First-time buyers

Your first home, explained before you commit to it.

What you can borrow, what you need to have saved, what it all costs on the day — and what a lender will actually accept as income.

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No client fee · No obligation

What you actually need

Four things

A deposit

Five per cent of the purchase price is enough for many lenders. Ten or fifteen opens a wider choice of rates. We will show you what each step is worth per month before you decide to keep saving.

Gifts and where the money came from

Provable income

Payslips, a P60, or accounts if you work for yourself. Lenders count overtime, bonus and shift pay differently — we use only what will hold up at underwriting.

What a lender counts

A tidy credit file

Missed payments matter less than people fear, and recent ones matter more. We look at yours before anyone searches it.

Your credit file

Documents ready

ID, proof of address, three months of bank statements, and a gift letter if family are helping. The full list depends on the lender, and we tell you which list is yours.

The full list

The costs on top of the deposit

Budget for these

Valuation or survey

A basic valuation is often free. A fuller survey is your choice and usually money well spent on an older property.

Solicitor and searches

Conveyancing fees plus local authority searches. Ask for a fixed quote rather than an estimate.

Stamp duty

First-time buyers pay nothing up to £300,000 in England and Northern Ireland, with relief up to £500,000. Wales and Scotland work differently — our calculator covers all three.

Buildings insurance

Required from exchange on a house. We can arrange it, and it needs to be live before completion day.

Removals and the first week

Van, locks, a fridge that fits. Small, but it lands in the same fortnight as everything else.

Product or arrangement fee

Some deals carry one. A lower rate with a big fee is not always cheaper — we compare the true cost over the deal period, not the headline.

How your first purchase runs

Six steps

The conversation

Twenty to thirty minutes on income, savings, credit and what you are looking for. Nothing recommended, nothing charged.

A realistic borrowing figure

We work out what an underwriter will accept, not what a website calculator says, so you house-hunt at the right price.

Decision in principle

The lender’s first agreement. Estate agents will ask to see it before they take your offer seriously.

Offer accepted, then the recommendation

We compare lenders on rate, fees, criteria and how they treat your income, and put the reasoning in writing before submitting.

Application, valuation, solicitor

We submit and deal with underwriter questions. You get told what has happened, rather than chasing it.

Offer to keys

We stay with the case to completion, and come back to you before the deal ends.

Asked every week

First-time buyer questions

Can I buy with a five per cent deposit?

Yes, with several lenders. The rate is higher than at ten per cent, so the question is whether waiting to save more costs you less than the rent you would pay in the meantime.

Does a gifted deposit cause problems?

No, provided it is genuinely a gift. The person giving it signs a short letter confirming it is not a loan and that they have no interest in the property.

I am on a visa. Can I buy?

Many lenders will consider you. The type of visa, time left on it, and how long you have been in the UK decide which lenders are open to you.

What if I have been refused before?

A refusal usually means the case went to a lender whose criteria did not fit it. We would want to see the reason before saying anything more.

Find out what you could actually borrow.

A first conversation costs nothing, leaves no mark on your credit file, and gives you a figure you can house-hunt with.