Get your ducks in a row

Popular theories on this saying’s origin include:

• It’s a mother duck leading her ducklings in an orderly single file.

• Early bowling pins were nicknamed

‘ducks’ manually set up between rounds.

• Player ‘shoot’ moving targets, often duck-shape, in a popular carnival game.

• In a 1901 issue of the journal,

Recreation, a hunter got 42 wild ducks at once by ‘getting his ducks in a row’ while tempting them with corn in a trough.

Whichever, the accepted meaning is to be well prepared or well organized for something that is going to happen.

Before you buy, get your ducks lined up. With careful planning and preparation, and an organized approach, your home buying experience is likely to be a whole lot better.

Do your sums

Focus on your finances and connect with a finance specialist. You need to know what you can afford to spend and repay. Your borrowing power is determined by your income and financial commitments, as well as your current savings and credit history.

You don’t need to find your new home before you can apply for a loan. A finance application helps determine if you qualify for a loan and measures your debt ratio, an important part of working out how much of a house you can afford.

Get the tick of approval

Now you know how much you can borrow, get your finance preapproved. For starters, it gives you a realistic budget to go house hunting with and it ensures you are treated as a serious buyer.

Pre-approval brings peace of mind, even though it’s not 100 per cent guarantee you’d be granted a mortgage. It provides a level of certainty around what you can afford to pay for a property and you can feel confident that your loan application, subject to the property valuation, is likely to be approved.

Those that have their financial ducks in a row are much more likely to come out on top during negotiations.

Know the market

Research the area you are buying into by browsing newspaper and internet property listings, speaking to local real estate agents, attending plenty of property viewings and auctions. Use this time to fine tune your needs and wants.

Make an offer - sign a contract to purchase

With a pre-approved loan, you’ll be in a position to move quickly, which will help you avoid being gazumped and you can bid with certainty at auction. A seller may even accept an offer prior to auction or below list price because they have a serious buyer.

After making the offer comes the conditional contract, which hopefully the vendor accepts and signs. Both buyers and seller sign contract of sale.

The paperwork

Here’s where you work with your finance specialist towards your formal loan approval, and when you will need to provide all that documentation. Your solicitor or conveyancer plays their part in reviewing legal documents.

Arrange inspections and organise insurance

A building inspection and pest inspection should come before exchanging unconditional contracts. Proof of building insurance is usually required by your lender as part of the home loan process.

Unconditional contracts

Once your finance has been unconditionally approved and building and pest reports are satisfactory, the contract will become unconditional and the transaction moves towards settlement. (Timing depends on your contract and your local/state government). There may be duties to pay on settlement.

Sign mortgage documents

Shortly after your loan approval, your lender will prepare their mortgage documents and loan agreements and forward to you or your solicitor to sign.

Pay and settle

The keys are yours – congratulations!

* The process of buying a house will differ depending on whether the house is sold by private treaty or at auction. Rules may also vary in each state or territory.