Top Tips For First Time Buyers

Buying a house is one of the biggest decisions you’re likely to make in your life. It’s a huge expense and there are a lot of things to consider when purchasing a property. If you’ve followed my journey you’ll know that I bought a shared ownership flat back in 2012. And then me and Luke bought our first home at the start of last year. With everything going on at the moment you may be wondering if now is the right time to buy a house, but if it’s right for you here are my top tips for first time buyers.

Tips for first time buyers

See a mortgage advisor first

As a first time buyer, you should go and see a mortgage advisor, or a financial advisor before you start looking at properties to know what you can afford. You may think you’ll get a mortgage for one amount but you may be able to get more (or less). Also when you think about the money you have saved check you have enough aside for all the additional expenses in buying a house and not just your deposit.

There’s nothing worse than seeing a house, falling in love, then realising you can’t afford it.

Tips for first time buyers- Work out how much you’d be spending each month

Once you’ve got a rough idea of how much you’d be spending on your mortgage it’s worth seeing what you’d be spending each month. Research online to find out what council tax band you’d be in and how much you’d pay. Think about electricity, gas, water, internet, insurance, etc. Once you have all of the costs associated with the house see how it balances alongside your other fixed costs like car insurance, loans, mobile, etc.

This way you’ll be able to see what your budget will look like once you’ve bought a property. And it won’t come as too much of a shock when you’ve been in the property for a month or two.

Research the location well

One of the biggest tips for first time buyers I can give it to research the location and neighbourhood. You can change a lot about a house and the interior, but one thing you can’t change is the location. And you need to research it well. You can check out sites like Zoopla for the historic trend in house prices. I would always suggest driving around the area of the house a few times before committing to viewing as you may see the area and instantly know it isn’t right for you. We did that with about 25 properties the weekend before doing viewings. And we only ended up viewing 11. Having discounted a lot due to the roads/ areas they were in.

But things to consider about the location are:

• School catchment areas- If you’re a parent or think you may have kids soon it’s worth checking the catchment area and the standard of schools in the area.
• Proximity to amenities- It’s worth seeing what amenities are walkable as you won’t always want to jump into your car. We have a Tesco express, a corner shop, and a post office within a 5-10 minute walk. And the town centre and Asda/ Morrisons are about a 15-minute walk away.
• Transport- Make a note of all the transport near you like buses and trains

Tips for first time buyers- Negotiate the price

It’s very rare for people to offer the price that a property is on the market for so make sure you negotiate the price. Estate agents will always keep the seller’s interests at heart as they get a commission from the sale. So if an estate agent tells you that they won’t accept under a certain price, or that what you’ve offered is too low ask them to go to the seller. You’re the one making a big financial investment and you don’t want to rush the decision.

As a first time buyer, you’re in a great position as a buyer as you’ll have no chain. There’s less risk going with you as a buyer than someone who is stuck in a chain so the seller may be prepared to accept slightly less because of this. If you make an offer and it’s declined don’t feel pressured to offer more. Weigh up can you afford more, and did you love the property enough to offer more? Remember a house is only worth what someone will pay for it.

 Keep all of the documents your solicitor gives you

Your solicitor will have ensured that all of the documentation is in order but remember to keep anything they send you in relation to your house. It’s best to keep everything handy because you never know when you may need it in the future. This may include deed documents, anything to do with the lease, surveys, etc.

Do you have any tips for first time buyers?

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