Most of us have thought about it… Relocating to the sunny state of Queensland to enjoy better weather all year round, or moving to Adelaide to get away from the hustle and bustle of a big city. Some of us have even thought about moving to chase a new job opportunity or career change.
Well, during COVID, a record number of people followed through on their dreams, and picked up their lives to move regionally, or even interstate… But how can you make it work if you’re wanting to buy before relocating?
Realistically, lenders can generally be accommodating with whatever life plans you may have. Sure, some may be stricter than others when determining the rules or procedures around this, but the question they all want the answer to is, how will you continue to pay your loan with the move?
The fact is, most people would be thinking about this anyway… It’s rare that someone would just up and move without some kind of plan around how they will be able to pay their bills, but depending on how concrete those plans are will determine whether or not you can get the finance to do so.
- Relocating with the same employer
Some of us are lucky enough to be able to work from home full time or relocate to an area where we can continue to do the same job due to having another office or workplace in the destination area. As long as you can provide proof of this (employment letter, or if you’re self-employed, a detailed explanation, etc.) then there’s no reason why most lenders won’t be available.
- Changing jobs and moving at the same time
This one is really tricky, but once again, the bank just wants to make sure your income will continue. Trying to line up the start date of your new role and the move date can be very hard to do, but as long as there won’t be a significant gap between your current job ending and the new one starting, plus the new role is permanent or a fixed term contract, there are lenders that can assist.
- Relocating without employment to go to
Unfortunately, this rules pretty much every lender out. With a big relocation and no employment, the lenders won’t have any way of ensuring that you’ll have the income needed to meet your repayments. If there is a job to go to, but it’s a sizeable gap between your current role and the new one, this may be a no-go as well, especially if there’s probation.
Having said this, these are not the only 3 scenarios, so there are times when some lenders can be a little more flexible. If relocating has been on your mind for a while, or you’re like me and go on a holiday somewhere and start dreaming of what it might look like to move there, feel free to reach out and we can see how we might be able to turn that dream into a reality.