Starting the Search

We started our search with a simple conversation in the car one day about what we would really like in our dream first house. Lots of ideas were thrown out; walk-in wardrobe, garden, bar and even balcony got a mention. We were daydreaming, but it forged an image of what we could see ourselves living in.

Steve’s mum recommended that we both individually write down what we each wanted out of our first house and then number them in order of importance. We decided that this was a good idea and nervously revealed the results to each other, happy with the results as we were fairly aligned. There were some differences, but our biggest importance were pretty points much the same; an investment for the future, in a nice area near our family and friends, but also something we could afford and still have a life! I’d really recommend this list comparison to anyone looking to buy their first house, even if it is on your own as it is easier to be clear on your own opinion and boundaries as well as really understanding the other person’s needs if you are buying with someone else. It means you look for a property that fills your needs, and you can check criteria off against your list when you find somewhere you like. Importance might even change as you start looking, for instance a walk in wardrobe became more of a house with good storage!

With our joint list of requirements memorised, we started to look at the money side of things. Between you and I, we had both been browsing estate agents websites for a while and Zoopla had become my favourite in-commute activity and I had the wish list of properties to prove it. So I was dying find out what we could realistically afford as first time buyers.

Steve was recommended a broker through his sister and we contacted them. We found that a broker made the whole process less hassle that contacting banks ourselves and meant we could get advice on our mortgage as well as other parts of the buying process. When we had any questions, we could ask our broker who was particularly helpful through the process. Initially, we used the broker to give us an idea of what we could borrow and therefore an idea of the type of properties and areas we could look at. Brokers can access special rates and know the industry better than most first time buyers, so working with them means you can adapt offers on properties accordingly. For instance, we flirted with the idea of a 35 year mortgage to give us more spending power and the broker was able to find us a mortgage to cover what we wanted to borrow based on our salaries. If anyone would like a recommendation of a good broker, do get in touch; our broker runs a referral draw to get both of our mortgages paid for six months (up to £1,000) if we win!

After speaking to our broker, he worked out what we could borrow and advised us on what we could afford to offer on properties. This gave us the upper limit on the price when running online searches. I also signed us up to estate agents in person to build up a rapport and be the first to know about new properties. More on estate agents next time!

Image | Jesse Vermeulen via Unsplash.com