House Hunter
Finding a new home should be an enjoyable experience but can become frustrating. Our guide helps you to structure the process and to get the most for your money. We believe there are three stages to getting your house
- short listing properties
- viewing properties
- making offers
The first rule of house hunting is to be strict with the properties you will see. List based on your priorities, browse properties on major websites such as rightmove, and then arrange appointments to view the properties you have short listed
You need to consider two things: the home and its location. The following list should give you some ideas of the issues that you might consider when choosing a location for your new home:
The House
Think carefully if the property looks in a satisfactory condition, and has been regularly maintained. Also try to short list properties by some careful reading of the Estate Agents description.
Viewing properties
only view those homes which meet all of the requirements you outlined in your home comparison chart (distance from work, number of bedrooms - whatever you think is necessary in your new home)
Great!!! You have found the perfect property to be your new home, now you need to negotiate the price. You need to make sure you don't get carried away by how much you like the property and stick to your budgeting. You should know your maximum price and stick to it. Remember all of your moving costs and the stamp duty.
Do your home work, check out nethouseprice.com before you put in the offer, work out how much you think the property is worth - research could save you thousands of pounds. You could get an independent valuation of the property from a surveyor, which may more than pay off if you can use this as a negotiation tool. You will need a valuation to get a mortgage.
The estate agent will discuss your offer with the seller who will either accept or reject your offer. Decide whether this is enough. In most cases the seller will reject your first offer in the hope that you will offer more. REMEMBER know your budget and stick to it. Also remember the estate agent is working to try to get the highest price
One final tip, it's most certainly a Buyers market, this means that you have the upper hand and should negotiate the best possible price