When it comes to getting the finances and legal work set up, use your contacts. Ask anyone and everyone – friends, neighbours, estate agents - if they have any personal recommendations. And don’t just take the first one. Talk to various solicitors, mortgage advisers and surveyors and get quotes. Don’t necessarily go for the cheapest one either – go for the one who you believe is going to give you the best service and get the job done most quickly and efficiently. A cheap solicitor who takes their time could cost you money elsewhere.
The solicitor we’re using for the conveyancing is a friend of a friend and when I called up I specifically asked for the name my friend had given to me and told them they had been recommended by my friend – they gave me a special rate. Even with the reduced rate, his actually wasn’t the cheapest quote I got but I believed that I would definitely be getting value for money.
The surveyor we’re using is a friend of my mother’s and we’re getting a special rate.
We used a little Independent Financial Adviser recommended to us by another friend for mortgage advice, and all their advice was free as they take their fee from the mortgage lender as a commission. They were also very friendly and helpful.
If you’re going to need a mortgage, when you’re ready to really get searching for a property, get a mortgage in principle sorted out for the maximum amount you could borrow and get everyone lined up ready to go. This way everything should go as smoothly as possible when you find a place to buy. Find out early on what paperwork is likely to be needed for any checks the solicitors and mortgage lender do and get it prepared – ID, payslips, proof of current address etc.
Lastly, get your finances ready. We cleared out our joint account and put money in it that is specifically just for the property. The intention is that this is all we will use the account for over the next few months so that we can easily keep an eye on what we’re spending for the project.
Em
