PHOTO: The 46-year-old also started a side hustle selling tarot cards which has helped boost her savings too. Picture: Supplied
Cindy Chalker never thought she would be able to buy her own home as a single mum having rented for her entire adult life.
“I just thought it would be impossible to be able to save up the 10 to 20 per cent deposit, while bringing my kids up,” she told news.com.au.
“Things always pop up – my son went to the orthodontist and that was $1300.”
Her parents were also late to the property game, she added, but it made her determined to follow in their footsteps.
“I was in grade 9 when they purchased their first house, so that’s always been a dream of mine,” Ms Chalker said.
“I decided to go back to uni part-time while I was working and finish my accounting degree. I finished that just after my son was born, so I was working, pregnant and getting it done.”
The Brisbane local was worried she wouldn’t be welcomed by the banks either.
“It sounds silly, but when you’re a single parent and you’re renting, some places can make you feel like a second-class citizen or like you’re not as important as homeowners or a married couple,” she said.
Ms Chalker began saving two years ago when she started a new job at a superannuation company. It was “compulsory” to invest 6 per cent of her wage into her super and she used this as an opportunity to put money away – managing to save $9000.
The 46-year-old also started a side hustle selling tarot cards which has helped boost her savings too.
The mum of a 12 and 21-year-old then had the daunting task of tackling the competitive market.
“I went to a townhouse opening just down the road and I think they had offers of $475,000 and when we got there, there was about 20 other groups when it first opened and when we left there was a line up of people,” Ms Chalker said.
“The real estate said they had 17 offers, most in the $500,000 range, and one offer that blew it out of water so I’m assuming it went close to $600,000.
“Every open house I went to there was always loads of people, so it was a bit daunting. All the places seemed to be either under contact or someone offered a larger amount than what I could offer.
“One of real estate agents said people from NSW were buying investment properties sight unseen, which makes it difficult.”
But she got lucky by sweet talking a real estate agent into allowing her to inspect a unit 15 minutes before it was open for inspection.
She put in an offer just above $400,000 and is now preparing to move into her three bedroom unit in November.
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