Buying a home is a huge financial commitment and can be daunting – especially if you’re a first-time buyer. Use our timeline to find out more about the steps to buying a home, including the process, key stages and what fees to expect.
STEP 1: FINANCIAL READINESS
Before you can start the process of buying a home, you need to know how you’ll pay for it. If you’re a first-time buyer, you’ll need to save up a deposit. If you already own a home, you’ll probably need to sell it in order to afford your next one. How long this takes can vary considerably.
You need to prepare financially by saving for a deposit and/or closing costs, even if you can qualify for a 100% mortgage (zero downpayment or deposit). Assuming you already have your deposit saved up, you can get a mortgage in principle in 24 hours.
Pre-approval or Pre-Qualification may be required to even schedule in-person viewing or further engagements. Empty talk doesn't buy a home !!!
You need to get the above requirements in order before you can move straight to the process of house-hunting.
STEP 2: FIND A PROPERTY YOU CAN AFFORD
Before you start house-hunting, it’s a good idea to work out what you can afford to spend on buying a house or a flat and your monthly mortgage payments.
Costs
When you’re deciding whether a property is affordable for you, think about how you’ll cope if your income drops, or interest rates rise, and be careful not to overstretch yourself. Remember, your savings will have to cover not just the deposit, but expenses such as mortgage fees (typically anything between £0-£3,000) and Stamp Duty.
Choosing the right mortgage
It’s never too early for you to start thinking about applying for a mortgage as it can be time-consuming.
You can get a mortgage from an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA), mortgage broker or lender.
Once you’ve found a mortgage product you like, if accepted you’ll get a mortgage ‘in principle’.
This tells you how much money the lender is likely to offer and the interest rate you’ll pay.
You might have to pay a booking fee to reserve the mortgage product you want. Typical cost: £99-£250.
Check your credit report
Before you apply for a mortgage, check your credit report for any errors and to get an idea of your score.
Lenders will look at it when considering your application.
STEP 3: MAKE AN OFFER
Once you’ve found a home you want to buy, the next step is to make an offer, either by yourself or through an estate agent - Note that, The PPB does not deal with intermediaries.
You only pay for an estate agent if you’re selling property. The fees usually range from 0.5% to 3%, plus VAT, of the selling price.
Need help with making an offer? see our detailed guide here.
Valuation survey
This survey is done by the lender to make sure the property is worth the price you’re paying before they approve the mortgage.
It's not an extensive survey and will not identify all the repairs or maintenance that might be needed.
Typical cost: £250-£1,500, depending on the value of property. Some lenders might not charge you for this, depending on the type of mortgage product you select.
STEP 4: ARRANGE A SOLICITOR AND SURVEYOR
The surveyor will value the property and check for problems, which might affect the cost of the home or commercial property.
The solicitor or conveyancer will handle the legal work around the property. They will tell you how much you can expect to pay and might ask for a deposit upfront – this is usually 10% of their fee. Typical cost: £500-£1,500 + 20% VAT.
Your solicitor or conveyancer submits searches to the local council to check whether there are any planning or local issues that might affect the property’s value. Typical cost: £250-£300.
STEP 5: FINALISE THE OFFER AND MORTGAGE
Once the survey is complete you might want to go back and renegotiate the price of your new home.
There are two reasons for this:
• your survey might uncover problems with the property that will be expensive to fix. You can use this information to ask for a reduction in price
• the lender might value the property at a lower price, leaving you with a shortfall. This means you won’t be able to match the asking price or what you originally intended to offer.
It’s this stage in the process that is often most stressful. Delays and problems can happen for reasons including:
• your mortgage application being rejected
• the seller withdrawing the property from the market
• the seller accepting a higher offer from another buyer (known as ‘gazumping’).
STEP 6: EXCHANGE CONTRACTS
If there are no problems or delays, then you should receive the contract to sign and complete the sale.
Before signing the contract, go through it with your solicitor to check that all the details are correct.
Make sure you’re happy with what the sellers have agreed to leave in the property and that all your queries have been answered.
At this stage, you and the seller are committed to the sale.
The seller might also ask you to pay a holding deposit – typically £500-£1000 to show intent.
Once you’ve exchanged contracts, you’ll need buildings insurance in place to cover the structure of the property.
STEP 7: COMPLETION AND FINAL STEPS
• The remaining money owed to buy the property is now transferred from your solicitor’s account to the seller’s solicitor’s account. There will be a telegraphic transfer fee. Typical cost: £25-£50.
• You might also have to pay a mortgage account fee. The lender charges this fee for setting up, maintaining and closing down your mortgage account. It’s often added to the mortgage, which means you’ll pay interest on it, so consider paying it up front instead. Typical cost: £100-£300.
• You’ll now need to pay your solicitor’s bill (minus the deposit and local searches if you’ve already paid them). Typical cost: £500-£1,500 plus 20% VAT.
• Your solicitor will register the transfer of ownership with the Land Registry for properties in England and Wales. In Northern Ireland, it needs to be registered with Land and Property Services.
• Sellers will need to pay their estate agent on completion. The fee is agreed at the outset and is typically a percentage of the sale price, usually 1% to 3% plus 20% VAT. Buyers don’t have any estate agent fees.
• Buyers of residential homes have 14 days from the completion date to file the Stamp Duty Land Tax Return and pay any tax due in England and Northern Ireland. Your solicitor will usually arrange this for you. In Wales, you will need to pay Land Transaction Tax.
If you’re using a removal company, moving on a weekday is cheaper. Typical cost: £300-£600+.
RELATED PAGES