1: A Lack of Financial Planning: A deposit is not the only thing you need to save up for when you buy a property. Your deposit is just the beginning of the process; you are also going to have to pay for things such as surveyor fees, closing costs, valuation fees and legal fees.

How to Avoid Getting Stuck: Before you start house hunting, find out how much your costs will be outside of a deposit and save towards that. You should also make sure that you have an emergency fund just in case.

2: A Lack of Knowledge: Having a lawyer to assist you is great; however, it is even better if you understand the house buying process yourself. Many people have lost thousands of dollars from failing to do this.

How to Avoid Getting Stuck: I’m sure you’ve heard the saying “knowledge is power,”. Before you start house hunting, arm yourself with as much information as possible.

3:  Getting Too Emotional: Yes this is going to be your home, however, ultimately it’s an investment and you might need to sell it one day.

How to Avoid Getting Stuck: Don’t get too emotionally invested in your home. Emotions can lead you to do a lot of things you wouldn’t normally do, such as spend more money than you need to.

4: Relying Too Much on the Internet: There are some properties that are not advertised online. Since we are living in a technology-driven generation, the internet is often the first and the last point of contact for some first time buyers which can lead to missing out on nicer properties.

How to Avoid Getting Stuck: Travel to different real estate agents and have face-to-face meetings with realtors so that you can articulate your needs to them directly.

5: Prioritise Your Needs: There are wants and there are needs and your needs are more important than your wants. First time buyers can get so excited about buying a house that they jump in head first without thinking things through.

How to Avoid Getting Stuck: Decide what you need in a property and make a list starting with the most important things first.

6: Going For The Higher End of Your Budget: Just because you’ve got the money doesn’t mean you have to spend it.

How to Avoid Getting Stuck: Look for a property that is less than your budget, this way you have more funds available in case of an emergency.