How do I go about buying my first property?

Buying your first property and choosing the right mortgage can be rather daunting, so contact us and we’ll advise you on the mortgage options available to you.

But in the meantime, we hope you find the following information useful.

The amount of mortgage you can get depends on your income.

Income multiples do vary. As a rough guide, a typical multiple is four times your income. This figure could be higher or lower depending upon your individual circumstances and different lenders’ criteria. Some lenders do not use income multiples at all and will lend based on affordability.

Once you add to this the amount that you can afford to pay as a deposit, you have the amount you can pay for your first property.

It is also worth remembering the additional costs, on top of your deposit and mortgage that you will be expected to pay.

For example, you will have to pay stamp duty, which is 1% of the purchase price for properties between £125,001 and £250,000, then 3% up to £500,000 and 4% on properties over £500,000, for properties up to £125,000 you do not have to pay stamp duty.

Plus you will have to pay for the survey and the valuation on the property, plus solicitor’s fees.

You may also have to pay an arrangement fee for the mortgage and a Higher Lending Charge - which is insurance for the lender for you defaulting on your payments when your loan is worth more than the property or in some cases this charge is payable when you are only able to pay a small deposit. There are many mortgages that do not carry this charge and based on your situation it is possible that this type of charge can be avoided altogether.

If you need any more information, then simply speak to an expert today.