Guide to buying

Work out how much you can afford

You have decided that you are buying a property, but exactly how much can you afford? On top of the cost of the house itself, there are many other, one-off expenses involved in buying a home and moving which can easily add up to £3,000 or more. In order to get a good idea of what sort of homes you can realistically hope to buy, you also need to take these extra costs into account.

Organising a Valuation

If you have a property to sell you, need to get a realistic valuation on your existing property. Mather Marshall can provide a market appraisal of your home that will give you an expectation of how much your house should achieve on the open market.

How Much to Borrow?

Before looking at properties, you should consult a lender or mortgage adviser as to what your maximum possible loan would be. This will be based on the size of your deposit and how much you earn.

One-off Costs

Arrangement Fee

A fee charged by lenders to cover the cost of setting up the mortgage. Some lenders waive this fee.

Lender's Valuation (Basic Valuation)

All lenders require a valuation of the property to check that it is worth the price being paid for it. This is commissioned by the mortgage lender but you must cover the cost. The cost of the valuation depends on the value of the property.

Survey

You may wish to commission a more detailed survey in addition to the basic mortgage valuation. There are generally two types of survey: the Homebuyer's Report, which costs around £500; and the more comprehensive Building Survey (Structural Survey) which can cost anything up to £1,000, depending on the value of the house. These can be arranged via your lender when booking your basic valuation or can be arranged independently. If you wish, we can arrange a quotation from one of our recommended surveyors; this can often work out a cheaper option. Please ask.

Legal/Conveyancing Fees

You will need to hire a solicitor to deal with the legal aspects of buying a property. There is no standard fee so it is a good idea to shop around for the best rate. Mather Marshall can recommend local solicitors for you to use if required.

Stamp Duty

This is a government tax, charged for properties above £125,000. If your new home is priced between £125,000 and £250,000, you will pay 1% of the property price. From £250,000 to £500,000, it will be 3% and over £500,000 it will be 4%. So, for example, if you are paying £200,000 for your home you pay £2,000 in stamp duty.

The Buying Process

Register with Mather Marshall

Once you have worked out how much you can afford the next stage is to start looking for a property. You may have to make some compromises in the house you buy so decide now what is most important to you. Is a garden or a fourth bedroom most important? Is location more important than the size of the house?

When you register with Mather Marshall, we will take all the details of what you are looking for. We will email you immediately with suitable properties on our books and will contact you in the future with new properties.

Viewings

After the viewing we need to know if you have any questions or if you are interested in buying the property. So please allow time to discuss your thoughts with us. We will normally contact you the day after the viewing to see what you thought of the property.

Making an offer

As soon as you've found a suitable property, we'll put your offer to the seller, verbally and in writing. We will normally put your offer on the same day. The offer will be subject to a contract being signed and there are no legal obligations on either side until this is done.