Buying a home in England, Wales or Northern Ireland
Buying a home in England, Wales or Northern Ireland
Your step by step guide to getting on the ladder
Buying your first home is an exciting – but a daunting task. In this simple step-by-step guide we’ll break down every stage, so you know exactly where you stand and what you need to do. If you already understand the process, why not check out our current mortgage range? There are different procedures for buying a home in different parts of the United Kingdom.
1. Set out your budget
Before you start searching for the perfect place, it’s important you know what size mortgage you can afford. Use our how much can I borrow?' calculator to see how much we could lend you. Of course, you may not want to borrow the full amount.
2. Check out your mortgage options
There are a number of mortgage and repayment options available for first time buyers. You can browse the options here, call us on 0800 023 2761 or make an appointment with one of our Branch Mortgage Advisers. You can also find your nearest branch by clicking on Branch Finder.
Once you’ve chosen your option, we can give you a Mortgage Certificate showing what we’re prepared to lend you subject to some checks such as affordability. This is useful when dealing with estate agents and sellers because it shows you are a serious purchaser.
3. Make an offer
You’ve found the place that’s right for you, and it’s in your price range. You then make an offer to purchase. Formal offers are normally made in writing by a solicitor or licensed conveyancer acting on your behalf, so you will need to appoint one before, or as soon as, you find a house you would like to buy.
4. Appoint a solicitor or licensed conveyancer
If you don’t already have a solicitor or licensed conveyancer, we can help you find one. We can refer you to a network of legal advisers who will charge a fixed fee with a no completion, no fee guarantee. Speak to one of our advisers to find out more about this service. If you appoint a different solicitor don't forget to ask for a breakdown of proposed costs.
5. Your offer is accepted
If your offer has been accepted, the home you want to buy is said to be 'sold subject to contract'. You may be asked to pay a small deposit as a gesture of good faith, but at this stage the agreement is not legally binding.
6. Sort out your mortgage, protection and insurance
Once your offer to buy has been accepted, you need to let us know so we can make sure your mortgage, protection and insurance applications are completed. Call in to your local branch or phone us on 0800 023 2761.
7. Get a property survey and valuation
As your mortgage lender, we will require a basic Valuation for Mortgage Purposes. You may want to have a more detailed Home Buyer survey or a full structural survey carried out for your own peace of mind – especially if the property is old or needs some work.
8. Exchange contracts
When your solicitor or licensed conveyancer has completed all the necessary checks, you'll be asked to sign a contract legally committing you to the purchase.
At this stage you'll also pay a deposit and agree a completion date. The deposit is usually a minimum of 5% of your property's purchase price. On average, you will have between two and four weeks before you can move in, so this is a good time to tell friends and colleagues, arrange insurance, contact the local authority, and make arrangements with utility companies.
And don’t forget, you’ll need buildings insurance in place from the date of exchange of contracts.
9. Paying the loan cheque
Your solicitor or licensed conveyancer will get the loan cheque or telegraphic transfer from Santander ready to pay the seller.
At this point you may be required to pay your solicitor or licensed conveyancer for their work and for extra expenses like Stamp Duty1 and the Land Registry Fee2 .
10. Completion
Congratulations, it’s the day you move into your new home. Your solicitor or licensed conveyancer will complete the purchase, then you can collect the keys and move in.
1 Stamp duty is payable on all properties purchased for more than £175,000. Please ask your solicitor or licensed conveyancer for details.
2 The Land Registry Fee covers the cost of registering the change of property ownership at the Land Registry (or the Registers of Scotland). These costs vary according to the price of the property.
Your step by step guide to getting on the ladder
Buying your first home is an exciting – but a daunting task. In this simple step-by-step guide we’ll break down every stage, so you know exactly where you stand and what you need to do. If you already understand the process, why not check out our current mortgage range?
1. Set out your budget
Before you start searching for that perfect place, it’s important you know what size mortgage you can afford. Use our 'how much can I borrow?' calculator to see how much we could lend you . Of course, you may not want to borrow the full amount.
2. Check out your mortgage options
There are a number of mortgage and repayment options available for first time buyers. You can browse the options here, call us on 0800 023 2761 or make an appointment with one of our Branch Mortgage Advisers. You can also find your nearest branch by clicking on Branch Finder.
Once you’ve chosen your option, we can give you a Mortgage Certificate showing that we’ve agreed to lend you the money in principle. This is useful when dealing with estate agents and sellers because it shows you are a serious purchaser.
3. You will need to appoint a solicitor to act on your behalf .
4. The offer process
You’ve found the place that’s right for you, and it’s in your price range. What happens next?
You need to complete a mortgage application and obtain a valuation or survey report before making an offer. This is because as soon as your offer is accepted you are committed to a binding contract. Offers are normally made in writing by a solicitor acting on your behalf – so you will need to appoint one before, or as soon as, you find a house you wish to buy.
You will be asked to state a completion or 'entry' date in your offer.
Unlike in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, missives (equivalent to the exchange of contracts) are carried out at an earlier stage in the process, and the full price is paid at completion or 'settlement’.
This is also the time to complete your applications for protection and insurance.
5. Completion
After a binding contract has been agreed, called ‘concluding Missives’, your solicitor will complete the conveyancing procedures and prepare the documents to transfer ownership of the house to you. The contract or Missives will specify the date of entry to the property. This is the date on which you will have to pay the seller the purchase price of the property in return for the Disposition (the transfer documentation) and the keys to the property. Your solicitor will make all the arrangements for settling the transaction on the date of entry and for completing the mortgage at the same time. This is called ‘completion’ of the purchase.
YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE.
AER stands for Annual Equivalent Rate and shows what the interest rate would be if we paid interest and added it to your account each year. The tax free rate is the rate of interest payable where interest is exempt from income tax. The favourable treatment of ISAs may change in the future.
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