Buying Your First Home?
Our conveyancing solicitors have a proven track record of helping first time buyers get onto the property ladder with ease.
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Buy Your First Home With Confidence
At BHW Conveyancing, we understand that buying your first home can be daunting. Our specialist team of experienced property solicitors work hard to guide first-time buyers through every step of the journey, letting you rest assured that your buying process is well taken care of.
We believe effective communication is the key to unlocking a smooth first-time buyer experience, ensuring you understand every aspect to keep you in control of your situation.
If you’re a first-time buyer looking to get a conveyancing quote, or simply to learn more about how we can help, please call us on +44 (0)116 402 9000 or send us an email at info@bhwconveyancing.com.
We’re committed to delivering high-quality work, leaving no detail overlooked. That’s why we carefully limit our ongoing transactions, allowing our teams to provide you with the finest conveyancing service and maintain consistently exceptional work. For us, it’s quality over quantity every time.
Purchasing a new build property directly from a builder?
BHW Conveyancing has highly experienced new build conveyancing solicitors who understand the specific challenges that can arise in new build transactions. We provide clear, practical advice at every stage, working efficiently to progress all legal requirements and keeping your purchase on track through proactive communication with all parties involved.
What is the process of buying a property as a first time home buyer?
Buying your first house is an important milestone and something you’ll only do once in your life, so it’s important that as a first-time buyer, you understand every step of the journey. Your conveyancing solicitor will guide you through this process, helping you to navigate any complexities with confidence.
These steps represent a roadmap of your first-time buyer process, so you know exactly what to expect when it comes to buying your first home. If you would like any further information on any of these steps, please call us on +44 (0)116 402 9000 or send us an email at info@bhwconveyancing.com, we’d be happy to answer any questions.
The first thing to do as a first time buyer is to choose a conveyancing solicitor as soon as you can. This will facilitate a more streamlined process upon the acceptance of your offer.
A survey provides a detailed assessment of the property’s condition. It helps you understand any existing issues, both visible and hidden, such as structural problems, drainage issues, or defects. This knowledge is crucial when making an informed decision about the purchase. We recommend considering a RICS survey on the property to check for any issues or repairs that may be needed, which can help you negotiate the price if there are costly fixes, like a roof replacement.
Your conveyancing solicitors will ask the seller’s solicitors for the draft contract pack, which contains important property related documents like the following:
- The TA6 form which outlines any boundaries, disputes with neighbours or alterations.
- The TA10 form which gives details of the fittings and fixtures within the property.
- The TA7 form which is only for leasehold properties and provides information about maintenance responsibilities, costs and rights to buy the freehold.
- Title documents including the register and plan, conveyances, transfers and lease if the property is leasehold.
If you’re getting a mortgage, your lender will need property searches to be obtained. On the other hand, if you’re paying with cash, these are not required and your solicitor can suggest whether searches will be useful for you. Your solicitor will order the searches from the local authority which will offer important details about the property, like radon, contamination, floods, or mines. They’ll provide you with a report summarising the findings and answer any questions.
Your solicitors will examine all the property information contained in the contract pack. They’ll ask the seller’s solicitor follow up questions called ‘enquiries’ to clear up any details, like safety certificates or planning permissions. Once satisfied with the answers, they’ll put together a title report that will outline all their findings and highlight any important points.
If you’re securing a first time buyer mortgage to finance your home purchase, your lender will send a special ‘solicitors copy’ of the mortgage offer to your solicitor. Once your solicitor receives this, they will carefully review the terms and conditions specified in the mortgage offer.
Following their review, your solicitor will provide you with a detailed report that explains the specific conditions of the mortgage. This report will help you understand the obligations and requirements associated with your mortgage, ensuring that you are fully informed about the financial aspects of your property purchase as a first time buyer.
After you’ve confirmed that you’ve reviewed and understood all the reports provided by your solicitor and are content with the information, your conveyancing solicitors will send you the contracts. These contracts require signatures from both the buyer and the seller, and you’ll need to return them to your respective solicitors. This means you’re ready to proceed with finalising the purchase.
These are the last steps in the property buying process. The exchange of contracts is the moment when everything becomes legally binding, confirming that all the necessary legal documents have been signed. Completion, on the other hand, is when the keys are handed over to the buyer, and the seller’s solicitors have received the funds. Typically, exchange happens before completion, allowing everyone to prepare for the agreed upon completion day. However, in some cases, exchange and completion can occur on the same day.
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Why choose BHW Conveyancing as a first-time buyer
BHW’s conveyancing solicitors understand that as a first-time buyer, you may need more guidance and likely have more questions about the process. This is why we’re always on hand to answer any queries, putting your mind at rest.
Your expert team is dedicated to completing your first-time purchase smoothly, with each team headed by a thoroughly experienced property lawyer so that you know your transaction is in capable hands.
We actively control the number of ongoing transactions for each of our conveyancing teams, ensuring their workload remains manageable. This safeguards the quality of your service, guaranteeing that you receive the utmost attention to ensure a smooth experience tailored to your needs. We’re not content until you have the keys in your hand, your satisfaction is our top priority.
To view BHW’s costs guide visit our pricing page.
Contact our conveyancing solicitors
BHW Conveyancing is part of BHW Solicitors Limited, one of the leading property law firms in Leicestershire and the wider East Midlands. BHW is a top ranked real estate firm in the East Midlands by the Legal 500, as well as being ranked in the Chambers & Partners legal industry guide.
We hold the Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) accreditation and have been awarded the Lexcel quality standard by the Law Society. This recognises our impeccable standards of competence, risk management and client care practices.
To request a personal conveyancing quotation please call +44 (0)116 402 9000 or email info@bhwconveyancing.com.
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Frequently asked questions
Usually, someone who has never bought a main residence before is considered a first time buyer. If you don’t currently own a property but have bought and sold one in the past, you would not be considered a first time buyer.
The type of mortgage you can get as a first time home buyer is dependent on the mortgage company and your personal circumstances. A very rough way to work out how much you could lend is by working out your salary times by four. The amount you can borrow will also depend on your deposit. For instance, some lenders will allow you to have a 5% or 10% deposit whereas others may require larger sums. Your mortgage will also be dependent on your outgoings and the repayments you are able to afford. Usually, the lower the deposit you put down, the higher the mortgage rate, which means the higher the monthly payments will be. All these factors will usually be considered by a mortgage lender or advisor when you are applying for a mortgage as a first time buyer.
Many first time buyers can benefit from no stamp duty providing they are buying a house of up to £425,000. After this, they will need to pay a percentage of stamp duty which is a tax that is owned to the government. Your solicitor will help to calculate the amount of stamp duty payable.
Yes, a lifetime ISA is used as a tax-efficient way to save up for your first home. Each year, you can save an amount of up to £4000 and the government will pay in 25% bonus of up to £1000. You can use your LISA to buy your first home whenever you like, but you must buy a property valued at below £450,000 in the UK, plus you must purchase with a mortgage.
To complete your first- time house purchase, you must use a conveyancing solicitor like BHW Conveyancing as the ISA provider will pay them directly. This will also give you peace of mind with your first big move that everything is being handled correctly.
With a lifetime ISA, you can benefit from building your deposit and the money you save is tax-free, plus you can use the LISA with other affordable home ownership schemes, helping you get onto the property ladder. You can’t use the LISA when purchasing a buy-to-let, though.
