First Time Buyer Tips

Because the process of purchasing your first property is new to you, you may find the following tips useful. The tips are not in any way legal requirements, it is simply a web page which we have produced following our experience of conveyancing matters for well over 100 years. Matters do change in conveyancing but the tips are designed to try and help you with your first property purchase.

Mortgage Offer

Please, please, please read the conditions of your Mortgage. When you receive your Mortgage Offer you will no doubt be overjoyed BUT it may be subject to conditions. The Mortgage Offer is no good to you if you cannot comply with the conditions so read the Mortgage Offer carefully and make sure you can comply with any conditions which are attached. If you do not understand any of the conditions, do not be afraid to ask your financial advisor. There could for instance be such things as a retention being money retained from your mortgage until certain works are done or in some cases, there are now conditions on mortgages that you have to pay off any credit card debt. We cannot therefore stress enough that you must read your Mortgage Offer carefully because once you have signed and accepted the Mortgage Offer you will have accepted the conditions.

Mortgage Survey

When you apply for your mortgage you will see the term Survey and Valuation mentioned. Please note that a Valuation inspection may not be the same as a Survey. Do not accept anything which your Bank or Building Society may give you, assuming it is a Survey when in fact it is only a Valuation. Also please note that in some cases, the Survey, Valuation or inspection may not belong to you. It will belong to the Bank or Building Society because they have paid for it. The fact that you have reimbursed them may be irrelevant. If you are given a copy by your Bank or Building Society, please make sure you can take action on it if it is wrong. That is to say, if the Surveyor has made a mistake you can, in some instance, find the Bank or Building Society and the Surveyor saying they are not liable to you because the Survey was prepared for them, not for you. If in doubt and you can afford it, have your own Survey carried out. Also, prior to paying a Survey fee with the Bank or Building Society ask exactly what is involved for your money. Will you be getting a copy? Will the Survey belong to you? Is it a Survey or Valuation?

Mortgage Fees

Most mortgage providers now charge an arrangement fee and indeed some Banks and Building Societies also charge arrangement fees. Our advice is shop around. We have seen arrangement fees as high as £3,500 which is absolutely ridiculous. The cost of buying your first home is expensive enough and the last thing you need is an unexpected fee from a Mortgage Broker.

Fixtures & Fittings

Every year there always seems to be a disagreement between parties following the act over fixtures and fittings. A Fixtures & Fittings List is normally attached to the Contract. Please note that some Sellers of property will try to persuade you to buy items in the house that you do not want. Do not feel pressurised. The Seller of the property is obliged to give you vacant possession which means they can't leave rubbish lying around the house or indeed any carpets. If you don't want items that the Seller of the property is trying to force you to buy, simply say no. They will have to remove them from the property if you do not want them. Sometimes, a Vendor of a property will try and sell you carpets for instance which you may not want and at the end of the day, that Vendor of the property may leave them after all because they cannot be bothered to move them. Garden sheds are another prime example whereby Sellers of property try to persuade you to pay for a garden shed but on reality, who, on the removal date wants to be bothered removing a garden shed. If you don't want the items, say so.

Parking

A top tip when buying a property is to visit it more than once or twice. Try to visit the property first thing in the morning and last thing at night to ascertain what the parking position is. You may find that when you visit the property in the middle of the afternoon with the Estate Agent that the street is quiet, only to find out that at rush hour it becomes a "rat run". Better still, knock on a door and ask a neighbour what off street parking is like.

Completion Date

Try to arrange the completion date to suit your finances. It is no good your mortgage payment leaving your bank account if it's the end of the month and you are skint. Try to get your mortgage payments to go out of your bank account on or just after the day you have been paid. Your mortgage payment is paramount. If you get into arrears you could lose your property and/or jeopardise your chances of getting another mortgage. Therefore, think carefully about the completion date and what date suits you. You may be involved in a chain of properties and sometimes have to fall in line with what completion date other parties want but your say on a completion date is just as valid as anyone else in a chain.

Stamp Duty

As a first time buyer you may not be involved with Stamp Duty but as house prices continuing to rise, the likelihood is that even your first property will be subject to Stamp Duty. If one wanted to be really cynical, Stamp Duty is a direct taxation on the price of buying a property. We enclose below a list of Stamp Duty thresholds. Make sure if you are purchasing a property above the Stamp Duty threshold that you do have the money available as the Stamp Duty has to be paid within 21 days of completion.

• Stamp Duty Thresholds
• £0 - £125,000 - NIL
• £125,001 - £250,000 - 1%
• £250,001 - £500,000 - 3%
• Over £500,001 - 4%

Utilities and Local Authority

When you move into the property, do not forget to tell the Water Board and the Local Authority that you have moved in. If you have purchased a property that requires renovation, try to find out from the Local Authority the position regarding Council Tax. Most Local Authorities will not charge Council Tax for a period of time if you are renovating a property and not actually living in it. Also remember when you move in, do not forget to change the address on such things as your Driving Licence and Passport, etc.