Buying a house is a huge life event. If you’re a first-time buyer, then it’s a huge milestone, but even if you’re not – it’s still a big deal. In fact, you’re unlikely to own anything more expensive than your house (unless you’re incredibly lucky).
Whether you’re getting your feet on the property ladder, or moving on to another property, you can still learn from this article. There are some essential things everyone should do when buying a house.
1. Get a thorough survey done
Nobody wants to buy a money pit, but plenty of people have without realising. My parents once bought a house that seemed like their dream home, but once they’ve moved in, they needed something fixing every month – from repointing the chimney, to replacing the roof and even the boiler! Of course, this was a time before surveys were so common, but I’m convinced all of the issues would have been picked up if a survey had been done.
There are different types of survey you can have on a property, and some are more in-depth than others. A basic, cheap survey won’t pick up as many things as a mid-level one (which is the most popular choice). If you’re planning on buying your forever home and don’t want to be out of pocket on maintenance, then it’s much better to get a very thorough survey done to make sure nothing is missed. While some experts say it’s not always necessary if the building is under 50 years old and appears in good condition, I personally think you can’t be too careful!
2. Get home buyer’s protection insurance
This type of insurance isn’t as common as say build and contents insurance, but it’s still important to look into. Home buyers protection insurance helps protect the cost of your house falling through. With the property market as it is, there’s a big risk of people pulling out of sales or just changing their mind. If you’re in a chain, there’s more chance of the chain breaking and sales falling through.
The biggest issue with a sale falling through is that you can lose a lot of money. With average cost of a property sale falling through being in the region of £2500, that’s the kind of money you can’t afford to lose! It’s much better to purchase some affordable insurance that feel the full cost of the loss if things go awry.
3. Use professional movers
Using professional movers is one of the things I’m always banging on about. I know it’s much cheaper to hire a van to drive yourself, but when you put your back out and can’t figure out how to get the sofa through the front door, you’ll be regretting you decision.
When I’m referring to professional mover, I do mean mean professional too. Check out their website, do they have insurance? Are there any reviews – good or bad? Has anyone you know used them?
While you might be tempted to hire a ‘man with a van’ moving option to save a few pounds, you really have no idea how good they’ll be, if they’re insured, or if they’re up to the job. Saving a few pounds on the movers won’t be worth it if they break your telly and lose half your belongings.
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