Buying/Selling a house - the basics...
Discussion
Evening all, please go easy on me as I don't really have anyone else to ask (sad I know) 
We currently live in a new build property valued around £145-155k, we bought it 2 years because we didn't really have any idea what we were doing and the one good thing about new builds is that its a fairly painless transaction.
As its a new build its a bit bland and not great value, so we've seen a property on the market for £135k that we'd like to buy. They problem comes is that I have no idea what the proper process or correct etiquette is!
Do I have to wait until my house has sold before i can make an offer, or can we arrange the purchase of the new house before selling ours (as we're fairly confident of a quick sale) with completion date dependent on sale of our house?
I have a mortgage adviser, estate agent and solicitor sorted (welcome recommendations though) - is there anything else I need? Any other advise would also be greatly appreciated.
We currently live in a new build property valued around £145-155k, we bought it 2 years because we didn't really have any idea what we were doing and the one good thing about new builds is that its a fairly painless transaction.
As its a new build its a bit bland and not great value, so we've seen a property on the market for £135k that we'd like to buy. They problem comes is that I have no idea what the proper process or correct etiquette is!
Do I have to wait until my house has sold before i can make an offer, or can we arrange the purchase of the new house before selling ours (as we're fairly confident of a quick sale) with completion date dependent on sale of our house?
I have a mortgage adviser, estate agent and solicitor sorted (welcome recommendations though) - is there anything else I need? Any other advise would also be greatly appreciated.
IMHO it partly depends on how active the market is in your area. We recently sold in Harrow and bought in Welwyn, both very active areas at the moment. Making an offer on our new property with a buyer for ours put us in a stronger negotiating position. Being able to tell an agent that we had an offer, from a buyer with nothing to sell ("no lower chain"), and had a mortgage offer in principle meant our offer was seen as stronger than one from someone who still hadn't got a buyer for theirs. Our own agent was also prepared to confirm that with the other agent to help validate our offer.
The seller of the house you wish to buy would be unlikely to accept your offer and stop marketing the property if your current house isnt even on the market. I would get the estate agent to make the offer explaining your situation as they will have vested intrest in getting seller to consider your offer if you let them then sell yours too.
If you're in Scotland then the offer may be binding, so be careful, but if you're south of the border get the ball rolling and make an offer.
Then get your own property on the market pdq - do you have an agent in mind already?
Getting a solicitor on board is also a positive you can 'sell' to the vendor - there's always some paperwork needs doing (although you will be charged if you do not complete the transaction).
Good luck!
Then get your own property on the market pdq - do you have an agent in mind already?
Getting a solicitor on board is also a positive you can 'sell' to the vendor - there's always some paperwork needs doing (although you will be charged if you do not complete the transaction).
Good luck!
Thanks for the advice everyone. I would say our house isn't 'in demand' but the development is quite popular amongst BTL'ers and young couples. We purchased for £144k (5% first timer discount off list of £150k), had one estate agent valuation, who gave use the price above, i have two more coming next week and I'll put the house on the market based on the average of the three valuations. I'm hoping to have it up by then end of next week.
We're lucky to have plenty of equity in the house, so plan on lowering our mortgage so my wife doesn't have to return to work sfter maternity leave (I also quite fancy living somewhere with decent country roads around it!), so we can be flexible on the sale price. Overall i'm fairly confident we'll shift it but its all a bit intimidating going through it for the first time.
We're lucky to have plenty of equity in the house, so plan on lowering our mortgage so my wife doesn't have to return to work sfter maternity leave (I also quite fancy living somewhere with decent country roads around it!), so we can be flexible on the sale price. Overall i'm fairly confident we'll shift it but its all a bit intimidating going through it for the first time.
fesuvious said:
I demanded 4 weeks between exchange and completion as I had a shed full of engineering equipment that needed a specialist to move. Solictors raised an eyebrow saying you don't need 4 weeks, but would "aim" for it. As it turned out, with various delays/holidays/random excuses it ended up being more like two weeks anyway - so it paid of asking for such a long gap.Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff