Buying vs Building (New vs. Second Hand)

A second-hand car is not a new car. A second-hand house is not a new house. Can a second-hand house be a better choice than choosing to own a new house designed for your own wishes?

Why do people favour buying a house than building?

Building a new house is cheaper. It can be an enjoyable lifetime Experience. The smell of freshness will give you a nice nostalgia one day.

An existing house can have unexpected surprises!

Plan your new house. Think about exterior and interior or you can only think about your needs: Types of Rooms, Spaces, and Garden Style. It is good to ask some people too about their experiences. Designers can give good advice. Employ a designer and magic will happen. 

Consider security, fire safety, fire escape, light control, and noise control. 

What you have written down is the brief with which you demand a designer to design a new house for you.

Find a new land or a land with an old house only good for demolition.

Some hard work and stress are an investment good to talk about to your grand children.  

If you have an opportunity to build, just build.


What A Designer Should Do?

  1.  Design is not merely about complying with the rules and regulation but also understanding the designs for the best interests of all parties...
  2.  When a designer can design with good intention, strong patience, necessary experiences, and generosity efficiently, he can design something good. The designer must be given reasonable condition, budget and time.
  3. A good designer can put the environments, users, functions and budget together.
  4. A good designer is always bending toward making good designs.
  5. Some good designs were over budget (historically). A designer may (and should) produce a cool design first only not to be extreme. The owner may reject such and such to achieve an agreeable state. 
  6. Rejecting good design is for bad design. 
  7. Building a family home is not building Sydney Opera House. Owners are no fool. However, they should be able to compare good design and bad design. They should know they can afford good design because it's not more expensive anyway.
  8. Enough spending is necessary but Good design isn't always expensive. But the designer must produce an ideal design within the budget.
  9. When owners (family members for example) get involved with enthusiasm, it is best for the designer to realize their needs and demands. When the owners help the designer, it is for mutual success.
  10. A designer should encourage the owner to help him. The process of producing a good design outcome is not one-sided activity. 
  11. The best part of the design outcome is the smile of the owners. Owners should smile.
  12. Producing Environmentally Sustainable Design is never expensive because it makes sense with long-term welfare. Using locally produced materials reduces cost. 
  13. A good designer knows the tastes of good living – not as a luxurious lifestyle although this is a part of taste. The look (although essential) of a house and lots of expensive things don't automatically make good taste.
  14. Good taste makes good design. People have to feel good in which they live or work. The owners should inform the designer what make good taste for them. 
  15. Me don’t mind to earn only a little. But would like to work for a long time for good designs.
  16. Health (ergonomic consideration) is a main part of good design.

Housing for all – a fair go


Government should have a program to solve housing crisis. A best way is to invest in housing annually to grant a loan package to those who can afford it. This loan package will not hurt the economy in general. This loan will only solve the existing long-term problem of affordable housing crisis. Currently people who cannot afford are not affording and contributing to the economy. If they get affordable means, they will contribute to the economy.

Loan conditions

The loan package is up to $500,000 to all Australians who hold non-dual citizenship, with regular income. They must be who cannot afford to buy the house at once. The government will co-own that house.
An Australian who holds dual citizenship must give up the foreign citizenship to get the loan. The owner may take dual citizenship again after paying back the loan.
Interest will always stay at the same rate of 2%, adjusted with inflection rate. If the loan is $200,000, it might become $250,000 at the end of mortgage period. Then the owner will pay $250,000, plus the interest.

Owner’s conditions

If someone can prove:
She or he cannot afford the house without this loan,
She or he has the proven income and it is the only means to pay back,
She or he must have the means to pay the mortgage for 3 years minimum to get the loan.
The owner must build a new house to get the loan.
The owner may buy the house with government regulations, inspection, and approval.
The owner can build a new house independently with a desired design designed by a designer and built by a builder if it is single dwelling.
The owner may buy an apartment or a flat with government regulations, inspection, and approval.
The size of loan is only the actual value of the house; if the house is, for example, $200,000, then the loan is only $200,000.
The owner may pay the whole loan back anytime, plus total interest amount of ten years. 

Government conditions

During the phase of 3-year period, the owner must not leave, sell, or rent the house to anyone.
After the 3-year period, the owner may move and sell, but not rent the house.
Mortgage rate is to be not less than 5% of the loan P/A. The owner may choose the desired amount any time she or he wants to pay.

Leaving and selling the house

After 3-year period, owner may move or sell the house.
The owner may make profit.
The owner must pay a whole amount of loan, with applied conditions as stated above, or may keep paying the mortgage after moving or selling.
The owner may move to another house co-owned by the government.
Two owners may swap their houses and mortgages.

Investors and fund

The government can allow the investors who agree above permanent rules of the program. Banks, foreign investors, Australian investors and individual investors may invest as much as they want. No fixed return – it depends on the number of borrowers and the amount of loans they borrowed – the investors will share the profit annually. The government is always the main investor. The government must prioritise the investors that government will replace its investment money with investors’ shares. If there are no investors, the government will be the lone investor.

Benefit of this program

Businesses in no pressure will serve the people better.
Long-term investment with regular return can profitable.
The program will stabilize the economy by stabilizing the housing shortage.
The program will take the pressure away from public housing sector of the government.
The program will benefit the public in the following ways:
The retiring workforce will have home.
New generation will have own home.
The cost of living and commodity will fall while the standard of living rises.
The invested money will remain the same to benefit generation after generation.
The government will have to add some funding in regular basic to cope with growing population; however, existing houses left by the elderly people will reduce the pressure. However, such funding will be smaller than the fund needed for the current housing spending. 

Politics


Political leaders might find it is hard to implement a solution for political reasons. They may have to choose between actual solution and political ideology, such as - capitalism, market economy, etc. with the need to avoid sounding like their own opponents. When the opposition gets the office, they might find the solution being in conflict with other agendas. Instead of pragmatic approach to problems, political leaders can have a hard time making agreement within a party. The people who elected them can be the last problems in their mind who they should attend when another election is approaching.