Buyers Guide - How to buy a house
This guide will help assist you through the process of buying a property.
We have also provided a ‘step by step’ guide to help you through each stage of the home buying process. We hope it helps.
1 – Searching for Properties- Finding a property
www.movingme.co.uk are a site that help sellers market and sell their home without the middle man cost. They are not like a normal online estate agency as they still offer home visits and even free additional services such as the EPC and even a ‘will writing service’. They allow the seller to market their home at a fraction of the cost and this is a good place to start to look for properties as well as sites such as www.rightmove.co.uk or www.zoopla.co.uk.
When you have decided that you wish to buy a property and an offer has been accepted, then your solicitor and the seller's (also referred to as the vendor) solicitors will do the necessary legal work all the way to when you exchange contracts, which is when the property is officially yours.
Right-Advice recommends you use a local solicitor to assist you. Although you can search online and maybe find a solicitors firm for a few hundred pounds less expensive, they may be a few hundred miles away from you, and not having that local contact or local knowledge can often be a fundamental contribution to when things go wrong and when delays can start to happen. We recommend Kinglsey David Solicitors to Milton Keynes and Buckinghamshire buyers and sellers.
If you would like a quote, click this link and we will arrange that Kinglsey David provide you with a ‘no obligation’ quote for their service costs.
Just add ’Solicitors Quote’ to the notes section of your enquiry
(No Obligation Solicitors Quote).
Have you a property to sell? Are you already signed up with an estate agent. If so, then the type of contract you have with your estate agent will determine if you can use an alternative estate agent services to market your home.
If you have a sole agent agreement then you cannot sell your home via any other agent until that contract expires. If you have a multiple (or Multi) agency, you can register your property with www.MovingMe.co.uk for a one off fee of £399 and if you sell your home via MovingMe and you will not have any further fees to pay. You also will NOT have to pay any commission to any other of the estate agents you have registered with if you sell via MovingMe.
MovingMe will provide you with a free EPC (if you haven’t already got one) and even provide a free’ will’. The £399 fee is all inclusive and you will not have to pay any further fees or commission.
Register your property here www.movingme.co.uk.
2 - Know how much you can afford before looking – MORTGAGES
You may at this point (if not already) want to get your finances in order with respect to the new property you hope to buy. If you need a mortgage it would be worth having a conversation with an independent adviser to establish what you can afford and achieve in respect of a new mortgage.
- We can provide you a 15 minute mortgage promise which will establish exactly what you can achieve in respect of a new mortgage even if you haven’t yet found a property.
- We are a fully independent mortgage brokers and will NOT charge you a fee for acting on your behalf.
- We will search the whole of market for you and recommend the best deal on the market based on your personal circumstances.
- We receive their fee directly from the lender once you complete and this is why you do not pay a fee for our advice. You are not charged a fee for any of our work even if you do not complete.
- We can also assist with life insurance, critical illness and income protection along with home insurance.
3 - Viewing Properties
Now you have your finances in order and you know how much you can afford to buy we need to find you a property. Registering with MovingMe (if you have not already done so) is totally free of charge. They will send you a weekly update of properties that have come to the market that meet your requirements. They will search other websites as well as their own, including rightmove, zoopla, and many others so you do not miss an opportunity.
It’s always prudent to view a property during daylight hours just as you would when purchasing a vehicle. It is always a good idea to go with someone who can offer a second opinion (friend, family member,partner).
It’s a good idea to have some questions prepared. Here is a list of some questions which may be useful when contemplating your decision.
- Council rates. Don't forget you can get this from www.upmystreet.com.
- How is it heated?
- What is an estimate of gas and electricity bills. To help get an idea of expenditure and cost of heating etc.
- Water and sewage rates. Sometimes this is the same company and therefore included all in 1 bill however can be separate bills
- Do they know the neighbours well and if so what are they like?
- Have they found a property? Its useful to know if they are in a rush to sell because they do not want to lose the property they want to buy.
- If the property is an apartment or flat then its useful to know
- Is the flat leasehold or freehold. (It may be difficult to obtain a mortgage on a ‘freehold flat.
- If it is leasehold, how many years are left on the lease. (Some mortgage lenders require a minimum years to be remaining on the lease)
- If the flat is leasehold (there are usually additional fees to pay either monthly or annually. These may be cost for the up keep of communal areas such as stairs/lifts, community gardens etc) Ask.....
- Is there a ground rent and if so how much is it?
- Is there a service charge for the flat and if so how much is it?
- What is included in the price? For example are the curtains, carpets, washing machine, all included within the sale. More importantly, is there anything not included within the sale?
4 - Making an Offer
Before making an offer it might be prudent to a few more checks especially if the property is in an area you are not too familiar with. www.upmystreet.com can help with crime statistics, details of the neighbourhood, and information on local schools etc
If you haven’t already make sure you visit the property at the following times to ensure there are no noise or parking issues.
- Weekday during rush hour. Check if people use the road as a shortcut.
- Weekday evening. To see what the parking is like on the road.
- Weekend evening time – Checking for noise disturbances
You could also check with the environment agency to see if the property is in a flood plain area. You will need the property post code for both these searches.
The Seller (vendor) can only say ‘No’ if your offer is too low so don’t be afraid to initially put an offer in lower than you are willing to pay. You can always go back with a higher offer if it is not accepted, and the lower you start the more room you have for negotiation. However it is important to realise that others may also be placing offers and you do not want to lose out if two or more individuals are interested in the property and placing higher bids. There is no wrong or right way to approach placing an offer but be prepared to walk away if a seller will not accept your highest affordable bid.
It is important to explain your circumstances when putting in an offer especially if you are not in any chain. For example if you are a first time buyer, you are not reliant on selling your home first and so you become appealing to the seller because there is no sale that could potentially fall through.
Once an offer is accepted you will receive a memorandum of sale. This will be sent to all parties involved including the sellers and buyers solicitors. The solicitors will then start the legal process in the transaction on your behalf.
5 - Legal Bit –Legals/Solicitors
Once you have had an offer accepted, You have to start making payments to your solicitor to start the legal work. This will usually be around £200-£300 which is used to submit a land search to the local council and you normally won’t pay the remaining balance until you are ready to exchange contracts. (the remaining balance will include any other fee charged by the solicitor, stamp duty and any deposit monies) Obtain a quotation from the solicitor before you instruct them to ensure you are happy and aware of all the fees payable.
For a quotation for solicitors, we can arrange this for you. If you would like a quote, click this link and we will arrange that Kinglsey David provide you with a ‘no obligation’ quote for their service costs.
Just add ’Solicitors Quote’ to the notes section of your enquiry
(No Obligation Solicitors Quote).
You now need to apply for the mortgage and arrange a valuation of the property.
If you haven’t contacted us already please do so and we can start the ball rolling on your behalf at no cost. Our Independent Mortgage and Protection Service is free.
Please refer to the mortgage section above.
6 - Moving (completion of contracts)
Just before you move into your new property you will probably want to get all your payments in order. Here is a general list of items that will require your attention. You will probably find when you move into the new property most suppliers will send you a welcome letter explaining they are the providers of the utilities and inviting you to contact them. (this will be addressed to the new occupier, following the previous owner advising the utility provider that they will be vacating the property).
You may want to search the market and change your utilities to someone less expensive. A useful site to save on utilities is www.utlitieswarehouse.co.uk.
- Telephone: Gas: Electric –Water and sewage rates- Call providers and change into your name and set up payment plans (direct debit instructions etc).
- Building insurance: this needs to be in place for when you exchange contracts. If you have bought a flat you may find that you have a communal building insurance.
- Contents insurance.
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