In This Guide

Apply for a mortgage

Buying at auction

Buying in Scotland

Conveyancing

Find and view

   1. Find and view

Negotiate

Plan your purchase

Success and failure

Surveys and valuations

To buy or not to buy

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Find and view

Find and view

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Of the many thousands of houses that are on the market at any one time in this country, there is probably only a handful that you would seriously consider buying. You may have one or two thoughts about what you like and don't like, there may be a full Technicolor image in your head of a room by room breakdown of your perfect pad, or you may be utterly clueless as to what you are looking for. Either way, it generally pays to sit down and think about it in some detail before you start spending much time looking, and then maybe you won't go down quite so many blind alleys.

Your chances of finding these homes are greatly enhanced by the advent of property web sites, as a huge volume of properties can be virtually viewed without having to leave your home. However, finding the right home is not just about spotting the right advert. First you must decide exactly what you want. Our 'Find' section will help guide you through a series of decisions relating to the area, the property and your own needs which should make it much easier to narrow down your search from the outset, saving you time as you go through the arduous task of finding your ideal home.

Once you have a list of criteria that are important to you, you will then have to start looking at properties. Adverts on websites and in newspapers are great, but they certainly do not tell the whole story. Knowing how to prepare yourself and what questions to ask when viewing a property can aid you to make a rational, reason-based decision which will hopefully influence and support your gut reaction to a property. This is also covered in the Find section of this website.

Once you have found a property that you think fits the bill more than anything else you are likely to find, you will probably want to start negotiating. This is the next step in the buying process.

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