If you are thinking of buying a house in the UK, you might be wondering what the laws involved are and how they affect you. Buying a house is a major decision and it involves a lot of steps and costs.
In this blog post, our experienced conveyancing team will explain some of the key aspects of the legal process of buying a house in the UK and how we can help you with it. We keep it simple, honest and transparent here at Howells, ensuring you are kept in the loop at every stage of the process. More...
Over the course of 2022, the cost-of-living crisis is something that many of us were all too aware of. The exact figures changed so much throughout the year that it can be difficult to see where 2022 stood in comparison to 2021.
So, what has caused the cost-of-living rise, and what are the exact figures?
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If, like us, you’ve been following the government updates on the property market with bated breath, then you’ll know viewings are returning to normal and there will soon be changes to Land Transaction Tax/Stamp Duty. But, what exactly is changing and what does that mean for you?
We’ve summarised the updates for you below. More...
Here in the UK, the vast majority of property is bought using the traditional process of viewings with an estate agent, making an offer and then going through the conveyancing procedure with a solicitor.
However, around 1.3% of all property sold in the UK is done so through auction. * But how does this process differ from regular residential conveyancing? One of our conveyancing solicitors explains the basics here. More...
Buying your first home can be extremely daunting, but at Howells Solicitors, we believe it needn’t be confusing. Each month across the UK, we complete property purchases worth over £50million, carrying out each of these transactions quickly and efficiently. With this in mind, we thought that in order to help out those climbing onto the first rung of the property ladder, we’d share our wealth of experience and put together this simple guide.
When You Start Thinking About Getting on the Property Ladder
Saving for a Deposit
Before you even start looking for a property, you will need to save up for a deposit to put towards its cost. When doing this, it’s helpful to have an idea of the cost of the home you would like to buy, so you will need to spend time researching what is available in the area you would like to live.
At the moment in the UK, you will need to save at least 5% of a property’s value before you can apply for a mortgage (usually as a part of the Help to Buy Scheme or the UK Mortgage Guarantee Scheme, which you can find out about here). Those who are able to save more, however, will have access to more competitive mortgages, and the average deposit for first-time buyers is 20%.
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