If you ever find yourself looking at property listings in the Real Estate Database that seem to be very expensive (or very cheap), then you are most likely looking within the wrong locations.

Stop looking for houses or land in locations like Naguru or Kololo or Nakasero or Mbuya or Bugoloobi, and yet the property that fits your budget is in locations like Kasokoso or Bulindo or Gayaza or in Namavundu.

It’s true that most buyers want to have a home that is very close to the city center and thus close to their workplace, however the closer you get to the city the more expensive the houses become.

There are many property listing plartforms like the RealEstateDatabase.net or Lamudi.co.ug or Realtor.ug that have 1000s of properties in a wide range of locations within which you can find something that fits your "current budget".

So, if your budget is a limiting factor in your property search process, then all you need to do is to put more focus and efforts on the locations where your budget fits.

if you have no idea about the locations where your budget fits then the next best option is to use the price range search boxes, you can find those boxes on the RED by clicking the double arrows under the search button.

Having a limited budget is not a crime, you just need to accept that the money you have is not enough for you to be looking at houses in Kololo, once you accept that fact, then you can find your level in other locations that match your budget constraints.

It’s very common for a potential buyer to request a tour of houses in the range of say 100M, but once they arrive at such a house, they begin to complain how the house has no roof tiles, or that the house has no floor tiles and no marble tops in the kitchen, such a buyer should be looking in places like Naguru or Bukoto or Ntinda and not in Gayaza or Ssisa.

The problem in such cases is that there is usually a mismatch between the buyer's suggested budget and their expectations, ie some buyers think that they can be able to find something very good at the cheapest price, but that’s a myth.

Denis Musoke a top real estate agent in Kampala who owns Rentwide Limited has some thoughts regarding the mismatch between price and expectations of the buyers, he says that "If the budget doesn't match, we recommend nearby neighborhoods whose prices are lower for the same house type required.

E.g., if you need a fully furnished 2-bedroom apartment in Nakasero with a pool and gym and you can't exceed $1500, we recommend Naguru and Kololo and maybe a bit of Bukoto"

While Denis could be right in his approach, a good question to him (and all other agents) would be: What about asking the buyer to increase or adjust their budget in order to get the property of their dreams, is that an option?

Another way to advise a buyer who is fixated on properties that are "slightly" beyond their current reach is to interest them with a mortgage payment of the price difference between what they are offering and the actual sale price of a property they need.

For example, If the buyer has 300M "in cash", yet the house of their dreams is 400M, then the difference of 100M can be mortgaged while the buyer enjoys the comfort of the dream home, and their previous rent amount can be used to offset the monthly mortgage payments. 

It would also be very helpful for a real estate agent to send all the listings which fall within a buyer's budget before the field tour, such that the buyer can take a virtual look at what their budget can buy, and then he/she can adjust their expectations accordingly.  

So, as a buyer, you need to follow the Chinese saying that: "cheap-cheap no good, and good-good no cheap", that will help you to tune your mindset and then quickly be able identify the level where your budget falls.

Kind Regards
Julius Czar
Author: Julius Czar
Company: Zillion Technologies Ltd
Mobile: +256705162000 / +256788162000
Email: Julius@RealEstateDatabase.net
Website: www.RealEstateDatabase.net