Process / Flow Chart of Buying
a Home in the UK
Stage 2: Having your offer accepted
What
happens |
What
you pay |
| When you have found a property you want to buy and the vendor has accepted your offer, things really get moving. This is when you instruct your solicitor to act. He or she will contact the seller’s solicitor requesting title deeds to the property and initiate contract negotiations. |
Probably just the fees for local authority searches which are
normally about £200. |
You will also need to formally apply for a mortgage, possibly
through a broker. |
Depends: YOu might need to pay a mortgage application fee you’ve agreed with your broker. Sometimes brokers’ fees are paid on completion). |
| It is also a good idea to get a survey done on the property you are buying. You can either go for a basic homebuyer’s report or full structural survey. The latter is advisable for older properties. |
This depends on the value of the property but expect to pay between £250 and £500 for a homebuyer’s report
and up to £1,000 for a full survey. |
| Your mortgage lender will also carry out a valuation on the property to check it is suitable security for the loan. |
About £100 but valuations are free on some mortgage deals. |
|
Stage 3: Exchange
What
happens |
What
you pay |
| If the survey comes back OK and your solicitor has finalised the contract details with the seller’s solicitor then you will be ready to exchange contracts and agree a date for completion. You should have a firm mortgage offer by this stage. |
Normally 10% of the purchase price – you pay this into your solicitor’s account and he or she sends it to the seller. If you pull out after this stage you will lose this money. |
|
Next stage Completion
Process / Outline / Flow Chart of Buying a Home
