What do you wish you'd known as a 1st time buyer?

DD265

I appreciate that things change etc but what do you know now about home buying/ownership that you wish you knew when you bought your first home?

It looks like we might be about to start on the journey so I'm reading all sorts but there are probably things we haven't considered looking into yet.

Trixsie1989

How important it is to really scope out the area before you commit, we love the house we are buying and the area but it's taken a lot of research to make sure it is somewhere we are wanting to stay

Also, don't just go with the solicitor/conveyancer either the bank/estate agents/broker recommends, research for yourself you will have to deal with these people a lot over the course of the process so you need to be comfortable with them.

Davesnave

I wish I'd known which house I would buy second time around. It's style wasn't then on-trend, so it was a relatively cheap buy and I could have skipped house 1 altogether with just another year of saving

It was directly behind the first house, but in a different league for flexibility and space.

In other words, I identified the pleasant, convenient, up-coming area, but I should have saved a year longer before jumping-in.

Today, that probably translates into avoiding one bed studio flats and similar, if at all possible.

sal_III

One more voice for scoping of the area. As a FTB I would suggest you go rent for 6 months in the area, before you buy. This has the added bonus of allowing you to keep an eye on properties for sale maybe even grabbing one before it goes to EA.

Allows for practical test of commute times both reliability of the public transport links and the traffic.

Also makes it easier for multiple visits at different times of day/night to check for NFH.

If you plan to keep the property long term and not yet have kids, it's a good idea to check the local schools. Even if you end up selling before you have school age kids, having a good school nearby makes the property much more attractive and easier to sell.

walwyn1978

New builds (especially new build flats) lack soundproofing. Mrs Walwyn1978 and I both grew up in older houses so hadn't taken this into account when we bought our first flat.

+1 for using your own conveyancer not their in house one.

davidwood681

walwyn1978 wrote: »

New builds (especially new build flats) lack soundproofing. Mrs Walwyn1978 and I both grew up in older houses so hadn't taken this into account when we bought our first flat.

+1 for using your own conveyancer not their in house one.

Had a few complaints have you? :rotfl:

sal_III

walwyn1978 wrote: »

New builds (especially new build flats) lack soundproofing. Mrs Walwyn1978 and I both grew up in older houses so hadn't taken this into account when we bought our first flat.

+1 for using your own conveyancer not their in house one.

My experience from the last 6 years, between 3 flats (completed 2007, 2015, 2016) is the exact opposite. Couldn't hear a squeak from the neighbours in any of them. In all 3 there were babies and kids next door, so it's not like they were actually quiet neighbours. Similarly we have 2 kids and it gets quite noisy sometimes, but haven't had a single noise complaint from neighbours.

Definitely don't use the developer solicitor.

Owain_Moneysaver

That getting building materials delivered would be so difficult, if you buy anywhere that doesn't have a garden with kerbside access.

(Like a top floor flat.)

moneyistooshorttomention

How long I'd get stuck in my FTB house.

Of myself - I think I did about the "best I could". But I bought that house only with the intention of staying for literally a few years and then "moving up the ladder". If I'd known just how long I would end up staying in it in the event - I might have thought on - but houseprices were doing their usual thing for my home city (ie rising fast) so it was a problematic situation.

What I'm thankful about, on the other hand, is that I was a bit cautious just-in-case I got landed with having to stay there longer than my "Plan" dictated if "something went wrong". With that - I stretched and stretched and stretched again - to get an FTB house (ie 2 bedrooms and it being a house). As what I could actually afford was a one bedroom flat. But I was conscious that it would be harder to be "stuck" in a one bedroom flat, rather than a 2 bedroom house if things went wrong. So - thank goodness I did think like that - with the way they did go wrong in the event and I did get "stuck".

Callie22

How important it is to thoroughly research the area, particularly if things like aspect and view are particularly important to you. If you don't know the area, do a bit of searching on the local paper's website to see if there are any possible developments proposed for the vicinity, and what they might be (i.e. commercial or residential). Joining a local Facebook group can be helpful too, if there is one. Don't assume that searches will cover things like that, and also don't assume that sellers are telling the truth when they say they don't know of any local developments (in fact, don't assume that the sellers are telling the truth about anything ... ) Also, save some money because something probably will go wrong shortly after you move in - new boilers aren't cheap

Also, I would personally say that you should stop listening to anyone who tells you to find your 'dream home' or your 'forever home' as the chances are your dream home is nothing at all like your 'real budget'. Be sensible, rather than romantic. Accept that you are probably going to have to compromise on something, whether that's location or things about the house itself. It's sensible to think about the things that you really can't compromise on and start from there, rather than going into house searching thinking that you're going to find the perfect property, in the perfect place, at the perfect price. Having said that though, don't go into it with the same 'oh it'll do' mindset as renting - remember that you are buying, you can't leave in six months if you hate it (well you can but it'll cost you) so do take some time to really think about the house you're buying. Don't get pulled into the games that estate agents play, and don't get too emotionally attached to any potential purchases.

jennhg88

I wish I had appreciated how relatively easy it was to be a FTB and not have a whole chain behind you !!!55357;!!!56834;