How Long Does It Take to Move Houses?: A Beginners Guide
Arby Medina
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It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that moving houses is one of the most stressful things that you will have to go through in life. The growing number of people aged 20 to 34 who still live with their parents is a testament to this, proving just how difficult it can be to move houses.
Seeing as everyone will have to do this at some point in their lives, it would be wise to be prepared for everything that’s going to be thrown your way when moving houses. In fact, we believe that most of the stress that comes from moving stems from the lack of information on the whole process. Indeed, if you really prepare for things, then moving houses doesn’t have to be as tedious as you may think it is.
To help you out with this, we’ve prepared a beginner’s guide on everything you need to know about moving houses. This will include a general timeline to help you prepare well and other pieces of supplementary information. We’ll also be discussing common questions you may have regarding moving out, which will include things like “how much does it cost for conveyancing?” and “how do I know how much to sell my home for?” Hopefully, this information proves to be useful for helping and preparing you to move houses.
Selling Your Home
If you already have a house and want to move to a new one, then you’ll first have to deal with selling the current property that you own. Now, there are a couple of things that you need to do to prepare your house to make selling it easier.
The first step you have to do is to declutter. The last thing a potential homebuyer wants to see when they come for a house viewing is a messy home. Aside from packing up all your stuff in preparation for moving houses, this is the perfect time to consider putting things into storage or just completely getting rid of things you no longer want or need. If you choose to go the storage route, try to find a self-storage facility with affordable price and amicable terms.
Now, if you’re just going to get rid of some of your possessions outright, then donating them might just be your best option. However, be sure to only donate things that are in good condition, as charity shops won’t be able to sell them if they are in poor condition or damaged. We also recommend calling the charity shop of your choice in advance before dropping off your donations, as there is a chance that they may not be able to take in more stuff, and you may need to find someplace else.
Aside from decluttering, now is also the best time for some routine maintenance. Potential homebuyers will prefer everything to be in good working condition, especially if they’re planning to move in immediately. This is why you’ll want to make it a point to hire professionals to do maintenance on everything in your current home. And while you may think doing these things yourself may save some money, it may actually do more harm than good as you could potentially hurt your chances of selling your home if you do anything incorrectly.
After preparing your home, the next thing you have to do before putting it up for sale is to get your house valued. This helps you know how much you should be selling your home for. There are many ways you can go about doing this, but we highly recommend going online and looking for similar properties in your area. While it won’t be 100% accurate, this will give you a good idea of the value of your home. If you’re going for accuracy, then the best thing to do would be to contact a local real estate agent. Their valuation will most likely be the price that your home sells for, as they have a better understanding of the local real estate market.
After you’ve prepared your home and have gotten the price that you want to sell it for, your home should then be put on a listing for potential buyers to see. One tip we can give you here is to invest in a good real estate photographer to take photos of your property. Publishing more appealing photos make it more likely for potential homebuyers to push through with their purchase.
Applying for a Mortgage
Now, applying for a mortgage is possibly the most time-consuming part of the house buying process timeline. Not only will you need to scrounge up 10% for the deposit for the mortgage, but you’ll also most likely need to borrow the rest of the money from a lender who has their own terms and conditions regarding how you’ll pay the money back.
When it comes to your mortgage application, it can be split up into two parts: an agreement in principle and a full application for a mortgage offer. The first part isn’t too difficult and will take you a couple of hours to complete, and will only require you to submit basic information along with things like your bank statements, utility bills, and tax returns. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for the application itself.
The application process can take around six weeks but could be longer, depending on the strength of your application. This is determined by different factors such as your credit, employment status, deposit size, and loan to income ratio. Once you get an offer from your lender that works for you, you will have around three to six months to look for a new home.
Conveyancing Timeline
Lastly, we have to talk about conveyancing. Once you find a home to move to, you have to begin the process of taking ownership of your new property. While this may be straightforward, it can take quite a bit of time from beginning to end. The average time from instructing a conveyancer to moving in can take 8-12 weeks. Now, it’s not impossible to have this done more quickly if everything lines up, but it’s best to lower your expectations early on.
Once your offer for a home is accepted, your conveyancing solicitor will ensure that all contracts are signed, and the transfer of money is completed. To make this more convenient for you, we suggest using our conveyancing fee calculator to know that you are getting the best possible deal on conveyancing.
Now, this isn’t really something that you can get around, as it’s recommended that the process only be done by a specialist conveyancing solicitor or, better yet, a licensed conveyancer. The costs may be high initially, but they will all be worth it as they’ll be arranging the searches, contracts, and the legal process of property transfer.
Conclusion
Hopefully, this guide provided you with some insight into the entire process of moving houses. While moving houses can be quite difficult, it’s ultimately a rewarding experience. Be sure to keep all the information we listed here in mind to make the entire ordeal more manageable.
If you’re on the hunt for instant online conveyancing quotes in the UK to help with your journey, Conveyancing Calculator has got your back. Whether you’re purchasing a home, moving, or selling a property, you can visit our website and use our calculator today!
