Buying Guide

1) ADDRESS YOUR FINANCES!

Even before you start thinking about buying a property, you need to know how much you have available to spend. Speaking with a mortgage adviser and discussing how much you are able to borrow. If you don’t already have an existing Mortgage Advisor, get in touch with our sales team and we can point you in the right direction. Also, remember to include money for renovations, removals, and stamp duty within your budget.

Many Mortgage Advisors will give you a Mortgage Promise, Decision In Principle and a Mortgage Agreed In Principle Certificate – you’ll be asked to provide these when you offer on a property, together with your proof of deposit (savings, help to buy, gifted monies) If your deposit is coming from the sale of another property, one great tip is to also get proof of your outstanding mortgage. When we check the chain with the estate agent that you have Sold through, we can then work out your equity and provide as proof to our vendor.

2) GET YOURSELF REGISTERED AND PROPERTY SEARCH READY!

as soon as you have been qualified by your Mortgage Advisor, pop into our office or call us by phone on 01582 211424 and talk to our friendly team. We can then register you on our system, knowing what your budget is, what sort of property you’re looking for and all your buyer requirements.

A GOOD IDEA!
We think coming into our office is the best way for us to find your dream home for you, as we can build a relationship with you and start the journey together. Our friendly team are always on hand.
As soon as we receive a property that meets your requirements and budget we will contact you, send you the property details and book you into view.

3) FIND A SOLICITOR!

Arranging a solicitor before you make an offer on a property looks to any potential seller that you mean business and saves time in the long run. Their job is to complete the ‘conveyancing’ process, which is all the legal work that goes on behind the scenes when you purchase a property. We can recommend solicitors and are happy to recommend a good solicitor to you. Good solicitors can make a massive difference in your purchase. Speak to us today so we can arrange a quote for you.

4) MAKING AN OFFER!

When you find that perfect property, you need to speak to us and we’ll have an open conversation on what figures our vendor is willing to accept. From that you can offer a figure you feel comfortable with. We will liaise with the vendor regarding the offer and your own timescales and we will want to check that you are able to fund the purchase property. If you have followed our advice, you’ll have arranged your finance already and we’ll be able to put your offer forward to our vendor in the best light possible.

Once we have your offer and proof of your financial arrangements, we will negotiate on your offer between you and the seller. This is called a ‘Memorandum of Sale’ and we will send this through to yourself, the seller and both sets of solicitors which will form part of the Draft Contract. We will also forward the solicitors the property particulars (brochure) and the full Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). If there are things to be included within the sale fixtures and fittings ( white goods etc) these will be stated on the Memorandum of Sale as well as any proposed timescales.

Because we are working on behalf of the seller, we are obliged to fulfill the maximum for their property. But we will make this work for you and the seller. We will give you good advice that will help ensure the sale, and both buyers and sellers must be happy with the agreement. The legalities of the buying and selling process, in England and Wales an offer is not legally binding until contracts have been exchanged, which can be several weeks later. Please bear this in mind, as it gives time for either party to pull out of the deal. You may still be liable for your solicitor’s costs up to that point. Our job is of course to make sure that both parties are as secure as possible to ensure the property goes through to exchange for purchase as smoothly as possible.

5) THE SURVEY PROCESS!

Your Mortgage Lender will arrange a survey for you to ensure that the price you are offering is realistic for their loan to you.

An independent survey should pick out any major problems with the house that have been overlooked previously.

Aside from the valuation, there are two types of survey you can have:

Homebuyer report – the survey will test the walls and floor for problems such as subsidence and damp. It’ll also highlight any urgent repair work that’s needed.

Building survey – this is typically done for older houses or “non-standard construction” buildings. This survey will look under floorboards, behind walls and in the cellar if you have one.This should tell you everything you need to know about the house.

Once all surveys have been completed and everyone’s happy with the state of the property, you’re almost ready to exchange contracts and move in.If there is anything adverse found after this, we are happy to negotiate further with the seller.