How to Buy a House: Tips from Experts

Before you start scrolling homes for sale, it’s wise to brush up on the whole home-buying process. After all, it’s long, with many steps, with plenty of exciting ones along the way. To fully prepare, check out the below on how to buy a house, and roughly how long it takes in the UK.  

Are you a first-time buyer? 

A first-time buyer is someone who hasn’t owned residential property in the UK or elsewhere in the world. That means that you’re about to buy your first property for the first time.  

Most first-time buyers buy a house with a mortgage.  

Understanding deposits 

What is a deposit? 

For a mortgage, a deposit is a sum of money that you put down on a house, typically between 5% and 20% of the home’s price.  

What deposit do I need? 

It varies for everyone. For example, if you’re buying a home worth £230,000, your deposit could be between £11,500 (5%) and £46,000 (20%). Big difference, right? You’ll need to work with your mortgage lender to determine how much you can and are willing to put as a deposit. A deposit is a sum of upfront cash, so be sure to have this on hand. 

Decide on your budget 

Check you can afford monthly repayments 

Part of taking out a mortgage means signing up to meet monthly mortgage payments. Just like you would pay rent, a mortgage payment is due monthly. While the lender will check your finances to ensure you can afford a mortgage, it’s a good idea to calculate yourself beforehand. How much can you afford to spend per month on a mortgage payment? What is comfortable?

Assessing your affordability before diving in is essential – it'll help to determine your budget and the value of homes you can start viewing. 

Consider additional costs 

Buying a house is more than just covering the mortgage payment. In fact, you’ll need to put aside some extra funds to cover the associated costs of purchasing your first property. Consider the following: 

• Mortgage deposit  

• Stamp duty (if you’re liable to pay any – you can calculate an estimate of your fee with our stamp duty calculator) 

• Conveyancing fees 

• Mortgage fees (such as arrangement fees) 

• Survey costs 

• Removals – whether you’re paying the pros to help you move or hiring a van and paying your friends with pizza 

• Home insurance 

In addition, there are numerous ongoing costs of buying a home, such as upkeep and maintenance costs, utilities, council tax, mortgage payments, and more. In short, be sure you’re prepared for the financial commitments.  

Searching for your first home 

This is the exciting step. Scrolling properties for sale while picturing what your life could look like.  

To help make things easy, on Purplebricks, you can book viewings online, 24/7. No waiting around for estate agencies to open or needing to hear back from the vendors. Simply click ‘Book a viewing’ on the property listings page, pick a slot, and you’ll receive instant confirmation. Easy, right? 

On your viewing, take in all the important things – like space, daylight, the property’s condition. Whether the agent or seller shows you round, feel free to ask questions about the home.  

Making an offer 

You’ve found the home you want to call your own. Now it’s time to make an offer. If you’re buying a Purplebricks property (we have plenty of lovely homes to buy), we like to get things moving around here, and have shaved off all those minutes waiting around for an answer. You get to communicate directly with the seller, and you can send in an offer and negotiate all from your online profile. 

What can go wrong? 

Offers can go wrong if the chain starts to break. That means if there are conveyancing delays, if a buyer is made redundant, or the seller decides to remove their home from the market. To navigate this, our Purple Pact helps to keep chains moving towards a successful sale. It’s a great way to make sure you don’t lose out on the home of your dreams.  

Conveyancing 

One step of the home sale is conveyancing. This deals with the legal transfer of ownership from one party to another. You’ll need to apply for searches and review quite a bit of paperwork. To avoid delays, be sure to respond quickly to requests for information and forms, and reply to emails or communications as soon as you can. Here’s a full a breakdown of how conveyancing works for buyers. 

Set up your home survey 

A survey is a glimpse into the condition of the property, and what you could be facing if you were to buy the property. A surveyor will be looking at the floors, walls, roof, condition of the property, utilities, joinery, finishes, and more. Understand a bit more about this step by seeing what surveyors look for in a house survey. 

Get home insurance 

Most lenders will require you to buy home insurance as part of your mortgage agreement. This insurance protects the property, if it’s damaged from fire, storms, floods, and more. In general, it’s good practice to secure this insurance – as well as contents insurance that protects your personal property – so that you have financial support if the worst happens.  

Exchange contracts 

You and the seller near the finish line! You both sign and swap contracts, making the property legally binding. This is arranged by your conveyancer, so keep an eye out on communications from them.  

Complete 

Yes, there is one more step after you’ve signed contracts. Completion is where funds are transferred to the seller’s solicitor and legal ownership is transferred to the buyer. On this day, you are given the keys, and you’re free to move into the property. Congrats! 

In summary 

• Now you know how to buy a house, get your finances in order to buy a property, whether you need a mortgage or not.  

• Prepare to get ahead of other buyers with Purple Pact. 

• Start your search right here on Purplebricks, with thousands of homes for sale. 

How to buy a house FAQs 

• How much money do you need to buy a house? 

It varies. For everyone and every home. It depends on your deposit size, your income, and how much you can afford to buy. Generally, you can lend 4.5 times your income. That means if your income is £35,000, you may be able to lend up to £157,500. If you’re applying for a mortgage with another person, adding their salary can increase that number, giving you more properties to look at.  

• How much stamp duty will I pay as a first-time buyer? 

For your first home as a first-time buyer, you may not need to pay stamp duty. But it’s best to be sure, as this can be a sizeable bill. Check what you may pay with our stamp duty calculator. 

• What if I’m selling my house too? 

To sell your house and buy at the same time, it’s a good idea to sync up the process. Start by getting a free house valuation from your local Purplebricks expert. 

• How should I prepare for a mortgage? 

If you’re a first-time buyer, check out how to get mortgage-ready, from sourcing paperwork to understanding the process.