House Hunting Tips
25/08/2023
(Last Updated: 18/09/2023)
20
11 min read
Key Takeaways
- Finding the perfect house is all about knowing your priorities and order of compromise.
- Making a winning offer starts before you even start house hunting, with your mortgage in principle.
- If you're struggling with serious competition, you may be able to catch a property before it comes on the market.
House hunting is an exciting time! You're ready to move on to the next chapter of your life and start visualising yourself in a new space. In the ever-evolving housing market of 2023, you've got fluctuating prices, changing trends and unpredictable mortgage rates to contend with, so finding your dream home takes extra planning and strategy.
In this article, we'll give our top insider tips to prepare for house hunting, during the hunt, and for what to do once you've found your ideal home.
House hunting tips to get prepared
- 1
Get Mortgage in Principle (MIP)
- 2
Set a realistic budget
- 3
Include properties 5-10% over budget in your search
- 4
Work out your priorities
- 5
Register your interest with multiple agents
- 6
Instruct your solicitor
House hunting tips for choosing viewings
- 7
Prioritise location
- 8
Open your mind to potential
- 9
Attend viewings
- How long has the house been on the market?
- How many viewings/offers has it had?
- When was it last rewired/When was the boiler last replaced?
- Why are the owners moving? How quickly do they want to sell? Is there a chain?
- Are there any problems with subsidence? damp? neighbours?
- 10
Factor in hidden costs
- Is there moisture between the panes of glass in the double glazing? Heating costs will be higher until someone reglazes the windows
- Is there a draft around chimneys, doors or skirting? This may indicate poor insulation and higher heating costs or remedial costs
- Is the house finished in high maintenance materials? You may be saddled with expensive ongoing upkeep
House hunting tips for when you find the perfect property
- 11
Be realistic about maintenance
- 12
Make a winning offer
- 13
Don't skip the survey and searches
- 14
Don't stop looking until you exchange on your property.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Written by:
Caragh Bailey
Caragh is an excellent writer in her own right as well as an accomplished copy editor for both fiction and non-fiction books, news articles and editorials. She has written extensively for SAM for a variety of conveyancing, survey and mortgage related articles.
Reviewed by:
Andrew Boast
Andrew started his career in 2000 working within conveyancing solicitor firms and grew hands-on knowledge of a wide variety of conveyancing challenges and solutions. After helping in excess of 50,000 clients in his career, he uses all this experience within his article writing for SAM, mainstream media and his self published book How to Buy a House Without Killing Anyone.