The buying process

How much can you spend?

A good starting point is to find out how much you can borrow and how much you can afford to spend. Speak to Lenders and gather as much information as you can. Get quotes for disbursements (i.e. legal costs, local Authority search fees, Land Registry fees and stamp duty) and for expenses such as lender's arrangement fee, valuation fees, removal costs and estate agent fees if your selling a house too. Only then will you be able to work out how much you have to spend on your new home.

Finding your new home

Consider what features are important to you:
- price
- age
- housetype (i.e. detached, semi-detached, terraced etc)
- number or bedrooms
- garage/parking
- garden
- decor
- location
- local amenities (i.e. schools, shops, doctors)

Register with local estate agents, they will send you details of homes that match your requirements

Check local property pages

Explore property websites - most estate agents have websites showing details and pictures.

Making an offer

Once you have found the home you are looking for decide how much you are prepared to offer.
Tell the estate agent who will, in turn, put your offer to the vendors. Remember that Estate Agents are legally bound to put forward all offers.

Of course, the seller might reject your offer. Whether you want to put in a higher offer is entirely up to you.

If your offer is accepted the Estate Agent will write a letter confirming what has been agreed. Any offer is subject to a contract being signed and, at this stage, there is no legal obligation for you to proceed or for the vendor to sell, until the contract has been signed.

Legal

Choose a solicitor who knows the area your moving to and who specialises in conveyancing.

Your solicitor will

• Check the title deed - ensuring that the vendors are in a position to sell the house
• Check that the local authority (Searches) have no plans which might affect your homes value
• Ensure that items the seller agrees to leave in the house are included in the purchase price
• Calculate Stamp Duty (a government tax) due on properties over 60,000
• Arrange exchange of contracts and complete the sale

Stamp Duty

Stamp Duty on properties over 60,000 becomes payable on completion, normally via your solicitor.

Survey
When you apply for a mortgage your lender will insist on a valuation survey of the home. This is for their benefit to ensure it's worth at least the price you are paying.

For your own benefit you can also choose from two additional types of survey:

Homebuyer Report
This standard survey is approved by the RICS and checks the homes general quality and condition, without going into much depth.

Structural Survey
This survey examines your future home in much more detail. It will tell you about any defects and warn you on any implications.

Mortgage Offer

Once you've completed and returned your mortgage application

• They will arrange for an approved surveyor to perform the valuation on your home. You may want to consider a Homebuyer Report or a Structural Survey
• Once the lender is satisfied that the property value is at least equal to the amount they are going to lend on it, and they have checked your earnings, they will issue a Mortgage Offer.
• When you sign and return your Mortgage Offer your mortgage is in place.
• As a condition of your offer you will need to arrange building insurance on the property you are buying from the date you exchange contracts.

Exchanging contracts

Once you solicitor has completed the legal work and you’re satisfied with everything in relation to the home, it's time to exchange contracts.

From now on everything becomes legally binding.

Both your solicitor - and the seller's solicitor - will prepare contracts for you and the seller to sign. At this point you will also have to pay a deposit to the sellers solicitor (usually between 5% and 10%).

Once you sign and exchange contracts with the seller, both you and the seller are committed to the deal.

At this stage, you and the seller will probably agree the 'completion' date - the date when the home is finally yours!

Completion

The completion date is generally around four weeks after you exchange contracts. Although, if all parties agree, it can be shorter or longer.