Buying a house is one of the most exhilarating tasks that one could experience in their lifetime. It involves so many emotions at a single time but is worth the investment in the long term. Although, buying a property is a huge commitment and is not the easiest thing to coordinate without proper planning. In the county of Hertfordshire, there are over 100 suburbs you can call home. The real estate market is expanding progressively in Hertfordshire, and investors across different parts of the world are in the run for purchasing property in this county. It’s easy to get caught up in the process, and if you aren’t careful, it can take a while. Even if the buyers think they know their way around, one should be careful enough to make sure that nothing gets lost along the way. This situation can be managed with the help of Hertfordshire Estate Agents, to guide the buyer throughout the home-buying journey and helps accelerate the entire process.
INITIATING PROPERTY HUNT
The home-buying process begins with searching for the ideal location and property type in Hertfordshire. Many property options are available in this neighbourhood like cottages, detached and semi-detached homes and this process takes the longest time compared to other steps involved in the later phase. It might take about a few weeks to several months to find the perfect home without compromising on the little things.
APPROACHING A LENDER
It is always advisable for new buyers to take the help of expert agents when dealing with property investments. They would help in finding the right lender for your property. Mortgage lenders assess the buyer’s income status before deciding the loan amount. Getting a ‘mortgage in principle’ from the lender is essential as that statement mentions how much they will be able to lend to the buyer.
LIST OF NEGOTIATIONS
After accepting the initial terms posed by the lender, there are more conditions regarding what comes along with the property and the repairs involved in it. All of these concerns are drafted in a document and will be provided within a few weeks to the respective buyer. If these conditions seem fair and acceptable to the buyer, they can move forward with the property deal.
PROPERTY INSPECTIONS
Conducting a final inspection on the property is a necessary step that can take about a week. This will enable the buyer to learn more about the property specs and check whether they meet the conditions drafted by the seller and the lender. Further negotiations and changes can be requested by letting agents in St Albans and Hertfordshire to settle things down, followed by signing the ownership documents.
GETTING MORTGAGE APPROVALS
It takes several weeks to get the mortgage approved by the lender before stepping into the sale deed. The lender runs thorough background checks of the buyer’s financial stability and existing debts to make sure if the buyer is eligible to repay the entire amount and the monthly interest. The terms and conditions vary with property and ownership types.
THE CONTRACT PHASE
Getting the paperwork ready in advance is essential to avoid last-minute errors and make enough time to go through the papers multiple times to meet perfection. The exchange of contract papers between the seller and property buyer will take about two to four weeks to complete after making necessary changes to the contract to suit both parties.
FINAL SEARCHES
The lender will run a few more inspections after the exchange of the main contracts. These inspections are done to check whether the buyer is still financially eligible for handling the mortgage loans and other monthly expenses till the end of the loan term. Along with this, the property status is also checked regularly to verify whether any new changes are included that might affect the mortgage terms.
CLOSING THE DEAL
Once the contracts are exchanged by both parties, the deal can be closed successfully. Although, this process doesn’t end here. Checking on the mortgage lender’s approvals, and how soon the new property owner can occupy their place is an enormous task at hand. Usually, this process takes up to a week or two for everything to settle down gradually in the new house.
