a home owner perspective. Those become accountable for those over time. And then also those are some of the common mistakes we make and we're not really completely prepared for the journey. And when we enter and be there, we get these surprises and we might not be ready and it can then make the entire buying experience negative. So that's why we have all the resources available to support first-time home owners, first-time buyers as they prepare for the journey so that it can be a really positive experience rather than negative. And I think that's such an important one to take note of. And I think one of the other big things is of course preparing to buy Zeta. What are some of the best ways to make sure then especially first-time home buyers who are watching and when many people are setting their plans for 2022 looking to certainly have property goals as part of their goals for the for the new year, how can they best prepare themselves in the event where buying a home is part of the goals for the new year? I think as the preparation journey begins, I think one of it should first start with, do you have an idea of which suburb you'd like to buy, which area you're interested in, research the area, understand the amenities and its surroundings, understand traffic connectivity or transport networks around the area. So you have a good understanding of possible areas you may be interested in. Then retrieve some property reports to understand what are average home prices in that area and have a better understanding around the area from an information perspective. And I think that's another way where you can access some of this information via private property as well on their website. I think then go to your personal budget, assess your budget and understand, can I actually afford a home? Look at your income, look at your expenses, try to look at where you can reduce unnecessary expenses, keep them quite minimal so that you can actually afford a repayment of a home. Then utilize calculators, you know, we've got that in my apps, a website, play around with a calculator to understand if I buy a home for different price ranges, what's the associated attorney fees to that, what would be an average repayment in storemen for a home loan. Then also look at the affordability and that goes in size with your affordability. Then you can complete a pre-qualification to see what you can actually afford, you know. And then also as mentioned, make sure that you credit record is in good standing and you clear that up. But also with budgeting as well, all the other additional costs that you will incur as a home owner, such like insurance costs. If you buy an intersectional title, property or estate living levies, you know, average levy costs as well, take that into account and moving costs, you know, as well as consider as a home owner, what is some of the furniture costs that you need to save up for? Check your savings, do you have enough savings to accommodate some of those expenses that you will incur as you prepare for the journey? And I think those are all things that can help you prepare for your journey as you think about becoming a property owner as a first-time buyer. We are taking your questions and comments this evening as we look at managing your first-time home-buyers fears with Zeta Manuel from Apsa Home Loans, Tiaakou Mounyai, asking, do you give 100% bond for first-time home buyers? And I want to expand on that question, Zeta, around what informs a bank extending 100% LTV versus maybe an 80% or 90% because I know many people probably may want 100%, even if they've got the deposit, but still want that 100% LTV. So do you give it for first-time home buyers and also what informs a bank actually getting to 100% instead of it being 90% or 80%? Thank you, Zema. That's a really great question. I think it goes back to affordability. So as a bank, when you submit an application, we look at your, we assess your application to understand if you can afford a loan and if you're in good standing from a credit scoring perspective and a lending perspective. So we've got to align to that. We do the assessment for affordability and credit lending and that is how the outcome is calculated in terms of the type of lending we give you. At EPSA, we do offer for first-time buyers up to 105% lending as a first-time buyer and we give you all other great benefits as well as well as attorney discounts to support you to get onto the property ladder as a first-time buyer. But that in a nutshell is how we assess you as a customer when you apply for lending with the bank. And then when we then look at Zeta, the best way for people to kind of navigate that home buying journey, once they're ready, they've prepared, they've done their research, is there almost a checklist that they must have in mind as they walk through home buying? Because I know that this is one of those things that you can very easily forget because there's just so many steps, so many moving parts, so many things that sometimes happen. Is there a checklist that at the very least we kind of need to be aware of, especially where you know that your finances are well, you've kept your credit score really well, you've saved up for your deposit. Almost what checklist should you have in mind once your finances are healthy and you're now ready to certainly start viewing and of course sign on that offer to purchase? I think importantly before you make that step, ensure that you know your financing good standing, your credit records in good standing, now you're ready to make an offer. So be sure that the property you're interested in is the one that you 110% comfortable with. So make sure it meets your requirements, your living requirements, especially in your needs. So a lot of us look for different amenities in the surrounding suburb, good transport network systems, fiber connectivity, is the security what you're looking for in the suburb or if you're buying in a sectional title property, do you understand how the levies work? The rules of a complex as well is also important. You want to find yourself finding out about certain things that might not suit your lifestyle. And make sure that the property you're buying is in line with your lifestyle and where you are from a life stage perspective as well. And then when you come into the lending part of things, as a bank we've made it very easy for you to apply online for your home loan and we also have a great support team as well from a sales and service perspective that can guide you on the journey throughout the process and made it very convenient. And then we also have great first-time buyer benefits at EPSA to help you to enter the property ladder as well, such as our up to 105% lending for young professionals. And we also have great, we give all first-time buyers a 50% attorney discount as well and good personalized interest rates as well. And going to more of your questions and comments at home, we've got a comment coming through on YouTube, Pakistan, we're rather seeing one of those scared buyers my application is currently with bond lawyers, I'm anxious about the unknown fluctuating interest rates and increasing rates and taxes. Umeens of Utiles is saying beyond understanding the full property purchasing process, I think one must also work to improve their financial management skills, because you have to manage your money around the buying and also maintaining the property you buy. And another one here coming through from Uwe Dumail on the highlights saying, do you give 100% on small holding? And I know this wouldn't be a first-time home buyer and probably one of those questions that should be asked on the farming podcast, but I'll still give it to you nonetheless, Zeta, 100% on small holding. So what we do is we'll go through the same affordability and assessment process. And once we assist you in your city application based on affordability and your credit criteria, we'll share an outcome based on whether it's 100% or below. And that's generally how we assess an application. Yeah, but we do give up to 100%. And I think if I understand the question, which is probably referring to small holding small holding farm, I know that with farms really doesn't get there, but you because banks almost want you to put a bit of skin in the game. But I do recommend watching the farming podcast and Bali has certainly spoken to colleagues, to your colleagues Zeta at Apsa, who look at Agri. And I think that would be a great, you know, conversation to listen to and even look at what they look for specifically when it comes to of course, buying a farm. At Sapa Mukhubudi saying also I heard that financial advisors get some incentive from banks like interest rates and reductions. What incentives or benefits does Apsa give for financial advisors when applying for their home loan? I think this one speaks to, you know, sometimes Zeta, I think people are, and I've seen this in different instances, we sometimes get scared or certainly wary. I think the word is more wary when we're seeking advice from a financial institution that we know is also going to get a sale because we think they may not have our best interest at heart. So I'm thinking of, for instance, when you want to negotiate for a lower interest rate, you know, they may think, look, your bond consultant might not want to fight for you to get that lower rate, because they, you know, they're going to get perhaps a bigger, you know, commission if they have you signing up on a higher interest rate, perhaps, you know, should like with that one, because I know this is a sentiment that so many people certainly think and hold when it comes to these kinds of things. Well, thanks, Summer. I think, look, when we in, I think if you look at entering into agreement over a long period of time, you want to know that the out the financial outcome is the best. So when you submit your application and if you receive your your outcome and you may be not happy with with the interest rate that's been applied, you can send that back to the bank and say you'd like to see if you could get a better interest rate. We'll review that and we'll share an outcome with you. Yeah. That's the actual process that we followed today. A great question coming through here from the Lisa Chabela saying is as agents, we do our best to educate first time home buyers, but the challenge we have is that they sometimes would rather get a loan to pay the transfer fees. Can banks educate first time home buyers? And I'm sure you see that quite a bit there, Zeta. Yes, we actually do. I think it comes part of the preparation process. So it takes me back to when I say you need to have sufficient savings so that you can accommodate all the cost and expenses that comes with becoming a first time homeowner. And a lot of the times people might have not saved up for attorney fees for the ones of rates and tax costing, the electricity costing, and then they don't have enough money for some of those, right? So then they lean towards taking up a loan to pay for those expenses, which can put pressure on your budget over time. And that's why we really encourage the market. As part of your preparation journey, it's imperative to have savings set aside so that you can accommodate these costs as you go through the buying process. And more importantly, like I've mentioned, when you assess your budget, try to keep your expenses at a minimal and really for basics and not incur additional debt when you're taking up a long term debt like a home loan as well. Because you can feel the pressure over time, especially when the economy takes a turn and interest rates start increasing. Then when you assess your budget, you will find that you might be a little bit tight because now you can't accommodate the interest rate hike increases and you might be struggling with repayments in the long term. So it's very important to manage your finances, be very prudent about it. And really, when you become a homeowner, really ensure that your budget accommodates, it has a surplus and you can actually save for those unexpected expenses as well. That you can incur once you're a homeowner and also ensure that you always have a savings pool set aside. That's the guidance I can share as well. And as we wrap, Zeta, one of those questions that many first-time home buyers sometimes have is what the ideal first purchase is? Is it an existing property or a property in an existing complex or a state? Is it buying off plan? Is it buying a full title, free-standing property? How should people be sort of thinking through the type of property that they should be buying as their first purchase? Great, great, Zama. I think assess where you are from a life-stage perspective and lifestyle perspective. There's benefits to sectional title. If you're looking for security, lock up and go, body corporate manages the levies. You just pay a once-off cost for levies and maintenance and that's been managed by the body corporate if you're in a sectional title property. Also, structure insurance is also taken up by the body corporate as an example if you're in a sectional title property. And also, these days, some of our sectional estate living type of properties comes with certain requirements like fiber networks, et cetera, and those things have become quite important. So I think it's really dependent of where you are in your life-stage. A free-standing property is also great. I think you just become more responsible. You become responsible for upscaling your security or in improving the security of a free-standing property if that's important to you. The maintenance also becomes something that you'll be accountable for. So if there's any maintenance that you need to do on a free-standing property, you must be ready to absorb those costs as well. And I think those are some of the pros and cons that you've got to weigh up based on your desires and your needs. And also, your life-stage, where you find yourself, are you single? Would you want to buy the property for investment? Is it for extended family? Are you young parents? It depends on your life-stage and in your lifestyle as well. So those are factors you've got to consider as you buy for property in conjunction with the suburb and the area and things like amenities and schools, things that are important to you that you would need access to. And that also are drivers to help you make the decision around which type of property that you buy. And Zita, as a wrap up our conversation, any final tips for our viewers at home who are aspiring first-time home buyers or certainly getting ready, of course, to purchase their first home in the new year? So the guidance I can give is please prepare the journey. I think assess your budgets, understand your affordability. Do the pre-qualification to see how much you can afford. Ensure your credit record is in good standing. Please set savings aside for the associated cost-to-home ownership. And visit Aps's website. We've got great first-time buyer products available to you and benefits, and we've got great pre-buying tools and information that can help you on your journey as you prepare for home ownership. And we are going to leave it there this evening, Zita. Thank you so much for joining us. It's always such a pleasure to have you on the show. Thank you, Zama, and thank you everybody for listening to us this evening. Stay safe. And that is Zita Manuel, who's a product portfolio manager for first-time home buyers at Aps's Home Loans, wrapping up the Wednesday edition of the private property podcast with myself, and the team has let me know, unfortunately, Wu Simbata has not claimed that 2,500 rounds. We have another roll over, so 4,000, 2,000, 3,000 rounds. Look at me even losing count, 3,000 rounds up for grabs tomorrow evening. Unfortunately, I won't be here. Haiti's going to be holding it down, presenting the show. And of course, I'll be back on your screens on Friday evening. That's it from myself as I'm going to work. I'll be back on Friday. Until then, hope you're staying home and staying safe.