Houses

[FoxInTheBirstallBox]

14 hours ago, Christoph said:

Right lads the time is approaching and I am going to get the wheels in motion. Deposit is sorted (£20k) and now have the paper work to see what we can borrow. Does anyone have any mortgage advisers they would recommend? Also solicitors etc?

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. 

I can't recommend any lawyers but I can advise against one... if you get recommended a lawyer from the estate agent think twice about using them, they only recommend them because they get a cut of the deal, they don't care about quality of service

 

We bought from purple bricks which was painless but then went with the recommended lawyer called 

Premier property lawyers (based near fossepark)

 

Absol-utly fuching useless staff, at one point they lost one of my mother's documents (a copy of her passport and bank statement) which was just the tip of the shit-berg

[Mickyblueeyes]

You guys going through or about to go through the process are probably best placed to answer this. 

 

There always seems to be to be a lot of criticism of solicitors during the house buying process. Various reasons. However, for those going through the process (especially sellers) what exactly do you look for ? Most willingly pay an estate agent an extortionate amount for far less work then a solicitor. Which leads to most firms running the process through a junior staff member. It’s the old principle that you pick up the file that pays more at the end of the month. 

 

So, when looking for a solicitor do you look for price, service or level of experience ? And why is it that most would pay an estate agent (or more willing to pay an estate more) than a solicitor ? Surely the security offered by a solicitor (I.e making sure you are legally protected) is far higher in someone’s thoughts In the entire process.

 

its bit of a conundrum I think resi lawyers struggle with, clients who expect a certain level of service but, in turn are reluctant to pay for it.

[Christoph]

15 hours ago, Unabomber said:

Where are you based? I used an independent guy who was brilliant

Leicester. 

 

Thanks to those who have replied so far. 

Edited 19 March 2019 by Christoph

[adam1]

Looking to buy at the minute.

 

Is anyone here from Anstey?

 

Whats the traffic like in the mornings? Also in the summer up Bradgate Road with its proximity to Bradgate Park - someone mentioned that it can get quite bad.

[Babylon]

On 18/03/2019 at 15:15, Christoph said:

Right lads the time is approaching and I am going to get the wheels in motion. Deposit is sorted (£20k) and now have the paper work to see what we can borrow. Does anyone have any mortgage advisers they would recommend? Also solicitors etc?

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. 

I'd recommend not using one at all for starters. Do your own research, use comparison sites and pick a deal that suits you.

[adam1]

33 minutes ago, Babylon said:

I'd recommend not using one at all for starters. Do your own research, use comparison sites and pick a deal that suits you.

I would use an advisor and look yourself. Advisor only takes a fee if you take the mortgage. If they can get a better deal (including their fee) then go with them.

[Wrighty22]

On 18/03/2019 at 15:15, Christoph said:

Right lads the time is approaching and I am going to get the wheels in motion. Deposit is sorted (£20k) and now have the paper work to see what we can borrow. Does anyone have any mortgage advisers they would recommend? Also solicitors etc?

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. 

 

I used Clear Financial in Loughborough. Couldn’t fault them at all! Let me know if you want their details. 

[Costock_Fox]

If you do use a broker and get one for a decent fee, less than £100, then go for it it’s probably worth it. They will or should know which lender is most likely to accept you on your circumstances and that’s worth the cash in my opinion. 

 

I deal with mortgage applications in my job so send me a message if you have any questions about that side of it.

[David Guiza]

3 hours ago, adam1 said:

Looking to buy at the minute.

 

Is anyone here from Anstey?

 

Whats the traffic like in the mornings? Also in the summer up Bradgate Road with its proximity to Bradgate Park - someone mentioned that it can get quite bad.

I live there for the first 22/23 years of my life (i'm now 27). Traffic was generally fine when I lived there, but in the last few years there have been countless new homes and not a great deal in terms of road changes to counter that so it's difficult to say. I grew up not just off Bradgate Road and never really had any problems in the summer, traffic doesn't really build up until you hit Newtown Linford. 

 

From my experience though it's much easier going out towards town then it is coming back, at rush hour at least; plus there's 2/3 ways out of the village which helps.

 

Whenever I've visited recently the new traffic light system seems much worse If you're entering the nook from Cropston then the other 3 directions (that's possibly the most Alan Partridge sentence I've ever posted on here) 

[chuck'em]

14 hours ago, FoxInTheBirstallBox said:

I can't recommend any lawyers but I can advise against one... if you get recommended a lawyer from the estate agent think twice about using them, they only recommend them because they get a cut of the deal, they don't care about quality of service

 

We bought from purple bricks which was painless but then went with the recommended lawyer called 

Premier property lawyers (based near fossepark)

 

Absol-utly fuching useless staff, at one point they lost one of my mother's documents (a copy of her passport and bank statement) which was just the tip of the shit-berg

I'll back this up. Went with Premier property when using purple bricks and they were useless. 

[FoxInTheBirstallBox]

14 hours ago, adam1 said:

Looking to buy at the minute.

 

Is anyone here from Anstey?

 

Whats the traffic like in the mornings? Also in the summer up Bradgate Road with its proximity to Bradgate Park - someone mentioned that it can get quite bad.

Funnily enough I have moved to anstey and it's great, like the other poster I have moved to just off bradgate road at the top end near braggy park and it's good. I travel at 6-630am to work via bradgate road and m1 and return the same way around 5pm and I have never encountered traffI'd jams in my first year here.

The nook can be a bit of a pig when people don't use the road markings and it's like wacky racers but you get used to it. I wouldn't say it's too bad here!

[Babylon]

21 hours ago, adam1 said:

I would use an advisor and look yourself. Advisor only takes a fee if you take the mortgage. If they can get a better deal (including their fee) then go with them.

From my experience they've all been a total waste of time and energy.

[Rob1742]

On 19/03/2019 at 09:20, Mickyblueeyes said:

You guys going through or about to go through the process are probably best placed to answer this. 

 

There always seems to be to be a lot of criticism of solicitors during the house buying process. Various reasons. However, for those going through the process (especially sellers) what exactly do you look for ? Most willingly pay an estate agent an extortionate amount for far less work then a solicitor. Which leads to most firms running the process through a junior staff member. It’s the old principle that you pick up the file that pays more at the end of the month. 

 

So, when looking for a solicitor do you look for price, service or level of experience ? And why is it that most would pay an estate agent (or more willing to pay an estate more) than a solicitor ? Surely the security offered by a solicitor (I.e making sure you are legally protected) is far higher in someone’s thoughts In the entire process.

 

its bit of a conundrum I think resi lawyers struggle with, clients who expect a certain level of service but, in turn are reluctant to pay for it.

True this. You pay solicitors  say £500 for the whole purchasing process, yet my solicitor is on £180 an hour I think,  for another job that I have him do for me. 

 

So it’s generally junior staff that do the conveyancing work as it’s the least financially rewarding work that they do.

 

The best bet is if you actually know someone personally ( unlikely) as they will tend to get it sorted for you. 

 

I may have mentioned this before, I actually completed a property purchase within 5 days. I rang them on the Monday and everything was ready for Thursday, and they actually delayed it a day until the Friday. That’s how simple it can be.

 

But you are at the mercy of junior staff and businesses who don’t prioritise the work. It’s important to you, but not so important to them. It’s just the way it is I am afraid.

 

 

[Grebfromgrebland]

There must've have been a seller's pack ready to get it done in 5 days. Which means you could've done it yourself in one if required.

 

Most transactions need searches conducting and normally get held up at council level. They can take 2-12 weeks to get the information back to you. No solicitor can speed this part no matter how much they charge.

 

Unless buying from auction or a cash transaction you'll have to go the slow route to satisfy your self, insurers and the lender.

[Rob1742]

On 19/03/2019 at 19:16, Costock_Fox said:

If you do use a broker and get one for a decent fee, less than £100, then go for it it’s probably worth it. They will or should know which lender is most likely to accept you on your circumstances and that’s worth the cash in my opinion. 

 

I deal with mortgage applications in my job so send me a message if you have any questions about that side of it.

£100 is nothing in the scheme of things, but you never know if the advisor is steering you towards a product they get commission on.

 

If you know you can get a mortgage based on your personal situation, hunting on line is very easy to do. I had a few mortgages and re-mortgages based on just hunting on the internet. 

 

But i agree it maybe worth getting some information from an advisor ( if it’s that cheap) , but also doing your own work on it and then picking what’s best for you. But I do recall seeing an advisor many many years ago and they ended up suggesting mortgages that they were tied too.

 

Personally I think if they only get £100, they will definitely be getting kick backs from the mortgage company as they wouldn’t be able to survive otherwise. 

[Grebfromgrebland]

The fact that he's going on a forum like this means he'll be better off using the services of an independent financial adviser. Even if they charge. 

 

It's not just about the best deal. They'll hold your hand all the way through the process to completion. Most people appreciate that.

 

They're the central point of contact between the lender, solicitor and vendor/estate agent.

 

 

[Costock_Fox]

43 minutes ago, Rob1742 said:

£100 is nothing in the scheme of things, but you never know if the advisor is steering you towards a product they get commission on.

 

If you know you can get a mortgage based on your personal situation, hunting on line is very easy to do. I had a few mortgages and re-mortgages based on just hunting on the internet. 

 

But i agree it maybe worth getting some information from an advisor ( if it’s that cheap) , but also doing your own work on it and then picking what’s best for you. But I do recall seeing an advisor many many years ago and they ended up suggesting mortgages that they were tied too.

 

Personally I think if they only get £100, they will definitely be getting kick backs from the mortgage company as they wouldn’t be able to survive otherwise. 

I’ve seen people charged £1500 by brokers though which is why I said it.

[Dr The Singh]

Costing me around £10 grand to do my bathroom WTF

[Legend_in_blue]

9 minutes ago, Dr The Singh said:

Costing me around £10 grand to do my bathroom WTF

 

This is why you see cheap crap in new builds.

 

Our ensuite cost £6.5k so £10k sounds about right for a bathroom.  I can recommend a digital shower, comes with a remote, very nice.  You won't see those in new builds!  When spending that sort of cash the little extras are worth it in the end!

[Dr The Singh]

Just now, Legend_in_blue said:

 

This is why you see cheap crap in new builds.

 

Our ensuite cost £6.5k so £10k sounds about right for a bathroom.  I can recommend a digital shower, comes with a remote, very nice.  You won't see those in new builds!  When spending that sort of cash the little extras are worth it in the end!

We're getting one of those toilet seats that warm up, so my arse will never get cold......what a life I live

[Soup]

5 hours ago, Dr The Singh said:

Costing me around £10 grand to do my bathroom WTF

Buy all the gear yourself and get individual trades to do their bit and you'll save a fortune. Getting someone to do the whole lot on a kitchen or a bathroom and you're pretty much paying double what it's worth. 

[The Fox Covert]

8 hours ago, Dr The Singh said:

We're getting one of those toilet seats that warm up, so my arse will never get cold......what a life I live

The only refinement in my toilet is the sign on the door which says 'Cludgie', Glaswegian lingo for the bog. Actually it is a perfectly nice facility considering that it also contains a shower and a sink in a space which is less than 6' x 4'. The bigger one downstairs sounds like Niagara Falls but it is the best I have ever come across for the ability to completely dispose of a No. 2 without trace. The contents is probably half way to the sewage works a mile down the road before it finishes flushing and refilling the cistern. I did all the chippying and the tiling and everything else in the little one upstairs but the plumber who connected up the chinaware said he installed the original inside bog in this house when he was a young apprentice, in a completely different room which is now the kitchen. Previous to this an elderly lady had lived in the property for generations and it was completely unimproved, with an outside bog and a coal hole. The only plumbing inside the house was a stone sink, in another completely different room which is now the dining room.

Confused? Anyone else know so much about the house they live in, going back several generations before they moved into it?

[Jon the Hat]

Yes, my house was a field, with lots of cows init until 2013.

[Costock_Fox]

42 minutes ago, Jon the Hat said:

Yes, my house was a field, with lots of cows init until 2013.

I can see why you moved into somewhere more conventional.

[Rob1742]

On 23/03/2019 at 11:17, Costock_Fox said:

I’ve seen people charged £1500 by brokers though which is why I said it.

Yes, I was once charged that exact amount.