First time buyers responsibilities when buying property in Malta.

For all you first time buyers out there, firstly, congrats are in order! The day you've been waiting for since that time your mum went one step too far for the millionth time and stumbled into your childhood room without knocking or prior warning of her presence to find you taking a well deserved nap or the dream home you drew up in your mind countless times is finally in your reach. 

Walking in a house and shouting "Hunny, I'm home”, whether it's to your better half or your treasured plants, has become your reality. Dancing around your kitchen in your underwear and singing (or maybe screaming) along to Brittany Spears is now an acceptable, guilty pleasure for all you first-time buyers in Malta. Making that step in life is one big commitment and as with everything else in life - with great power comes great responsibility. 

 

Here are a few expenses most of us first-timers don’t usually think about when buying your first property in Malta or Gozo. 

But before we get into the expenses, we’ll start with the good news first. As a first time buyer in Malta or Gozo, you are probably eligible to benefit from Zanzi Homes’ exclusive First Time Buyer package where you could save up to €13,000. We know this is a big step, and there are always pesky expenses that come up so we’ve pulled together this awesome package to help counter that. 

Extra Expenses to keep in mind when purchasing a new property

As much as we would hope to only have to pay off that hefty monthly loan at the end of the month, there are the inevitable external costs that are hard to avoid and therefore important to consider. 

You may assume that buying an apartment in Malta or Gozo comes with less pressure and responsibilities, however, apartment blocks come with their own costs. A decision you must come to with the rest of your fellow tenants of the apartment complex is whether you would prefer to hire an external administrator to deal with all the communal responsibilities in the block. If you and the rest of the apartment committee decide to do so, a managing agent will take care of all the financials, bills maintenance, and possibly even cleaning.

Though there is an administrative fee, this may be an extra expense that is worth paying for otherwise you’d need to appoint one of the tenants in the block as an administrator and they’d be responsible for taking care of rents, cleaning schedules, services, and maintenance. 

Let's not forget the unavoidable expense of electricity and water bills. So save the planet whilst saving your wallet and cut those 20 minutes steamy showers to the more appropriate 5 or maximum of 10 minutes. Then comes the TV license, telephone bills, and Internet packages. Whether you're a first-time buyer or not, you’ll probably want to take out a home insurance claim to protect your home and everything in it including all your belongings. 

Upkeep and Maintenance Costs of properties

The dream is usually that you are sold a home in tip-top condition with a fresh coat of paint, perfectly trimmed garden, and new light fixtures. But the grass will grow, the paint will peel and bulbs will burst. Also, don’t forget about the behind the scenes; plumping, wiring, and tilling that may cause some problems in the future.

There will always be maintenance works no matter the condition in which you first bought your property in Malta. It’s always a good idea to get the opinion of an inspector to ensure that no grave renovations or any major adjustments need to be made, before you sign on the dotted line. But don’t worry this is something one of our trusted Zanzi homes real estate agents can guide you through. 

Another recurring expense will be that of hiring a cleaner unless you intend to do it yourself. 

To help you get into the habit of keeping track of all your costs and expenditure throughout the month you can use this expense sheet to get into the habit of keeping track of all your costs and expenditure throughout the month. 

If you’re buying your first property in Malta or Gozo check out this step by step guide the Zanzi Homes team have put together especially for you! 

Main blog photo courtesy of Ketut Subiyanto