First Time Buyer
Independent Mortgages And Financial Solutions Ltd offers expert mortgage advice tailored to your needs.
Independent Mortgages & Financial Solutions ltd
Buying a house is one of the most important purchases you will make, and buying a home for the first time will be an even more daunting prospect. Nowadays, the options vary from help to buy schemes, 5% mortgages, 90% mortgages along with different options for deposit payments including gifted and guarantors. With such a vast array of mortgage products available from a wide range of sources and you could be left with a high-stress, confusing decision.
To help you with making the right decision we have put together 10 top tips for you.
- Ensure that you are realistic when working out exactly how much you can afford to spend on your new house. You should ensure the intended mortgage is affordable (by doing a budget calculation). Even a newly built house will require some sort of furnishings, whereas older properties may require extensive work, such as re-flooring, tiling or renewing the wiring. Make sure that you factor in all these likely expenses, in addition to the purchase price, and other fees such as conveyancing and stamp duty.
- When buying for the first time, there may be a number of details in the houses you are looking at, which you may not pick up. Always take an experienced home buyer, such as one of your parents, or a home-owning friend, when looking at property. If this is difficult to arrange, then make sure you at least get some assistance once you have selected a property you like and are arranging a second viewing.
- If you have been used to living at home with your parents, remember to budget for expenses such as council tax, gas and electricity bills, boiler servicing, and other home repairs.
- Make sure you know what the likely council tax charge will be in your new property. The selling agent should be able to tell you what tax band the house you are interested in buying is in, and how the charges are levied by your local authority.
- Even if you do not have children, remember that property in the catchment area of good local schools will always be much easier to sell on. However, this may also be reflected in a higher purchase price.
- Always consider how your transport arrangements will change in your new house. If you have a car, your insurance premium may increase dramatically if you move from a town with relatively low crime into a city centre with higher crime rates or if you move from your parents’ house with a locked garage to a smaller terraced house with on-street parking.Always consider how your transport arrangements will change in your new house. If you have a car, your insurance premium may increase dramatically if you move from a town with relatively low crime into a city centre with higher crime rates or if you move from your parents’ house with a locked garage to a smaller terraced house with on-street parking.
- Consider the availability of public transport services, making sure you find out local bus routes, the frequency of train services from your nearest station, and if you are moving a long distance, the range of flights available from your local airport. Even if you drive everywhere, this information will be useful for anyone coming to visit you who does not drive.
- Write down a list of local amenities which are important to you. This may include shops, restaurants, pubs, sports centres, parks, and cinemas. If you enjoy activities such as walking, or cycling, the neighbourhood you plan to move in to may be very different to the one your parents are living in, and may not have the same access to parks and other recreational facilities. Before making any final decision about where to move to, take a stroll or bike ride around the local area, and note down where the key facilities are.
- If you are a heavy internet user, check to see that broadband or other high-speed internet is available in the street you are moving into. The selling agent should be able to tell you this.
- Try, where possible, to find somewhere to live that is close to your main place of work. Commuting can be one of the biggest household expenses, and as you are likely to be spending much more time on domestic chores and/or DIY, living somewhere which minimises your commuting distance will be very important. If the property is more expensive nearer to your place of work, make sure you weigh up this additional expense, when compared to the costs and time of commuting. You may wish to ask colleagues in your workplace to see if there are possibilities to lift share with anyone from the area.
YOUR PROPERTY MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE
Why Choose us
We’re a small mortgage lender with long-standing relationships.
We are a Small Friendly Efficient Team of Mortgage Advisers with building long term great client relationships at our heart.
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Flexible, adaptable, and adjustable plans to fit your needs.
We normally charge a fee for mortgage advice, however this will be dependent on your circumstances.
The information given in this website does not contain all of the details you need to choose a mortgage. Make sure that you read the separate key facts illustration before you make a decision. The FCA does not regulate some forms of buy to let mortgages.
If you have a complaint or dispute with us, you are entitled to make a complaint. We have a complaints procedure that is available on request. If you wish to register a complaint, please contact us either in writing, by telephone or email. Please be assured we treat complaints seriously. For your protection if you cannot settle your complaint with us, you may be entitled to refer it to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).
Independent Mortgages And Financial Solutions Ltd is directly authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. FCA Register No 480536. Registered in England and Wales No: 05083705. Registered Office: 62 King Street, Norwich, Norfolk, NR1 1PG. Calls may be recorded for training and monitoring.
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We normally charge a fee for mortgage advice, however this will be dependent on your circumstances.
The information given in this website does not contain all of the details you need to choose a mortgage. Make sure that you read the separate key facts illustration before you make a decision. The FCA does not regulate some forms of buy to let mortgages.
If you have a complaint or dispute with us, you are entitled to make a complaint. We have a complaints procedure that is available on request. If you wish to register a complaint, please contact us either in writing, by telephone or email. Please be assured we treat complaints seriously. For your protection if you cannot settle your complaint with us, you may be entitled to refer it to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).
Independent Mortgages And Financial Solutions Ltd is directly authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. FCA Register No 480536. Registered in England and Wales No: 05083705. Registered Office: 62 King Street, Norwich, Norfolk, NR1 1PG. Calls may be recorded for training and monitoring.
To view our Privacy Statement, please click here. To view our Cookies Statement, please click here