Selling first home where to start?!

Aimez

I have read all the MSE articles (this site helped me save and move out of childhood home on my own) but it seems to be about first time buyers or once you have found a house. The guides state sell you house first which is fine I live in a really east to sell first time buyers home is a gem really.  What on earth happens with my existing mortgage? I have no idea how to start this process at all. My mortgage deal runs out in September next year after a 2 year fix as was awful 2 years ago. Can I even move? I have a nice deposit for moving costs and assuming a slight upgrade. I am also worried I want similar to what I have and I may not get that. I am moving as the area is ASBO hell recently (last straw was police ramming a car outside my house and kids throwing bricks at cars!)
Sorry for rambling post I am overwhelmed as doing this on my own again 

p00hsticks

If you have kids throwing bricks at cars outside your home then it doesn't necessarily sound like an 'easy to sell' 'gem' to me, so you may be being a bit over-optimistic. 

You'd have to see if your current lender will let you port your mortgage over to any new property. If not, then your existing mortgage gets paid off from the proceeds of the sale of the current house and you get a new one to buy your next property. When the guide says 'sell your house first' I would imagine it means that you need to put your house on the market first and get an offer made on it before you start seriously looking for a new property. some estate agents won't let you view properties unless you are 'proceedable' - i.e.already have a buyer lined up for your existing property. It's usual to complete the sale of the old one and the purchase of the new on the same day. 

Albermarle

When you buy and sell a house, it normally is coordinated to it happens on the same day- 'Completion'

However it takes a long time to get to that stage, through accepting and making offers, sorting out finance, conveyancing etc.
The more people in the chain of buyers and sellers the more likely it will break down, and you have to start all over again.

p00hsticks

Aimez said:

 I have a nice deposit for moving costs and assuming a slight upgrade.

Don't underestimate how much it will cost (conveyancer, survey, searches, removals, stamp duty etc etc etc ) to sell one property and buy another. You won't get any FTB perks this time round.....you are only going to be able to 'get a slight upgrade' if you've built up enough savings and enough equity in your existing home.

Herzlos

First steps are to start having a clear out now; identify what you don't want to take to the next place and then sort into sell/donate/dump. Unless you're a minimalist the sooner you start this the better. 

Next go and talk to an estate agent and arrange for some valuations. They'll be able to give you a ball park figure it'll sell for and give you advice on what you may need to do to make yours easier to sell. Choose the one you are happiest with and get them to take pictures and sort a listing. 

Whilst that's going on, you should contact your mortgage provider for an idea of how much more you can mortgage, to get an idea of what you can afford to move to, and start looking at houses.

If you keep the same mortgage provider and they let you 'port' the mortgage, then you basically carry it over to the new property as-is, and take out a sub-mortgage for any difference assuming you're getting a more expensive house. It's a bit annoying having 2 sub-mortgages with different rates and deals, but it saves you any early repayment fees.

Aimez

The ASBO stuff is town wide since last 3 years really. This estate is really lovely it's the kids from another estate causing issues. House needs nothing doing to it (new build) and I have added a few big upgrades. I did have it valued in 2023 and then jist didn't go further as life got in the way. 
Yes I am not that stupid of course you dont buy and sell on same day!
I have saved quite a lot not just a couple of grand. But yes I don't know if it enough or what I can afford until I start some process to work this all out hence my questions. So contact mortgage company first then get a new valuation.
First time buyers perks, other than having no chain my side there were no perks. I had to do it on my own buy most basics when I moved in and had to pay stamp duty back then. 
I need an easier to acess outside space for my mental health and I need to move off this estate for my wellbeing so will do what I need to do. 
I am pretty good with stuff I have clear outs quite alot. I have been doing one this week!
Thanks everyone! 

eddddy

Aimez said:

Yes I am not that stupid of course you dont buy and sell on same day!

Actually, you almost always buy and sell on the same day. Or more accurately you complete the purchase and complete the sale on the same day.

For example, if you completed your sale on  4th January, and didn't complete your purchase until 14th January - you would have nowhere to live for 10 days.

Aimez said:

I have no idea how to start this process at all.

1) Ask some local estate agents to do a "market appraisal" of your current house.

In simple terms, they will each say "I believe that I can sell your house for £x". (But bear in mind that might exaggerate a bit, to get your business.)

And ask the estate agents what you should do to make your house more salable (e.g. declutter etc)



2) Ask a mortgage broker how much you can borrow, what the repayments would be etc

Then do a calculation to see how much money you have to buy a new house.

Aimez said:

What on earth happens with my existing mortgage? 

In simple terms, when you sell your current house, you pay back the mortgage.

And then you take out a new mortgage to help you buy the new house.

So maybe your current mortgage has £100k outstanding which you have to pay back, and then maybe you decide to get a new mortgage for £150k. 

Bigphil1474

OP, focus on the selling first. You shouldn't even be going to view properties until yours has the sold sign up. Obviously check out Rightmove and other websites to see what is available, and crunch the numbers as to what you can borrow. We sold our house last year and that was my first involvement in the house buying and selling market completely as I moved into a house that was already owned by my partner. It's a minefield. Don't trust Estate Agents, they lie. Don't trust vendors, they lie, Don't trust buyers, they lie. Don't trust Solicitors, they don't care. Basically it's down to you to do a lot of the legwork and if something seems a bit dodgy, check it out yourself or get it checked by somebody independent. Assume the worst, and hope for the best.

Dustyevsky

Bigphil1474 said:

OP, focus on the selling first. You shouldn't even be going to view properties until yours has the sold sign up. 

Actually, most people should, though not formally. Many people regret not doing sufficient homework on neighbourhoods, and the best way to do that is by visiting them. There are maps, stats, and others' opinion, but there's nothing like your own research, unless the area's already well-known.

This applies generally. I'm not trying to twist your words, just clarifying. When we last sold, the purchaser wasn't even with an agent when they first viewed, so there are exceptions to most 'rules.' 

Bigphil1474

Yes, I meant viewing the actual property. It's wasting the vendors and EA's time. Nothing wrong with visiting the area, although it's still generally a bad idea to look at a particular property in that way as it could be your dream house and end up being sold before you even get to offer.

Discountark91

I completely understand how overwhelming this feels, especially doing it on your own. A good starting point is to speak with your mortgage provider to see what your options are for selling and moving. After that, chatting with a local estate agent can really help you get a sense of the market and what’s realistic for your next home. Taking it step by step makes it much less stressful, and it sounds like you’re already thinking about it carefully, which is a great start.