Buying a Home – How Long Does It Take?

According to a poll of 2,000 homeowners it takes buyers more than six months to purchase a home. The research, carried out by virtual tour technology provider Matterport, looks at the average time it takes to buy a house from browsing, to viewing, making an offer, exchanging and completing. On average the process takes 6 months and 24 days.

Here Keats provide some advice to help the process run as smoothly and efficiently as possible:

Prepare: The best advice that can be given to any buyer is to do your prep before you start booking viewings and making offers.

Consider Your Finances: Speak to as many financial sources as you can to get sound advice about how much you can borrow and what it will cost. Always have an Advance in Principle (AIP) in place before you go house hunting.

Stamp Duty: Calculate the amount of stamp duty you will need to pay. So many buyers forget this and find they have a large unaccounted-for hole in their deposit funds.

Solicitors: Research local solicitors and find the best one for you before you make an offer. Ask friends for recommendations and read client reviews. A proactive solicitor can shave weeks off the time it takes to work from offer to exchange.

Keep A Check: Although your solicitor and the seller’s estate agent should keep you up to date it’s worth making regular calls yourself and keeping careful notes for reference. H M Land Registry has a new official search site access through the .gov.uk portal where you can check all planning applications and developments associated with a property for free or a for a cost of £15.00 if you require a printed copy of the report. This will save you time waiting for your solicitor to report to you with the results of the official searches. Sadly it isn’t currently available for the entire UK but this should be in place fairly soon.

Rental Agreement: If you are renting a home at the moment check that your landlord will allow you to stay on at your current home on a month by month basis, or even on a weekly basis if you’re really lucky. If your transaction over runs finding yourself homeless before you complete could cause you additional expense and stress.

If you would like to register your interest in buying a home in Haslemere, Liphook or one of the surrounding villages, please contact us on 01428 661622.