Self-build mortgages...

karukai

Anybody know anything about mortgages for a self-build?

Are there any advantages to building your own home?

Me and my wife haven't owned a house yet - would this set us back at all?

Thanks

plane_boy2000

Its a fantastic thing to do! We would have loved to have done it, but could not find land at the time plus we now have small children so no time for it.

Quite a few lenders will finance self build with stage payments.

Advantages are that you get the house you want to your spec on day one plus teh feeling of satisfaction thats its your house and not somebody elses idea of what your house should be.

Should also give you some quick equity - in most cases the house is worth more that the build and land cost.

Not sure where you are but there is a self build show in a couple of weeks in Exeter.

Llyllyll

Just going to watch Dalziel & pascoe and will post back :cheesy:.

I'm very, very interested in this myself and would love to hear from others who have already done it or who are thinking about it.

I have some info that I've already gathered and will include it in my next post.

polarbearit

Finding land is the biggy, we've been looking on and off for 4 years, been to auctions and not yet bought, but if you are flexible about locations, practicle etc then it is a brilliant way of buying the house you might want for a lower cost. To get a sensible rate/avoid fees you usually need a big deposit or to own the land outright. Occasionally I've bought homebuilding & renovating or Build it Magazine which have details and free ticket offers for the shows.

karukai

At the moment we shouldn't even be thinking about it - we still debts to pay off and a deposit to save - but we're keen to find out as much as we can about the process.
I've had a little look around at plots for sale online and found a few large cheap ones straight away that looked ideal, so hopefully when we are ready that part shouldn't be too hard!

It all just seems a lot more daunting than buying a house the 'normal' way...
You've got arcitects to design and plan your house, someone to actually build it, planning permission to arrange, services to connect...
I mean, where would you start?

xzibit

It's not as complicated as you think. Being an architect, I was seriously considering this route too, as have not yet owned a house. The only trouble is, as stated, finding the land in the first place!!

Llyllyll

If you've found large cheap plots already then I'd say that's a major part of the job done. As others have already mentioned, getting the right piece of land (or here in S Wales any piece of land!) for the right price is extremely difficult.

All I've done for now is buy a couple of self build magazines and browse a few websites. There's plenty to choose from but I find http://www.buildstore.co.uk/ to be quite good.

There are also a few exhibitions coming up (see here for details (and I'm sure there are others as well)).

One area that I'm unsure of at the moment is the level of deposit required for a self build mortgage. I have also posted for Advice re overpayments or savings and have had some useful responses, however I do not want to make overpayments on my current mortgage if I am going to need a substantial deposit for the SB one in a few years.

I have now discovered that the level of deposit can vary greatly. Some lenders will only offer maximum loan to value on a self build mortgage of 75% (both land and costs) and some will go up 100%. As with normal mortgages though, I would have thought that the more you can fork out up front the better it will be for your remaining mortgage (if you need one at all in the end!)

j4jennifer

Does anyone know of a building society who work in a similar way to builstore for a morgage for a self build. From the info I have buildstore seem to be the best. Am interested to know how others have financed and funded a self build project

SoScrooge

Hi all

Let's keep this thread going!

I heard that when you build your house, you also save 20-30% of a what-would-be the asking price as this is the usual developers' margin.


A few people mentioned here that the major thing is to buy a plot. Has anybody come across websites that offer free info on plots for sale?

All the sites I have been to are offering a subscription in the range from £40 to £100. Where do these websites get their leads from, I wonder? :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: I am a cheapskate, you know.. and a scrooge! I hear someone shouting 'MISER'



Anyway, I would like to have a house like.... when you come home and every time you are getting your keys out you think: DO I REALLY LIVE HERE, WOW!!!!!!!. and when you get in, you look out of the window and think: Gosh, I will be glad to die here...

Not too much to ask for, me thinks.


We currently live in a studio flat in SE London, I have about £7.5K of debts I am planning to clear by Jun 2007:T :T Equity on my tiny weeny flat could be in the range of £50K, mortgage outstanding is also about £50K.

Maybe I am not in the best position to do it now.... BUT I heard that humans can be really determined when they want something....;)

SoScrooge

Found a few books on the subject



1. The Housebuilder's Bible Millennium Edition (Paperback)
by Mark Brinkley

2. Building Your Own Home (Hardcover)
by Murray Armor (Author), David Snell (Editor)

3. Dream Home Plans: Over 300 New Home Plans and How to Make Your Choice (Paperback)
by Murray Armor, David Snell


4. 124 Distinctive House Designs (Paperback)
by National Building Publications

I am off to library tomorrow. Me buy? :rolleyes: try not to

whambamboo

find the land first, the prices can be insane.....