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Financial preparation
Before you begin your property search, getting your finances in order is essential if you want to be in the best position to secure your dream home. Speaking to a mortgage adviser is important, but always remember conveyancing fees, stamp duty, removal costs etc!
Budget
What budget do you have in mind for your home? There are various ways to work out how much you can afford to spend on your mortgage and insurances. Archers Estates can put you in touch with Andy Hall (ceMap) at DIFA, who is happy to offer independent advice and works with a variety of lenders, banks and building societies.
Deposit
Do you have enough money saved for your deposit? You are likely to need at least 5% of the purchase price of the house as a deposit. However, if you can save more for a deposit you can often get a cheaper mortgage.
Credit score
Do you know about your credit score? Your credit score could affect your mortgage borrowing ability. You can check your credit score on the internet at sites, such as the Credit Expert from Experian, and you can improve it by doing such things as registering to vote.
Searching for your property
At Archers Estates, we could already have your new home on our online property database. Please feel; free to take a look at our properties for sale. Here are a few considerations to help you find the right home and understand what happens next.
Property type
Do you know what type of property you want? Think about whether you want a new build property or "second-hand.” Are you happy to be attached to another or keen to be detached? How many bedrooms do you want, do you need a garden or garage? These are some of the many questions you could ask yourself.
Tenure
Do you know the difference between freehold and leasehold properties? Contact our office and we can happily discuss this with you. Sheffield is a city with majority leasehold properties but feel free to get in touch and we will advise on how things work around here!
Location
Do you want to live near work, your friends, the gym? Think about the future, will you have a family and need to think about schools? What about proximity to transport routes and other amenities?
Mortgages
Do you know how mortgages work? This guide gives a quick overview, however there is no substitute for first-hand information.
Mortgage process
When you have an initial appointment with a mortgage adviser they will review your needs, current circumstances, and look for a suitable mortgage deal for you from a lender.
Agreement in principle
They will help you apply for an agreement or mortgage decision in principle from the lender. (This is confirmation in writing of a lender's expression of intent to provide funding subject to certain conditions being met but it is not a formal mortgage offer.)
Mortgage application
When you find a property and make an offer then you will need to make a full mortgage application to the lender.
Viewing properties
Make sure you know what to look for when viewing a property to be certain that it not only meets your own search criteria but also that you won’t get any nasty surprises if you decide to proceed and make an offer. Here are some things to consider.
State of repair
Does the property require updating? If so, is it just minor cosmetic work, or more major structural improvements? If you really like a property, it may be worth asking a builder to view it with you on a second viewing. They can help identify and damp, mould, cracks, or damage and estimate a repair cost which might be useful for negotiating on price when you make an offer.
Property size
Are the rooms big enough – for now and years to come? Do you need one or two bathrooms? Is there sufficient storage? If not, could extra space and storage facilities be added?
Running costs
Ask to see the current bills - council tax, utilities, to help get an idea of actual costs to live there.
Location
This should be easy if you’ve done your research and identified what you’re looking for so should just be a case of checking against your criteria. Could you see yourself living there?
Making an offer
Do you know about making an offer on a property?
Initial offer
This is where you put forward a price that you would like to buy the property for, to the estate agent acting on behalf of the seller. Their estate agent will put your offer to the seller and the property becomes ‘Under offer’.
Revised offer
If your offer is rejected you could make another, higher offer if your budget allows.
Legal process
Do you know the legal process of buying a property?
Conveyancing
This is the legal work necessary when buying a property. It can involve local searches to check there is no major work due nearby, ensuring the property and land are legally owned by the current owners and the boundaries are as they are claimed to be, amongst other things. We can put you in touch with a legal firm to handle the conveyancing.
Exchange and Completion
You are legally bound to the purchase of the property at exchange of contracts and you may be required to pay a deposit. Ownership passes to the buyer on completion, at which point the money is transferred to the seller’s solicitor and the deeds to the purchaser or their mortgage lender.
Protection
You will need to arrange home insurance for your home. Buildings insurance is usually required as a condition of the lender if you are taking out a mortgage. Contents insurance is unlikely to be a requirement but it is advisable to obtain cover to protect your belongings against accidental damage, loss or theft.
Please note: Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.
