Mistakes Couples Make When Buying A House

Rohit Khanna, a software engineer by profession, was only 26 when he gave in to the persistent demands of his family, and got married. Rohit and his 25-year-old bride, Mahek Khanna, a journalist, spent all their personal savings to have a grand wedding ceremony; this happens only once in your lifetime, they thought.

As things progressed, the two wanted to buy a decent home. They were bachelors no more; their family members and friends regularly visited them. Getting a home loan was not a big deal. The Khannas put their combined efforts, used whatever money they had, availed of a joint loan, and bought an under-construction flat in Noida.

Everything has to be brand new for the new couple. However, as the initial euphoria of finding “the” soulmate and booking “the” perfect home settled in, the pressure of paying the rent along with a monthly EMI (equated monthly instalment) started bothering the two. And the monthly expenses, too, were choking them financially. The two liked to have a good life, visit new places, invite their friends over, have parties, invest in new clothes and accessories. Doing all this now looked impossible to them.

Mahek used to think she might take a break from her job after marriage; that seemed next to impossible now. The couple now realised that the institution of marriage was not all that they portrayed in most Bollywood films. The two started joking with each other, saying bachelorhood was a lot more fun. However, the joke was not without a sense of seriousness.

A majority of people enter into matrimony all dreamy-eyed, without realising the financial implications of the same. “Had I been a bit prudent and used my personal savings to make the down payment for the house, we would not be in such a money crunch. All that spending on making the wedding ceremony grand seems so useless now,” says Mahek.

“I also think hurrying up to book a house to impress our family and friends was not a great idea. Sometimes we do not realise the kind of long-term bearing out little mistakes can have on us,” says Rohit. “The decision to take a combined home loan was another disaster. We both are under stress now. In case of a financial emergency, none of us can avail of another loan now. I wish our parents did not blow so much money on the wedding. We could have used it in a much better way with a better planning,” he adds.

But what about booking an under-construction property?

“It would have been better if we invested a ready-to-move-in house. Even if it cost us more, we would not be under the double burden of rent and EMI,” says Mahek.