The big question on everyone’s lips at the moment, whether they are looking to invest in the property market or find their new home… Should I buy a property?
With a market that has seen so many ups and downs over the last 3-4 years, it is understandable that buyers are becoming more cautious when considering their next step (or maybe even their first step) on the property ladder.
Kirstie Philpott’s series of residential property blogs “Should I buy a property?” answers your questions about buying property in today’s market, including where to get started, what considerations you should make before offer and how to assess your financial position. The series looks at all property types including houses, flats and new builds.
Be sure to look back at our blog titled “Should I buy a property? – “Where do I start?”” which poses those important questions you should ask yourself when looking to a buy a property as well as “Should I buy a property? – “Can I afford it?”” for things to consider when budgeting to make an offer.
Mortgage Broker
If you have whittled down what your criteria is for your new home/property investment and you find one you like, the next step is to speak to a mortgage broker about how much you can borrow. Once you know an approximate amount you can borrow, you should add up all the funds you will have available to fund the purchase, your mortgage broker should be able to assist you with this.
Estate Agent
If you have an idea of how much you can offer and you have seen a property on the market you are interested in, you should contact the estate agent selling that property to arrange a viewing. You do not have to have a mortgage offer before viewing a property, but some estate agents may request certain information about your budget, any related sale you have and where you are at with a mortgage application/offer.
It is best to view a property multiple times before you make an offer, going back at different hours of the day to get a feel for the area etc. Before entertaining an offer from you, a seller may want to see that you have already secured a proposed buyer on any property you are selling to fund the purchase, so be sure to also speak to an estate agent about getting your property on the market for sale.
If you are in a position to make an offer, you should put this forward to the seller via their estate agent, remember the estate agent acts for the seller in the transaction, so be wary of any negotiating tactics or pressure they might apply.
Solicitor
Once an offer have been agreed, you should let your mortgage broker know so they can arrange for a formal mortgage offer to be issued for your purchase of the property.
You should then instruct a solicitor to deal with your purchase (and any related sale). It’s likely you won’t want to instruct a solicitor before this point. Although there are occasions when there may be something particularly concerning which you would like to seek legal advice before making an offer on a property, such as a boundary dispute or queries over title deeds.
If you require any further information, please contact our Residential Property Team on 0345 646 0406 or fill in our online enquiry form and a member of the team will be happy to assist you.