We’ve collated our top five ideas for ways you can save (and make!) money for your property in 2019.
Save for your first property
Saving money for your first home is a heady experience. You daydream about opening your front door for the first time, or spend hours plotting where to place your favourite furniture. Don’t let your daydreams mist up your commitment - use them as motivation to start saving. Firstly, figure out the size and location of your dream first home. Then, start working backwards to find out just how much money you need to save for your deposit. Don’t get tempted to downsize your dream just yet. The more you are able to save for that deposit, the more choices you’ll have available to you, when the time comes to house hunt. Don’t forget, however, that your first property purchase should be something affordable. It may also be possible for you to skip saving for a deposit entirely, or scoop up a 100% home loan from your financial institution.
Save for your next rental deposit
You’ve loved living in an apartment, but the time has come to upgrade your home to accommodate your growing family. Saving for your next rental deposit shouldn’t be too difficult, but there are great ways to save without breaking your budget. Open a tax-free savings account at your bank, and you can save up to R33000 per year. Through this option, you can grow your savings, and not be forced to pay any tax on it. You can save up to R500 000, cumulatively, over the years, and never have to share any portion of it with the taxman. Don’t forget to follow up and ensure you get your first rental deposit back too, where applicable. We’d recommend not relying upon it when saving for your next rental deposit, as it will usually only be refunded to you after you’ve moved out. Rather, use it to cover the costs of new furniture or similar expenses when you move into your new home.
Save for renovations
You bought your first home, and now you’re thinking about new ways to expand, change, or upgrade it. Renovating or upgrading your home is a great way to increase your property’s value, but the initial outlay of money can seem off-putting. Investing in your property in this way is most often not a bad idea, but make sure you use reputable service providers, and have your plans approved. We’d recommend using a tax-free or fixed deposit savings account, to save money for your renovations. Alternatively, you may be able to use your bond to cover the costs of your renovations and upgrades. Chat to your financial advisor or bank to ascertain the best option, in line with your personal circumstances.
Save for a future you
You might think that R50 burger special is a bargain, but that little amount could lead to much bigger savings in the future. Simply adding R50 to your monthly bond repayments could save you so much more than you realise. That extra R50 could shorten your bond repayment term by 9 months on a 20-year, R500 000 bond, provided to you at an interest rate of 10.25%. It would also save you more than R25000 in interest payable to the bank. Check out our Bond Calculator to see how much a mere R50 helps you in the future.
Use your property to make money
Renting out your investment property is a good idea, but it can take up a lot of your time. If you’re finding the process of being a private landlord a little too much to bear, consider handing over the management of your property to a reputable estate agent. Or, if your investment property is currently empty, think about registering on Airbnb. Big tip: there are now several service providers who can oversee the day-to-day management of your Airbnb property for you. While using an agent or service provider to manage your rental property may not seem like a money-saving tip, it can be in the long run. Having someone on-hand and on-call to deal with the finer details can help you weed out bad tenants, ensure your property is well-maintained, and save you oodles of time that would’ve been spent sorting out maintenance issues.