Want to move house but don’t know where to start

[ipsofatto999]

We want to move house within the next 9 months. This is our second house but we bought it over a decade ago, as a part exchange newbuild, in the middle of a recession. We therefore have no clue about how to go about selling up and moving on in the “normal” way. I have estate agents coming round in the next few weeks to get valuations and discuss the market etc and we’ve narrowed down our search area a bit but what other things do we need to be thinking about at this stage? Any advice and tips are gratefully received. I can find loads of info for first time buyers but can’t seem to find much for people moving on to a subsequent home. Feel a bit overwhelmed by zoopla data on every house and no idea how mortgage porting or anything like that works! Please send advice and tips on how to approach moving on my way!

I'm with you! There don't seem to be any guides at all for non-ftb.

Do you have a mortgage broker? I used l&c to buy and remortgaged with them since so I started there, he told me how porting mortgage would work (though Im just waiting for fixed to end!)

I've decluttered and have a cleaning firm booked in, they call it a premarket clean but am sure it's no different to a spring clean!

I posted earlier today and following that have booked in 4 EA to come view next week, so will update then! Hopefully they're say what's next!

Currently sweeping up all house paperwork together in case it's needed!

See what the EA says when they value. Get at least 3 quotes.

I would speak to a mortgage company about how much extra you can borrow
Look at current properties online in the area you want to buy in your price range to get an idea of what is available for your budget.

Look at other moving costs such as a van and stamp duty.

Have you a budget for a home that needs lots doing to it? Or are you looking for one that needs minimal changes?

We were in pretty much the same boat, been here for 15yrs. So far it has gone like this for us:
Thurs - EA out to value
Fri - Photos done and on Rightmove
Tues - Offer accepted over asking

The following week we viewed a property that we offered on and had accepted.

I've applied for the mortgage myself as our finances are relatively straightforward.

Oh good advice; yes - must find all house-related paperwork. A pre-clean sounds like a great idea; will be getting carpets cleaned in Sept. ooh @Agadorsparticus that sound great; fingers crossed we have a smooth sale also 🤞 Best of luck with the move!
Good q re budget and preferences; I don’t think we’re up for a big build but a kitchen/bathroom replacement or a garage/loft conversion we’d definitely be up for. Grand Designs or anything involving pulling the back of the house off has me in a cold sweat. Huge admiration for people who do it but I recognise our limitations 😁😆

Definitely going to speak to L&C thanks @HouseIsOnFire. Best of luck with your sale also - would love an update once your EAs have been round

It is a minefield and probably one of the most stressful times of your life but here you go:
Get three quotes for valuations from estate agents; try and avoid the big commercial chain types and go with an independent
Get your paperwork in order; original guarantees, FENSA/NICEIC certificates and building regs approvals/planning permissions if you’ve had work carried out
Start decluttering, especially the loft
Get some quotes from Conveyancing solicitors, again, avoid the big conveyancing factories
Get your mortgage agreed in principle
Oh and if you want to beat the end of the stamp duty deadline you need to get cracking
Good luck!

You also need to get a EPC (energy performance certificate) done on your property before it can be marketed. Some estate agents offer this as part of their service, others ask you get it done independently.

You have a right to ask to port your mortgage but is isn’t automatic. If you want to port your existing mortgage, you will need to meet the lending criteria of the mortgager again. This means going through a similar process as when you took the mortgage out, so they will look at the value of the new property you plan to buy to ensure they are happy with that ie you will need a survey. Likely they will also make you go through their process of providing all your financial info again, to prove you can still afford the mortgage (that’s what happened to me).

It is worth lining up some alternative mortgages just in case porting is unbearably slow (Nationwide dragged its feet deliberately so we nearly lost our new house, because we had an amazing value Mortgage product and they wanted us off it as it wasn’t making them any money. Very unfair sharp practice, I expected more of Nationwide. Luckily we found HSBC a lot better to bank with, I wouldn’t spit on a Nationwide now if I saw one burning!).

Oh good to know re EPC @itscoldouthere and porting - that’s pretty poor isn’t it @CustardyCreams, glad HSBC came through. Not looking forward to the stress and keep reading horror stories of people who moved or rushed to fit their buyer’s timetable and it all went wrong. Should probably stop reading those 😆