Easyhome Estate Agents are here to help you in any way we can.
We have put together this buying guide to help you in the moving
process. If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to
contact
us.
- Sell your
own property
- Work out
how much you can afford
- Organising
a Valuation
- How much to
borrow
- One-off
costs
- Register
with Easyhome
- Viewings
-
Making
an offer
- Legal
Sell your own property
If you have a property to sell, the first step you should take is
to put your own house up for sale. This is because if you see a
house you want to buy you will not be able to buy it without the
money from your own house.
Before you have sold your own
property you are what estate agents call a "non-proceedable" buyer.
This means you are a potential buyer but you can't actually proceed
because you need to sell your own house first. Another buyer who is
"proceedable" could see the house of your dreams and buy it first.
Easyhome can help in selling your home. To arrange a free
valuation click
here or call us on 0870 777 3565.
Work out how much you can afford
You have decided that you are buying a property, but exactly how
much can you afford? On top of the cost of the house itself, there
are many other, one-off expenses involved in buying a home and
moving which can easily add up to £3,000 or more. In order to get a
good idea of what sort of homes you can realistically hope to buy,
you also need to take these extra costs into account.
Organising a Valuation
If you have a property to sell you need to get a realistic
valuation on your existing property. Easyhome Estate Agents provides
free valuations of your home that will give you an expectation of
how much your house should achieve on the open market.
To
arrange a free
valuation online click here or call us on 0870 777 3565.
Estate agent's "valuations" are only estimates on how much your
market should achieve on the open market. Do be aware that estate
agents' valuations are not the same as those prepared by surveyors
and they cannot be used for your mortgage valuation.
How Much to Borrow?
Before looking at properties, you should consult a lender or
mortgage adviser as to what your maximum possible loan would be.
This will be based on the size of your deposit and how much you
earn.
One-off Costs
Arrangement Fee
A fee charged by lenders to cover the cost of setting up the
mortgage. Some lenders waive this fee.
Lender's Valuation (Basic Valuation)
All lenders require a valuation of the property to check that it
is worth the price being paid for it. This is commissioned by the
mortgage lender but you must cover the cost. The cost of the
valuation depends on the value of the property
Survey
It is strongly advised that you have your own independent, more
detailed survey carried out to check for any defects. There are two
types of survey, the Homebuyer's Report which costs around £500, and
the more comprehensive Building Survey (Structural Survey) which can
cost anything up to £1,000, depending on the value of the house.
Allow extra if you need more specialist checks, for example on old
properties.
Legal/Conveyancing Fees
You will need to hire a solicitor to deal with the legal aspects
of buying a property. There is no standard fee so it is a good idea
to shop around for the best rate. Easyhome can recommend local
solicitors for you to use.
Stamp Duty
This is a government tax, charged for properties above £125,000.
If your new home is priced between £125,000 and £250,000, you will
pay 1% of the property price. From £250,000 to £500,000, it will be
3% and over £500,000 it will be 4%. So, for example, if you are
paying £200,000 for your home you pay £2,000 in stamp duty.
Land Registry Fee
The Land Registry is a government department which looks after
the registers of all registered properties in England and Wales. It
charges a fee for transferring the register to the new owner. This
fee is charged according to property price.
Local Authority Search Fees
Local searches will be carried out by your solicitor/conveyancer
to ensure that there are no potential problems such as planning
permission on neighbouring properties or plans for new roads
nearby.
Other Search Fees and Disbursements
These include index map, commons, the coal authority, land
charge, company searches, bank transfer fees. Allow about £70 to
cover an average house purchase.
Estate Agent's Commission
If you're selling your property as well as buying one, the sum
charged by your estate agent has to be taken into account. Usually
this is charged as a percentage of the property price.
Removal Fees
Ask for quotes from at least 3 different removal firms, as prices
vary.
Contingency Fund
Leave a decent-sized contingency fund for emergencies. You do not
want to be left completely penniless in case you have unexpected
extra costs.
Register with Easyhome
Once you have worked out how much you can afford the next stage
is to start looking for a property. You will have to make some
compromises in the house you buy so decide now what is most
important to you. Is a garden or a fourth bedroom most important? Is
location more important than the size of the house?
Call
Easyhome on 0870 777 3565 or register online and we will take all the
details of what you are looking for. We will email you immediately
with suitable properties on our books and will contact you in the
future with new properties.
Viewings
Viewings can be conducted from 9am - 7pm Monday to Friday and 9am
- 5pm on Saturdays. You can book a viewing by phone Monday to Friday
8.30 am - 6.00 pm, Saturday 9.00 am - 5.00 pm, Sunday 11.00am - 3.00
pm. You can also book a viewing on-line at
www.easy-home.co.uk.
We usually conduct property viewings; the
Vendor will not always be present. Sometimes a vendor gives us
specific times for viewings, although we do ask them to be as
flexible as possible. We normally keep keys and can access the
property to suit your availability. You should also ensure that
anyone likely to share in the decision views the property as
well.
After the viewing we need to know if you have any
questions or if you are interested in buying the property. So please
allow time to discuss your thoughts with us. We will normally
contact you the day after the viewing to see what you thought of the
property.
Please be on time for viewings. We will arrange to
meet you at the property, or if it is more convenient, at the
Easyhome office from where we will drive you.
Making an offer
As soon as you've found a suitable property, we'll put your offer
to the seller, verbally and in writing. We will normally put your
offer on the same day. The offer will be subject to a contract being
signed and there are no legal obligations on either side until this
is done.
Sometimes there may be a process of price
negotiation and by working with Easyhome you'll benefit from our
expertise in this area.
Legal
The Vendor's Solicitor will prepare a Contract of Sale. You will
need to appoint a Solicitor to examine this and raise any queries
based on the title deeds and related property matters.
When
your Solicitor has replies to enquiries; a completed satisfactory
local search; a copy of a mortgage offer; a signed contract and a
deposit cheque, they can proceed to Exchange of Contracts. A deposit
cheque is normally required for 10% of the purchase value of the
property.
Completion can be on the date of exchange or can be
anything up to 28 days later, dependent on your requirements. On
completion your Solicitor hands over the remainder of the purchase
money to the Vendor's Solicitor and you can move into your new home.
Keys will be handed over to you by us.
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