Being prepared is the key!
Whether you have purchased a property a few times or many times, you may be a little rusty on each aspect of buying a home and so we have compiled a buying guide for you to help you make the process as smooth as possible. When buying, it should be an exciting time and we feel that in order for that to be the case, it helps to get everything in place ahead of finding your dream home.
A further aspect we feel will be beneficial to all buyers when searching for a home is to build a rapport with us, your estate agent. The more we understand your needs and requirements for a home, the greater we will be able to help you find the right one. We can also work with you to find out when and how best to contact you to let you know of suitable properties.
We hope this guide will highlight areas that may have changed since your last move and that you may pick up a few things that you haven’t considered previously. For instance, did you know that if you’re over sixty years old you could save up to 59% on the price of your next home? Read on to learn how Bradleys could help you find the perfect home for your future.
-
STEP 1
Check financial position
Before you get carried away with anything else we advise you get in contact with one of our Mortgage Advisers to establish your affordability, the latest deals available and what type of product will suit you best.
When dealing with finances people tend to stick to a routine. That routine is often chosen as the easy option but if someone could save you hundreds of pounds a year, would you look at changing that routine?
Our advisers are often surprised as to why people don’t shop around for their mortgages more often. Everyone likes to save money and when changing mortgage provider there is usually the same amount of work involved as sticking with the original lender.
The main aspect here is to ensure you have checked your affordability to confirm that your plans are achievable and who knows, may possibly open a new door to widen your options further.
Speak to a mortgage adviser -
STEP 2
Starting your search
You may wish, as many do, to start looking on the internet, but if you want to be a step ahead of the rest, contact us! We will register your requirements and we’ll be able to let you know about properties coming to the market with us before they appear on the World Wide Web.
Building a rapport with us can be really beneficial as a potential buyer, we are the people that are best placed to know which properties are coming to the market and we can inform you as soon as we have formal instructions to sell a client’s house. Remember, we can only do that if you are registered on our mailing list though.
The more we deal with you, the more understanding we will develop as to what is important to you and what you are likely to want in a property. In addition to our mailing list, it is advisable to consider creating alerts on the two big portal websites (Rightmove and Zoopla) as you shouldn’t let anything slip through the net.
There are many different websites available, however these two will provide the best coverage for property and therefore we would advise you use these, as well as our website of course.
-
STEP 3
Viewing Properties
Don’t hold back with viewing properties! You need to know what may be suitable to you. Sometimes that happens quickly and at other times it may take a lot of searching before finding the right home. In either event we will be pleased to meet you and show you around any of our properties.
Viewings can be arranged by email, by telephone or through one of our offices. Don’t hold back in viewing a property, if you feel there is a chance a property could be right for you then go ahead and ask to arrange a viewing. At Bradleys we like to show potential buyers around a house, so that we can be on hand to answer any questions and also help you feel more comfortable in someone else’s home, which can be a little unnerving. Unfortunately we cannot always be present but we will certainly try to be where possible.
As estate agents, we will try to provide you with as much useful information as we can. However, we cannot be sure of what is important to you so we would love to help you by answering any queries you may have. If we don’t know the answer we will endeavour to find out.
Following each viewing, we will contact you to find out what you thought and in turn be able to tell the sellers of your feedback. Please be honest, not everyone will like every house they view but there could be some useful details that could help us and/or the seller change something that will help sell the property. You never know, those changes could make you want to buy the property after all!
-
STEP 4
Check Affordability
Now you have a property in mind, we recommend that you check the figures with your Mortgage Adviser and to also ask them to provide you with an AIP/DIP, so that when you put an offer forward it is supported with a financial agreement.
Before you commit to making an offer it is worth double checking your figures to ensure they work with your objectives. It could be that, if you haven’t done so already, you obtain an AIP/DIP so that you can support any offer you make when putting it forward.
You have to be prepared that if the sellers of the property say yes, you have what you need in place to start the process. We will also ask you to consider the timescale you are looking to buy the property in so also put some thought to what would suit you.
Speak to a mortgage adviser -
STEP 5
Options for the over 60's
Are you over 60 years old? Learn how you could afford the perfect home for your retirement at a reduced price! Finding out about all of the options available to you will help you to have a clear understanding of your moving budget.
The Home for Life Plan is an alternative option available to those aged over 60. It’s a lifetime lease which means you pay a one-off discounted price to live in the property of your choice without any rent, mortgage or interest repayments for your lifetime.
Using the plan can open up more options within your search and you could discover your dream home is now within your affordability!
The discount available to you is bespoke to your circumstances, so speak with our team to learn all about the Home for Life Plan and find out how you could achieve more for your money.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE HOME FOR LIFE PLAN -
STEP 6
Make an offer on the property you like
You have done your research, spoken with a mortgage advisor and now you like a property so why not put an offer to the sellers!
Making an offer won’t be new to you but some people are comfortable in doing so and others are less so. If you are not so comfortable, perhaps you could ask your mortgage advisor to put the offer forward on your behalf, they can do so and ensure the offer is put forward in the best light with all the necessary information.
Each offer must be confirmed in writing by us, so we will always provide written confirmation of the offer and the outcome. It could be there are lots of negotiations between yourself and the sellers and this will depend on how attractive your offer is. You should also make sure that if you saw anything at the property you would like or perhaps expect to be included with the purchase that you state them as part of your offer, this way it is clear what your offer includes.
-
STEP 7
Find a solicitor to do your conveyancing
Whether your offer is accepted or not, you will want to be prepared in the event when you do find a property. It is becoming more important to get your conveyancing underway at an early stage and with Bradleys Conveyancing, offered on a ‘no sale, no fee’ basis, why wait?
The conveyancing process seems to be taking longer – this could be due to the mortgage process being more detailed or perhaps the additional red tape that the law firms must be sure to comply with, but is probably a combination of both. To counteract this, we advise that you instruct a Conveyancer the moment your offer is accepted and complete all the paperwork they send and return it immediately. By doing so, your Conveyancer can prepare all the form filling and documentation, which can save valuable time in the buying process later on and importantly shows your commitment to the sellers.
With our conveyancing service there is also the ability to use an online case tracker so that you can keep an eye on the progress 24/7. A further key aspect of our conveyancing service is that we use local firms that will be aware of maintaining a good reputation and therefore provide a good service.
Being able to contact your Conveyancer is essential and so ensure you have access to the person you will be dealing with. We have established relationships with many local companies that we can instruct on your behalf. The advantage of this is that we can see who has the capacity to ensure you receive the best service at any one time.
Talk to us about conveyancing -
STEP 8
Your offer has been accepted, what next?
You should also arrange a further appointment with your mortgage advisor to choose the mortgage product that is right for you and submit the application.
It is essential to make sure you get things moving on your purchase as soon as possible, this shows you are committed to the purchase and also the quicker you get started, the quicker you can hopefully get into your new home! If you are not sure about the advice you have received to date now is your last chance to shop around but hopefully, you are happy and can get this stage underway swiftly.
If you are not sure about any aspect of your purchase, make sure you ask the relevant person before you go any further and you start incurring costs.
-
STEP 9
Mortgage Valuation or Survey?
Of course your mortgage lender will inspect the property you have agreed to buy but they will only be checking whether it is worth the money you are paying for it. You should consider having a Homebuyers Report or Building Survey carried out which will be far more in depth.
There are two ways in which you could instruct a more detailed inspection of the property you wish to buy, the first is by upgrading your mortgage valuation to a more detailed survey. This means you will pay an increased amount of money and the lender will co-ordinate the surveyor to carry out the valuation and survey at the same time. The second would be to instruct an independent surveyor to carry out the more detailed report. The advantage of the latter choice would be that you control who visits the property ensuring it is someone local and of good repute. The disadvantage is that it is likely to cost you more as you will still have to pay for the mortgage valuation.
For more details you can request a call from our survey team and they will confirm the most suitable type of survey for the property you are buying and provide you with details as to the varying costs. For more general information you can visit www.bradleyssurveyors.co.uk
-
STEP 10
Keeping informed
Between the conveyancer, mortgage adviser and of course ourselves, you should be informed of progress on your purchase. If you are unsure about any aspect of the process, simply ask the relevant person to explain it to you.
The reason you may have had a stressful move previously is likely to be due to a lack of communication. There are various parties all working away doing their job for their client and all too often they forget to actually communicate what they are doing or what the latest position is.
We try to counter that by providing a case tracking service via our recommended law firms and also by contacting each party on a weekly basis (at least) to provide an update. At this stage we can review the dates that were agreed at the outset and check they are still on course to be achieved, or if required, revise the dates and communicate them to all involved.
Whether it is the conveyancer, mortgage adviser, estate agents in the chain, surveyor or even you/your partner that needs to be communicated with , we will try to keep it all moving in the right direction but all parties involved must do their bit too!
-
STEP 11
Home Insurance
You will have had home insurance on previous properties but it is very likely that each property will be different and so it is wise to check the position with your new home and line up a policy in anticipation for exchanging contracts.
This may seem a little early but being prepared will only help the whole process run smoothly. Each property is different in the eyes of an insurance company and so do not assume that as your current property is easy/economical to insure, that your next one will be the same.
Insurers will have differing opinions on what warrants an increased premium on a policy and these can often come in and out of fashion at any one time. To check this out simply obtain a quote on the buildings and contents for your next home at an early stage. If there are any concerns such as flooding or premiums to consider, such as thatched roofs, then you will be aware at the outset.
Obtain a quote -
STEP 12
Exchanging Contracts
You will have agreed on a moving date that suits all parties and signed the contract on your purchase, so it’s time to legally bind the transactions and exchange the contracts.
Hopefully you will have experienced a hassle free transaction with very few, if any, delays on your purchase and with all parties having been kept informed of developments throughout the transaction.
We will have been liaising with all parties about completion dates and, as you may recall, a date must be agreed before an exchange of contracts can take place. Your conveyancer will call you before going ahead and exchanging to confirm you are happy to do so and confirm the date and then call you after exchange of contracts has taken place.
It is a good idea to let your mortgage adviser know when exchange of contracts has happened as they will need to inform the mortgage lender.
-
STEP 13
Completion
Once the seller’s Conveyancer has received the monies from your Conveyancer they will then inform us or that we can give the keys to you. We will obviously then contact you with the good news!
On the day of completion your Conveyancer will ring you to confirm they have sent the remainder of the house purchase monies to the sellers’ Solicitor and that you should wait for a phone call from us (or the estate agent you are buying through) to confirm you are able to collect the keys. There is often a delay between the two events happening of an hour or so which is normal so don’t panic if you don’t hear immediately. Once the monies have been received, you have officially purchased your new home, congratulations! Usually you will collect the keys from the estate agents office but if you are unable to collect them in person then inform the estate agents beforehand of who will be collecting them and ensure that person has identification.
Congratulations you have just purchased a new home!
Free Accurate Property Valuation
Bradleys Group Reg No. 2866127 VAT No. 692544606
© Copyright Bradleys Estate Agents