First Time Buyer Guide

Buying a home, start to finish

Buying a home involves far more than finding a property and arranging a mortgage. From the first budget to completion, the financial, practical and legal parts of the purchase gradually come together.

Long before there is an offer on the table, most of the work is financial: building a realistic budget, understanding what lenders may offer and deciding how much of your savings can go into the purchase without leaving every fee, moving cost or repair to chance. Finding the right property can take time too, so this part may feel less like progress and more like preparation.

An accepted offer changes the rhythm. The mortgage, survey and legal work begin to run alongside one another, sometimes quickly and sometimes with one waiting on another. There is no benefit in forcing everything forward at once; what matters is knowing what each piece of work is meant to establish, what information is still missing and which decisions are sensible before those answers arrive.

01 What you can afford Before you know which homes are within reach, you need a monthly budget that still leaves room for fees, repairs and the rest of your life. 02 Agreement in principle Agents may ask for an agreement in principle before taking an offer seriously, even though it is only an early indication of possible borrowing. 03 Viewing Listings rarely show the noise, awkward space, surrounding streets or small compromises that become obvious when you visit in person. 04 Making an offer The asking price is only the seller’s starting point; your offer still has to make sense against local prices, the property and your own limit. 05 Mortgage, survey and valuation The lender is deciding whether the loan and property work for them, while your own survey helps you decide whether the home still works for you. 06 Conveyancing Progress can feel quiet while the contract, title, searches and enquiries move between your conveyancer, the seller and the rest of the chain. 07 Exchange An accepted offer is still provisional until contracts are exchanged, at which point both sides are committed to the completion date. 08 Completion The keys can be released once the money arrives, but moving in also brings the first practical checks, repairs and responsibilities of ownership.
How long the purchase may take
  • Current government guidance describes about five months as an average for buying a home. A chain, leasehold information, mortgage issue, legal defect or new-build timetable can make an individual purchase shorter or longer.
  • The period spent searching sits outside that estimate and depends on the buyer's area, budget, requirements and willingness to wait for a suitable property.