Purchasing your home, whether it be your first or your last is always a significant purchase and can be a far from simple process. To help you on your way here is Abode’s guide to buying:

Step 1. Getting Mortgage advice and knowledge. Knowing what you can afford, the cost of your mortgage repayments, and a clear overview of the terms is essential in the purchase of any property.

The large number of mortgage types and providers can seem daunting, but we will be able to talk you through the various options and the benefits or pitfalls of each.

The larger the amount you can pay upfront (your deposit), the better the deal you’re likely to get with your bank/ mortgage adviser. The quicker (shorter term) your mortgage the less you will end up paying in interest charges, so choosing the correct one will have a sizeable impact on the final cost of your home.

Abode can help you with a free no commitment independent mortgage advice through one of our partners, please ask for some help today.

Step 2. Finding & viewing your home.

Abode advertises through all the major portals including Rightmove, On-The-Market, Zoopla, and Boomin. We would recommend setting up a notification alert to be made aware when properties matching your criteria become available in a certain area, Zoopla’s service for this is particularly good, we would be happy to help you with this in our office as well.

Follow Abode on their Facebook, all our properties appear as coming soon before listing on any other internet portal.

We recommend taking notes when visiting the property this could aid you in making your decision.

Try to visit the area at different times of the day, this will enable you to get a feeling for the neighbourhood, whether there are changes as to how busy it is or other considerations that may affect your purchase.

Check the Energy Performance Certificate to get an expectation of how much energy it will require to heat and run the property. You can search for the full report by going to https://find-energy-certificate.digital.communities.gov.uk/ and entering the post code for the property.

Step 3. Making an Offer.

Once you have found your perfect home it is time to table an offer for the property, it is important to present your bid in as strong a light as possible. To do this you need to be as proceedable as you can, have a mortgage in principle agreed where appropriate and the certificate/confirmation ready for your agent.

If you’re selling your house in order to purchase your new property it is important to bear in mind that most vendors will not accept an offer until your sale is secure and the chain under it is complete. That is to say that everyone has a sale agreed subject to contract up until that point.

If you have a sale agreed on your property, provide the selling agent’s details to the agents you’re offering to so that they can independently verify your chain details. This will allow them to put a stronger case to their vendor.

It is also fine to include certain fittings in your offer, such as bespoke blinds or curtains, none built in appliances. These are not usually included but if there were things specific to the property that you would like to keep now is the time to include these items.

Step 4. Once you have agreed a sale price you now need to instruct solicitors for the conveyancing of your purchase.

We advise you to get a couple of quotes for the conveying of your purchase, our experience is utilising a local solicitor whom you can have a personal progression with often results in a smoother process than a national or online firm. However, costs may vary, as always you get what you pay for.

When getting quotes please ask for the following:

  • ask for a full breakdown of the costs involved;
  • check they have the capacity to do the work in the timescale you'll need them to, and;
  • ask how often they’ll keep you updated and whether they'll do so through letters, phone calls or email.

Abode have worked with most of our local solicitors and would be happy to make recommendations.

As part of the legal process the following will occur:

Local authority search

Your solicitor/conveyancer will look for anything that might affect your property, such as plans to develop nearby land and roads. This can take some time going through local council services.

Drawing up and exchanging contracts

Your solicitor/conveyancer must transfer your deposit once contracts have been exchanged, as you’re now committed to buying the property.

Completion dates

Your solicitor/conveyancer will agree a date for completion with you and the seller. If there are several properties in the chain, it will often require your agent to be involved in agreeing a completion date. This is when the purchase price is paid to the seller’s conveyancing team, and the property becomes yours. Once the funds are received by the solicitors, we will be instructed to release the keys to you so you may move into your new home!

The transfer deed, title deed and stamp duty

The transfer deed is a document that your solicitor/conveyancer will submit to the Land Registry after completion, to transfer the legal ownership of the property to you. Find out more at the Land Registry's website https://www.gov.uk/registering-land-or-property-with-land-registry. Your conveyancing team will then lodge the title deed, to prove who owns the property, with the Land Registry for England and Wales.

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