Buying a House
- Thread starter AeryFairy
- Start date
We went to look at two terraced houses recently, both 2 bedrooms with their own gardens, and not far from where we live currently. One was very run-down and seemed to require a good bit of work, plus the neighborhood seemed a bit questionable. On top of that they were asking for £215k for it. The other one was very nice in a very nice neighborhood, with the only obvious downsides that it was a bit small and they were asking crazy money for it. It did have a lot of built-in storage space, though.
I was planning to possibly make a low bid for the nice one, but was in a no mobile service area yesterday, and in the meantime they had apparently already accepted an offer.
Meanwhile, the whole process is wearing us out a bit.
I was planning to possibly make a low bid for the nice one, but was in a no mobile service area yesterday, and in the meantime they had apparently already accepted an offer.
Meanwhile, the whole process is wearing us out a bit.
OP
OP
Meanwhile, the whole process is wearing us out a bit.
Ditto
every house we've liked has been snapped up within days of it going on the market. It's exhausting. We're hoping spring will bring more property options (apparently people tend to sell when the weather gets warmer). We're also revisiting the option of new-build - there's a development nearby which is in a perfect location for us, at good prices.We went to the bank today and got a mortgage certificate, though. We wouldn't be using the bank for the mortgage, but it was an easy way to see how much we can borrow, and what repayments we can expect with medium-high interest rates. Plus it puts us in a better buying position.
ledboots
Peace
Is this in England? It is worrying when prices go up fast and it is a sellers market. We had that here, and in 2007ish my house went from being worth $150k to $250k in one year. Then back to $125k with no buyers by 2008.
OP
OP
Oh! It's just a piece of paper which says how much you can theoretically borrow. They're usually valid for 1-3 months, based on a more basic version of an actual mortgage application calculation. Estate agents and sellers like them because it's kind of like being pre-approved for a certain amount of mortgage, so it's less likely that there will be any issues putting the sale through.
You don't have to stick with the company that gives you the certificate, either. So we just went to the bank which holds our joint account (barclays) with proof of our incomes, and that was that.
You just have to be careful that they don't run a credit check each time they issue a certificate - too many credit checks can damage even a perfect credit history, and if you don't find somewhere before the certificate expires you may need it to be reissued. Can't speak for other mortgage lenders, but barclays didn't run a check at all before issuing the certificate. They only do that once you apply for the actual mortgage (as all lenders do).
Anyway, possibly something worth doing - it definitely helped us!
Sounds like what we call a mortgage commitment letter. They are usually good for thirty days. The people who are buying my daughter's house had a commitment letter but it expired so they had to renew and postpone the closing for three weeks. Turns out to be a good thing because they didn't have much time to pack up the house and find a rental property and now she gets to host Easter dinner, hahaha.
My neighbour had the open-house and I looked at the photos online and their house is exactly like ours but obviously had a lot more money spent on it and it looks really lovely. They had about 5 lots of people turn up to have a look but there is no offer at the moment.
You will definitely get taken more seriously if you have a mortgage offer to show the estate agents.
They had about 5 lots of people turn up to have a look but there is no offer at the moment.You will definitely get taken more seriously if you have a mortgage offer to show the estate agents.
Looks like the mortgage certificate is the same as a Decision In Principle, which is something I have heard about, and even was about to apply for at one point. Apparently, I can apply for it online from our building society.
Yes, it's called a Mortgage in Principle, or Agreement in Principle sometimes. I've read that the EA won't even consider your offer on a property if you don't have one in place. It's true what AeryFairy said about the credit check so that is something else to consider.
Rightmove - Error
Sometimes the mortgage calculators are different to what a bank will offer you depending on your credit history. When we were first time buyers we were offered a mortgage from a bank and then they withdrew their offer as we were proceeding with the house we wanted so we had to go and get another mortgage. The new bank offered us less and I think it was a higher rate of interest (it was over 5% interest which seems really high now!) so we had to build up a larger deposit. It was so stressful.
Luckily the people we were buying from were patient and they wanted us as we were first time buyers so there wasn't a chain.
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We have a couple of viewings tomorrow and Saturday. I was starting to feel hopeful about one of these houses, but now Jen said there were 7 others coming to the viewing of this house
I still haven't sorted out the mortgage certificate ... but definitely will now.
I still haven't sorted out the mortgage certificate ... but definitely will now.
Does anyone know about roofs, roof materials, life spans and costs?
In other news, I now have a decision in principle a.k.a. mortgage certificate!
Yesterday and Friday we viewed 3 houses ...The short story is that two of them are probably going to end up outside our price range, whereas the third one is promising, and with more green space. It's a terraced house with 3 bedrooms. One problem is that the location is such that to get to work I would have to first go on my bike, and then catch a bus. Also, the next-door neighbours looked dodgy.
However, we have found another one online which is our favourite! It's even cheaper, it's semi-detached, it's 3 bedrooms, and close to a bus route to work. Also very close to a Montessori school, which would work out well for little miss Summer. Also, there is a vegetarian pub in the town! We only saw it yesterday evening, so haven't arranged a viewing yet. I really hope this one works out ...
In other news, I now have a decision in principle a.k.a. mortgage certificate!
Yesterday and Friday we viewed 3 houses ...The short story is that two of them are probably going to end up outside our price range, whereas the third one is promising, and with more green space. It's a terraced house with 3 bedrooms. One problem is that the location is such that to get to work I would have to first go on my bike, and then catch a bus. Also, the next-door neighbours looked dodgy.
However, we have found another one online which is our favourite! It's even cheaper, it's semi-detached, it's 3 bedrooms, and close to a bus route to work. Also very close to a Montessori school, which would work out well for little miss Summer. Also, there is a vegetarian pub in the town! We only saw it yesterday evening, so haven't arranged a viewing yet. I really hope this one works out ...
ledboots
Peace
We now have an appointment to see the "dream house" tomorrow
It seems to be a wood house, though. Where I'm from, wood houses are the norm, so that's fine to me. Around here though basically all houses are made from bricks. I wonder how wood should compare to bricks in price. Any thoughts?
It seems to be a wood house, though. Where I'm from, wood houses are the norm, so that's fine to me. Around here though basically all houses are made from bricks. I wonder how wood should compare to bricks in price. Any thoughts?
Ann Chovie
Ploughing my own furrow
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2013
- Reaction score
- 417
I was in a position to contemplate buying a wooden house a few years ago IS but was heavily discouraged to do so by anyone and everyone I discussed it with due to potential issues with insurance and re-sale value?
Hmm, I wonder why the insurance would be an issue. Is it because they think it could catch on fire more easily? Water damage?
It seems it's only the first floor that is wood. The ground floor is concrete, I think. And the next-door house (it's a semi-detached) is all concrete, I think.
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I think with some non standard construction houses it can be harder to get a mortgage, or some can only be bought by cash buyers.
We've always lived in wood-type houses until this one, which is stucco. It may be different in Europe, but we've never had a problem selling here. And wood houses are much easier to remodel than brick. Still, I can see where a brick or stone house might be considered somewhat nicer than a house with wood siding by some.
