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Buyer's guide to purchasing a new home

Buying a house can be a complex process, but with preparation and guidance, it can also be an exciting and rewarding experience.

Here is our step-by-step guide to buying a house in Scotland

Work out your budget

Before you start looking for a house, you need to determine how much you can afford to spend. This will help you narrow down your search to properties that fit within your budget.

Keep in mind that there may be additional costs associated with buying a property, such as stamp duty, legal fees, and survey costs. Make sure you factor these into your budget.

Your best course of action is to speak with a mortgage advisor our inhouse advisor would be happy to have a free initial chat with you and advise you on the first steps of your buying journey.

Get you mortgage agreed in principle

It's sensible to get your mortgage agreement in principle from your lender before you start looking at houses. This will give you an idea of how much money you can borrow and what your monthly payments will be. It will also increase your chances of being accepted by a vendor as a bona fide buyer.

Start your search

To get your search off to a great start, we recommend registering with us so that we can help you find your perfect property match and send you property alert when new listings that fit your criteria are coming to market.

Making an offer:

Once you’ve found your ideal new home, you can make an offer. In most instances, this will be through us unless our vendor has opted out of this services. In this case, you will need to negotiate with them directly

The seller will then either accept your offer or make a counteroffer. Once you agree on a price, you'll need to pay a deposit to secure the property.

Hiring a conveyancing solicitor:

You will need to hire a solicitor to handle the legal aspects of the purchase. Your solicitor will guide you through the process, including conducting searches, reviewing the offer, and preparing the contract.

We can refer you to one of our trusted partner solicitors to help you make your purchase dreams a reality.

Contracts

Once all parties have agreed on the contracts, signed and exchanged, the next step is completion.

To complete, you must pay the balance of the purchase price minus your mortgage to your chosen solicitor to pass to the sellers solicitor. The property will then be transferred to your name. If you have Land and Building Transaction Tax (LBTT) to pay, your solicitor can arrange for this to be paid to Revenue Scotland, as well as sorting out the last bits of paperwork.

Completion

Congratulations, you're now a new homeowner! You can now collect the keys and move in and start enjoying your new home.

Ready to start looking for your next Home Sweet Home?

Register today and let us start the search for you.