Selling to buy!

misters_2 · 11 October 2004 at 12:05AM

Hi my sister wants to purchase a house she seen advertised, what she wants to know is does she put an offer in before selling her own home and if the offer is accepted then what would she do in the meantime while she is waiting for her house to sell.

Also will the bank/building society give her a new mortgage while she is waiting to sell her house?

The other thing is she currently has a interest only mortgage at the moment but for this new house she would like a repayment mortgage.

She lives in Scotland, i think the laws differ a bit about purchasing a house not sure maybe someone can confirm this.
Thanx.

fraser · 11 October 2004 at 1:20AM

it is usually best to sell before you go looking as houses come and go, as do buyers when you are trying to sell !

you can make an offer but you'll find the estate agent and the seller will value your offer less as you have yet to sell, selling can be a long and drawn out process... put yourself in the shoes of the seller, they want the quickest and most reliable sale coupled with the best price possible, they will have another house to go to so the chain mustn't break if they are to get the house they want.

it will also reduce your negotiation opportunity as you would be able to call the shots better with a house sold and the money in the bank virtually!

you can get a 2nd mortagage but your sis will find it awkward and gthe interest rates offered will not be very good...

assuming she is able to afford a repayment mortgage you can switch to one as a remortgage or as you are currently proposing with the purchase of a new home - i.e. settle the interest only one and with a new repayment mortgage from the new lender

best to sell first, get that in the bag, get a mortgage in principle from the new lender and then start searching, this willl allow you to be in a stronger deal making postion.

Robert_Sterling_3 · 11 October 2004 at 1:38AM

They do things differently in Scotland so tread carefully.

misters_2 · 12 October 2004 at 12:13AM

Thanks for the info fraser, so what your basically saying is sell and then buy.
That sounds ok but say the purchase of the new house falls through and ,my sis has nowhere to stay while waiting to buy a house.

P.S And Robert i know they do things differently here in Scotland, but could you explain what? ???

terrierlady · 12 October 2004 at 10:52AM

First show interest via the solicitor, offers usally take the form of sealed bids placed with solicitors, the price of a home is usally only an indication and some go for around 10% more than the advertized price. once the offer is accepted its legally binding ,unlike in England.
You must therefor have funds in place to complete the purchase, go to an independant mortgage advisor and seek help, try not to borrow up to your limit as markets change and with interest rising you could be in trouble.
New Homes usally have a waiting list and they sell very quickly as per another thread on this topic on here.
Seek advice Before you proceed, from either local agents, solicitors or mortgage people to be sure of the correct facts.

yonk · 13 October 2004 at 8:16PM

It's normal to see a solicitor first - they can help you value a property and decide how and what to bid. They don't charge until you get a property and can do multiple bids until you are successful.

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Selling to buy!

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