Whether you're thinking this year will be the year you get your hands on your first home or you simply have it in the pipeline, make sure to ask yourself some key questions before you make any big decisions. Buying a home is likely the biggest purchase you will ever make and making sure you're ready and are making all the decisions that fit you is an essential component to ensuring everything goes smoothly. So wherever you're up to make sure to plan effectively and you could be well on your way to buying your first home even sooner than you may expect.
Saving
This might seem like an obvious one but if you can get to grips with saving for a deposit you've got the hard part out of the way. With many banks allowing you to set up a help yo buy ISA that will give you an extra 25% on top of whatever you save, making sure you shop around for a decent bank to save with is an essential. Online banks are also a great way to track your saving with banks like Starling and Monzo offering breakdowns of your monthly outgoings that can help you identify where you might be able to save more. Setting up direct debits into your savings account is a great place to start to get you on the move and if you can save consistently for the next 12 months just think of how soon you might be able to put down that deposit, even if it means cutting back on takeaways.
Deciding where you want to live
This is a super important one especially if you want to move near a city or even move to London. There are lots of components to consider when deciding where to live whether you want to live close to your family, close to work or you want to relocate to somewhere more rural. House prices differ dramatically from region to region so you might want to think about how this is going to affect your budget. A move to the South East is often going to be a bit pricier than a move to the North West so make sure you plan accordingly when it comes to your savings and in line with the region you're looking to live.
First-Time Buyer Schemes
As a first time buyer you certainly want to know what's out there that could help you get on the property ladder. One government scheme you want to keep your eye on is help to buy. With a 5% deposit and a 20% equity loan that has no interest for 5 years this scheme is a great way to get on the property ladder with less stress. This loan also increases to 40% if you're looking to move to London and can really save you if you're struggling to get a mortgage with the house prices in the capital. Sites like connectwithhome.co.uk have plenty of advice on help to buy and showcase a range of homes from Brighton to Leeds so wherever you'd like to live, help to buy could help you out.
Shared Ownership also has some great benefits, as instead of buying the property outright, you buy a share in the property and pay a small rent on the rest. With a smaller share, the less deposit you will have to put down so it can certainly help if you want to get on the property ladder sooner rather than later. And with shared ownership homes in some idyllic suburban neighbourhoods available including shared ownership in Surbiton, there's lots of homes to choose from and plenty of browsing to be had!
