First time buyer advice please?!

[WayTooBigForYourBoots]

My partner and I are going to buy our first home, we’ve seen a property we like but based mainly on “superficial” reasons

We want to be sensible before making an offer and make sure we don’t uncover problems later that could be avoided, but we have nobody to advise us on what to look for or ask, as none of our family owns their own home, and we are clueless about what things that could go wrong.

Are there any general things we should be considering as standard?

We know that the owners have done some work on the house including electrical installations and re wiring and they did it themselves - is there any risk there and anything we should ask about?

I know we will have to get a survey but we don’t want to get that far and have to spend money to find out something that should have been obvious. Any advice is appreciated!

Hi congratulations on finding something you like! Everyone is different comes to what they look for, so be confident to your criteria. Re what to look for: check anything you can check yourself e.g., - does the water flow fine? Is there any mould? Re the electricity work: are they qualified electrician? You may want to ask for a safety certificate (if they say no, then there are tests available).

Make sure to get a good discount as houses prices are dropping across the country and have yet adjusted to higher mortgage rates.

Thank you! If they don’t have a safety certificate what tests would we need and would it be reasonable to ask the owners to have them done ?

Oh that’s good to know. What sort of % drop are we looking at? Wouldn’t want to put in a cheeky offer but it is priced slightly above our budget to be honest so this could be really helpful!

View the property at different times of day to check the neighbourhood

Ask for a second viewing where you put on your practical head - where will the bins go, do the windows open easily , any signs of damp anywhere , is there lots of new paint anywhere - feel those walls

Do you know any builder / DIY experts / parents who can come for that second viewing ?

Thank you for the suggestions. We have a second viewing and really want to make sure that we make use of it, unfortunately nobody we can take along with us our parents don’t know very much about what to look for either as they have never bought a house themselves- we know more than them and we don’t know a lot lol. I just read another post that said we need a solicitor to make an offer and I didn’t even know that! 😫

I don't think the soliciter makes the offer ( where are you in uk?)

You make the offer to the agent - with proof of a mortgae offer.
If accepted then engage a solicitor

Although your parents haven't bought a home they have lived in them - they'd still have "house common sense " . Surveyor abs solicitor does the other stuff

I appreciate that but we did ask for any advice and they said they didn’t know.

I got us a mortgage advisor as I thought they might offer some basic guidance but they just spoke about what we could borrow and interest rates… so I now know they literally just advice on a mortgage - clue is in the name I guess lol

You need to ask your mortgage advisor for a “mortgage agreement in principle” which will tell you what you can borrow.

Start researching solicitors - my advice is find one local to the house you want to buy; they’ll know the area and will have links with the local authority, which may help them to expedite searches when the time comes.

Once you’re ready to make an offer, the estate agent might want to see your AIP, proof of funds etc. Once the offer has been accepted, instruct a solicitor and they basically take it from there! And let your mortgage advisor know and they’ll get the full mortgage application in.

You’ll then need to instruct a surveyor, get one who is RICS qualified. They’ll examine the property and let you know if there are any major red flags. Don’t worry at this point as there are often ‘amber’ flags, especially in an older property, this is mostly as the surveyor needs to cover themselves! But watch out for the red flags!

It really depends! My MB is very personal and doesn’t mind my house related queries here and there (but it’s also because he has done renovations before and know a bit more). Perhaps you can Google a house viewing checklist, and make one yourself. Check whether there are obvious gaps in windows and door frames - try to open and close them, and see whether they are fine and whether wind comes through (won’t work if it’s a calm day), open the taps and see water flow, flush a toilet paper down and see whether it works, open shower tab…look for unusual signs on the ceiling, inside the cupboard that could indicate leaking, just think if you are in the house, what would you use/care, or annoy you? You will have survey to do the full one, this is just to knock out the most obvious ones. I will also walk around the neighborhood if you are not local, walk to the station/supermarket/schools etc - do you feel safe? Do you like it?

re offer: you make offer yourself to the EA, no solicitor involved until offer is accepted. We can talk through this more once you get to that stage.

Also, look at garden & neighbors’s where you can see - try to avoid bamboos and be careful about giant trees, bamboos can spread out easily and the roots can damage the foundation. Same for trees. Can be worse if they are neighbors coz you cannot do much! I would also check on Crystal roof or similar sites- it gives you crime stats, potential noise level. Check yourself on the government site for EPC rating, it tells you what can be improved (ie what’s not good now), the size of the house - sometimes it’s very different from agent’s one! And long term flood risk. I personally avoid high flood risk.

Ask the age of boiler, when it was last serviced, have they kept up with annual service. I recall one house I viewed never serviced their boiler… also focus on the key things: structure concerns, sign of dampness, I personally don’t like bamboos in the garden coz it’s hard to remove and the potential issue of damaging pipes and foundation, but some people think it’s ok. If they have had alternations, ask whether they have building approval. Everything else can be fixed, it’s just a matter how much they cost and need to fact into your price. Be careful about negotiating, not every house can be negotiated down and it depends on where you are & the house itself. After all, its the market’s call, if multiple ppl like the house, you are unlikely to pay less, and may even need to pay a bit more. you will learn this soon by watching the local market

After working in a similar role to an estate agent, and having bought 2 houses myself heres what I would do on a 2nd viewing before making an offer on a property I was really interested in:

• Turn on the taps in every sink to check the water pressure
• Open every cupboard/drawer etc that is staying (ie kitchen cupboards and built in storage but not a free standing wardrobe etc) to check their condition and how big they are (friends parents moved into a house with a huge sliding door wardrobe & only found out when they moved in that it only had a fraction of useable space due to the boiler etc in there)
• Look to where they store their hoover, ironing board etc to check there is enough storage. You will be surprised how often people remove them and put them in the car/garage/take them to their parents etc for viewings as there is nowhere to store them and they dont want to make this obvious
• Find out where the boiler is - is it easily accessible? Is it in one of the bedrooms? Would you need to move it when you move in? Take a photo of it so you can google later on roughly how old it is and when it will likely need replacing. Also is it a combi boiler? Or a traditional one with a hot water tank etc.
• Where will you park your car(s)? is there off road parking? Drive by at different times - weekends, evenings, middle of the working day to get a feel for the area/noise/neighbours/parking etc
• Turn the lights on & off to check that they work and are connected (again I know someone who found out after moving that the light fittings downstairs werent connected to the supply and didnt work!)
• Where do they dry their washing? Is there a rotary line in the garden? High line? Where will you dry yours?
• Look at the ceilings and walls underneath the bathroom - any evidence of a leak?
• Where are the gas and electricity meter? Easily accessible? What does the fuse board look like? Take photos so you can google later on
• Are there any cracked plug sockets, bare wires, rusted radiators or pipes? This may indicate that the home hasnt been as well maintained as it could have.
• Look at the kitchen in detail - is their space for the appliances you want? If you want a dishwasher, washing machine & tumble is there enough room for them? Again take photos if you can to remind yourseld later on what it looked like. How big is the space for a fridge and freezer? Sometimes there is only space for a larder fridge and an under the counter freezer. Check there is enough space for what you want.
• Open and close all the doors as you walk around. Do they open & shut easily? Does the layout of the house flow for how you want to live?
• Is there a downstairs loo? If there is check if has a proper cistern and can flush more than just wee's (sometimes people only put in a small loo downstairs and they cant handle flushing poo & paper and are constantly blocking)
• Where in the garden is the man hole cover? Check it hasn't been built over by a conservatory or extension.
• How secure is the front & back door? Do they fit properly or have they dropped and are stiff to open or close?

Make sure you get a minimum of the homebuyers survey but remember that some of what will be on there is arse covering from the surveyor. Pay attention to anything flagged as 'red' but I wouldnt be that bothered by anything amber but again speak to your solicitor when you have one if you have any queries.

When we bought in 2007 if said the roof 'may' need to be replaced soon asit was built in 19365. So far its been absolutely fine and hasnt even had a slipped tile! But some ftb can get easily spooked and irritate seasoned homeowners by insisting on reducing their offer or getting them to pay for work thats not actually necessary.

Very few owners will have electrical or gas safety certificate as they are not mandatory as they are in rented homes. This is not a red flag on its own but is why you need to look out for any issues on the 2nd viewing. If you want to make sure that the electrics and boiler is up to standard then you should offer to pay for this yourself as most buyers will not think it necessary.

Good luck - youve got this!

You make the offer yourself not via your solicitor @WayTooBigForYourBoots assuming you are in England anyway (don't know about other areas).

You book a survey once your offer has been accepted and you have applied for a mortgage - your Lender will explain the different surveys but the most basic one is a valuation survey that they will insist on and organise.

All houses have issues, none are perfect so don't worry too much about small things not being perfect. One step at a time. If you like the house after the second viewing and what ideas about how much to offer, post again and people will give you advice based on the asking price and condition, how long it has been on the market etc.

I think OP has left but hopefully she got the advice she needed.

Thanks everyone your comments were really helpful. Somebody mentioned looking for signs of damp - to be honest we did notice that the bathroom had a musty / damp smell to it , a bit like when you leave laundry in the washer for too long. How can we know if that’s just a simple one off smell like maybe they didn’t open a window that day or if it’s a potential issue that we should walk away from ?

Hi @WayTooBigForYourBoots, we found this site really helpful when we were FTB (we didn't use the services but the insights were good)

hoa.org.uk/advice/guides-for-homeowners/i-am-buying/the-hoa-step-by-step-guide-to-buying-a-home/

This is a hard one. Have a look at all walls and corners, ceiling and floors, do you see signs of mould or water marks? Open the cupboards too. Then you may need to have the surveyor or similar professional to check it - mention it to them as an area require more attention.