You will first need to register with us either by calling, or visiting one of our local offices. Here, one of our friendly staff will discuss with you, your property needs. Alternatively, should you prefer, you can also register online.

Once we have understood exactly what your requirements are, we will offer you a selection of suitable properties matching your criteria that you may wish to view. REMEMBER - an early viewing is crucial if you are to secure the best property.

Getting sound advice on your Mortgage and Finance options as early as possible is crucial. Without this information you could be looking for property that is not affordable to you, or indeed, you may be able to afford a larger property than you first thought.

Delay in getting a mortgage agreement in principle can sometimes result in losing the property you want to a buyer who already has theirs in place, while you organise your finances.

Our Mortgage Advisors, Lifetime Financial Management, have access to every mortgage on the market and can search the entire market to find you the best mortgage deals and rates.

Do you know what your moving costs will be? Our staff will be able to give you estimates for Stamp Duty, Solicitors conveyancing fees, Removal companies costs and so on.

Once you have selected which properties are of interest to you, simply contact our local office who will then arrange a convenient time for you to have a viewing. Our branches are open 7 days a week - 9am to 7pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 5.30pm Saturdays and 10am to 1pm on Sundays. Subject to prior arrangement, we can also accompany you to various suitable properties and if you are new to the area, point out local facilities and transport connections.

So you've seen the home of your dreams, what do you do next?

Contact our local office without delay. Our staff will be able to discuss the property with you and advise you what amount of offer to make depending on the vendors circumstances. Subject to contract, we will then forward this offer to the seller, both verbally and in writing and advise you of the outcome. Should your offer not be acceptable, our staff will endeavour to negotiate a selling price that both you and the seller are happy with.

It is highly recommended that you instruct a solicitor to handle the legal aspect of your purchase (conveyancing). Preferably a specialist in this field and a firm that is familiar with the area you are moving to. We will be happy to recommend some reputable local firms.

Once your offer has been accepted you now have a sale agreed. The first things you will need to do are;

1. Contact your solicitor to instruct them, giving details of your purchase. They will then write to you requesting any further information they may need. We will also write to both seller and yourself and both parties solicitors confirming the details of the sale.
2. Contact your mortgage provider to advise them of your purchase. They will then complete your application and arrange a survey. If you have any expected deadlines to meet such as to exchange contracts or complete by a certain date, you should make them aware of this as early as possible. We can arrange for a mortgage advisor to meet you in our office if required.
3. If you are also selling a property, you should notify your buyer or agent of your purchase and any timescales involved.

Once a sale is agreed the sellers' solicitor will draw up a draft contract for your solicitor to review. In turn they will respond with any questions they may have or areas that require clarification - these are known as preliminary enquiries. Your solicitor will also submit any searches that are required, should these not be included in the Home Information Pack (HIP).

Having submitted your mortgage application along with your survey fee. Your lender will instruct a surveyor to contact us to undertake a survey of the property in order to highlight any possible issues and to ascertain the property's value for mortgage purposes.

Once your solicitor is satisfied that all their enquiries have been answered and all searches have been received, they will then approve the draft contract. In the meantime, a copy of your mortgage offer will have been sent to your solicitor. They will check and sign it and return to your mortgage lender.

Once all parties have a agreed a moving date, you are now ready to Exchange Contracts. This is when the seller and purchaser will be asked by their respective solicitors to sign the contract. At this point a deposit (typically 10% of the purchase price) is paid by the buyer, via their solicitor, to the sellers' solicitor and a completion date is then set.

Once contracts have been exchanged, both parties are legally committed to proceed.

Completion day can be any given day once contracts have been exchanged and would have been agreed with all parties at that time. Physical completion happens when the balance of monies is transferred to the sellers' solicitor. This is usually done by bank transfer and as this can happen at any time during the completion day, it is advisable to check with us to confirm when this has occurred. Only when this happens does the property legally become yours and we can release the keys to you.

Congratulations, you are now the legal owner of your new home!

Remember the Golden Rule
If in doubt ask!

OUR STAFF ARE HERE TO HELP AND ALWAYS CONTACTABLE TO OFFER ANY ASSISTANCE YOU MAY REQUIRE.