First time buyer - please help!!

[Sasha13]

Right - I'm now seriously starting to look at buying a house (well flat). I've paid off all my debts and can now save around �750 a month after outgoings towards deposit/furniture/legal fees etc.

However there are a lot of places now offering to pay 5% deposit (and in some cases, pay legal fees too).

So - my questions are...
1. Do you think I'm better off buying as soon as possible (or at least putting in low offers to see if they will be accepted) before other first time buyers start to get the same idea and the prices stabilise - OR, do you think prices will drop more and I should wait 6 months? (P.S. I've seen a place I really like the look of and am tempting to go have a look!)
2. If I only put down a 5% deposit, mortgages are more expensive - but it will take me at least 6 months to save another 5% deposit - worth the wait, or should I start running up the overdraft/tapping everyone I know to try and get the money together more quickly?
3. Some places pay legal fees, some don't - how much are these likely to be if I have to pay them?
4. For these properties that pay 5% deposit, I think I have to go through their mortgage brokers - is that usually the case? If so, I don't think it's worth me going to a mortgage lender to get an agreement in principle - am I right?
5. Finally - with all the millions of mortgages out there (and at flipping high interest rates, I might add), what are the advantages/disadvantages of the various types?

Thanks guys for any help you can give me - it's really appreciated!!

[vehelpfulguy]

Choosing the right time to buy or sell a house is very difficult (and always has been).

The housing market goes through periods of growth (when prices rise) then a cooling period (when they stabilise and even drop).

House prices have been over inflated for a few years, due to the stupid lending by banks and building societies, and now of course we have the credit crunch, where money is hard to come by and house prices are dropping.

They will continue to drop, but for how long and by how much ?

There is worldwide inflation with petrol ,electricty, gas, food etc all rising in price so this "credit crunch" problem is not going to go away over night.

I would say if you find a "bargain" of a flat then go for it, it may drop in price a little after you buy it, but in a year or so it will start rising again and at least you will have lived in it for a while.

Better that than wait to see if they drop some more, and then find they start going up again quickly and all of a sudden they are going up �5000 a week and you are left behind.

Bite the bullet and buy now.

[vehelpfulguy]

One other thing.

You are a first time buyer so are in a good bargaining position (you have nothing to sell).

The problem at the moment is that one person may be able to sell their hose, but others in the chain may not, and this can cause the whole chain to collapse.

A person selling a flat is probably moving up to a house, so if you can go to them and say you have the money and nothing to sell, that makes you an attractive buyer.

Make sure you make that point to the estate agents and any solicitors you deal with.

When you put a bid in make it clear you have the money ready and have nothing to sell, that may encourage them to accept your offer.

[Sasha13]

Thank you very much - I think I'll do as you say - start to look now but only buy if I find a bargain.

Thanks again.

[Panic Button]

To my mind there is no way prices are going to rise in the near future, and will probably go down further.

I woulld wait and save up a bigger deposit.

If you insist on buying now, bid very low. You might be surprised what a desperate person is prepared to accept.

[johntaylor99]

Sasha13
One of the best things you can do is to enter "Martin Lewis Money saving expert" in to your search box and you should find all the help you need to answer your questions.
Plus you will find plenty of info to save your money on all sorts.
Its worth a visit
Best of luck
johntaylor99

[Sasha13]

Thanks everyone! Saw the flat I liked the look of the other day but wasn't that keen on it 'in the flesh' so to speak - so, I'm going to save up for 6 months while keeping an eye on the prices. Thanks again!