First house

[JunoJunebug]

Hi. I am just starting to think about buying my first house. Any recommendations. I don’t know whether to buy a new house or something older. I don’t have a huge budget.

It's not a great time to buy a new build. They are the first to lose value if we do see a price correction.

Buy the worst house on the best street and be prepared to get your hands dirty with a fixer upper.

My preference would be for a newish home as it shouldn't need work doing to it, or a doer-upper which I can buy at a good price and do it up as and when my budget allowed. Would you prefer a house with a small or a large garden? Off road parking? Do you have or plan to have a pet? When you find a property you like, visit the area a few times to get a feel for it, if it's an area you don't know well - and visit during the day, night and at weekends.

You need to work out your budget.

Then you need to work out which areas you are interested in living in because of proximity to transport, work, family, friends.

What is your age and lifestyle? Are you a party animal who wants a city pad so you are close to the bars and restaurants or are you a home body who wants a house they can fill with cats? Or maybe you have a collection of vintage motorbikes and need a place with safe storage for them?

What do you want your future to look like? Are you in a relationship? Do you want children in the future, do you already have children?

What sort of career/money are you on? Is this likely to increase?

If you can tell us a bit more about yourself we can help.