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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
Before taking out a mortgage, you should assess not only the size of the monthly payment but also your own financial cushion, future housing expenses, and income stability. This is especially important if a person plans to buy an apartment mostly with borrowed funds.
Main point: Before buying a home, you should have funds set aside for repairs and furnishing. As a rule of thumb, spending on rent or a mortgage should not exceed 30% of monthly income. Preferential mortgage programs can make sense if income is stable. You need to consider not only the loan payment but also taxes, repairs, furniture, and utilities. Before buying, make sure your income will be sufficient to repay the loan in the future. A monthly mortgage payment roughly equal to the cost of rent does not by itself mean that buying an apartment will be more advantageous. Before taking out a loan you need to account for additional expenses and your own financial resilience. According to Taras Kozak, it’s important to have money not only for the down payment but also for outfitting the apartment. "At minimum, so that you can outfit the apartment the way you like, that is, so that you don’t go into large debts because of furniture or repairs," the expert explained. He noted that repairs and furnishing can require significant expenses. If a person has no funds left for these needs after purchasing an apartment, this can create additional financial strain. Read also: Don’t rush to buy: an expert named situations when renting is more advantageous Separately, Kozak drew attention to the ratio of income to housing expenses. In his assessment, it is desirable to spend roughly up to 30% of monthly income on rent or a mortgage payment. At the same time, the expert emphasized that there are preferential mortgage programs in Ukraine for certain categories of citizens. If you are eligible for such lending, the situation may be different. "If you are entitled to such a preferential mortgage, then, of course, there is a chance. If you are employed, if your job is stable, then that’s a plus, especially if you want to already have your own apartment and you don’t plan to move," he said. According to Kozak, commercial mortgages without subsidies can be significantly more expensive due to interest overpayments. Therefore, you should compare not only the monthly payment but the total amount a person will pay the bank over the entire loan term. Before buying a home you should also factor in taxes, repairs, furniture, and other expenses. Utilities, the expert said, occur both when renting and when owning a home. Special attention should be paid to a financial cushion. A person needs to understand whether they will be able to continue paying the loan if circumstances change. Kozak advises, before deciding to buy, to ask yourself three questions: are you ready to live in this apartment for about 10 years, what additional expenses will arise after purchase, and will future income be sufficient to pay the mortgage or outfit the home without the need to sell the apartment urgently.
Read also: The volume of mortgages in Ukraine reached 50 billion hryvnias: 93% of new loans are accounted for by "yeOselu"
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Іпотека без фінансової подушки: експерт пояснив, коли кредит на житло може бути ризикованим". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: RBC-Ukraine.
