Buying first house - help please!

[Flipflop2047]

I want to buy my first house but I don't know where to start. What's the first step? I've saved a big deposit and I know what kind of areas I want to buy in. I don't have any parents to help me with advice so any help would be gratefully appreciated.

Have you taken mortgage advice or have you got a mortgage agreement in principle? This is really important so you know what your budget is. Also you can then research the areas you like to get an idea of the type of property you will be able to buy.

You could register on Rightmove to get notifications when houses in the areas you want to buy in go on the market. That way you get to know what selling and how quickly.

You can also look on Zoopla (and maybe Rightmove as well) to see what a house has sold for in the past.

You should get a mortgage broker, ask around locally. I specifically searched for a female one because I didn't want to deal with any mansplaining (although my solicitor was also female and sexist...so not a guarantee. I dealt with a lot of sexism when house buying). A mortgage broker will get you better deals only available to mortgage brokers, and also is there to advise you and explain the process. When you have an offer on a house accepted, you usually get assigned someone from the estate agent who you can ask questions about what to expect and timeline etc to as well.

Well done saving your deposit :)

I think your first step should be getting an offer in principle to show how much a mortgage company will lend you and what your repayments would be.

Then you can start looking at properties you’re interested in - don’t jump at the first one, look at lots before you decide what you want to make an offer on.

I would get in touch with a mortgage advisor, they will look at your annual earnings and find out how much you can afford to borrow. There will be legal fees and possible stamp duty on the property you are looking to buy so the money from deposit would need to stretch to this too unless your monthly income could cover. Depending on where you are based there may be help to buy schemes if needed or some mortgage lender which will accept 5% deposit. 10% appears to be the general deposit asked when buying a first property. I can only advise from what I am having to do as we are in the process of trying to buy a bigger house. If you are looking to buy a new build you can obtain a "decision of principle" from a mortgage lender so you know once the house is built you will be able to obtain the actual mortgage. 3 months pay slips usually required when it comes to applying for the mortgage. A decision of principle is great for getting if you plan on putting down a deposit for a new build so you don't end up having to pull out due to it coming to light that the mortgage is unaffordable as this has its implications. I hope this has been some help. Definitely go and have a chat with a mortgage advisor in the first instance, they will keep you right with everything. Lots of places do free consultations. Good luck x

@SeahorseBlue no haven't done anything yet apart from save a big deposit. Thank you for your reply!!

Thanks so much everyone. So the first thing I need to do is get a mortgage in principal and for that I go and see a mortgage advisor? Is that and a financial advisor the same thing?

Go to the moneysavingexpert website. There are excellent guides with plain English explanations of what to do and in what order.

Look on Bank’s websites. Most have mortgage calculators so you see what size mortgage you’ll be able to have. Also, arrange an appointment with a Mortgage advisor to guide you.

Look on Rightmove and other sites to get a feel of the market. What you can and can’tafford.

Think about what you want +- flat, house etc, areas etc.