House Hunting Tips.

Moving house, it can be a stressful time that's for sure. It's not a simple process and can take a very long time to actually finding your dream home to then owning it. We have been in our house for over a year now, when we first started looking at moving it was a bit of a daunting prospect so I thought that I would share a few tips that could make house hunting that little bit simpler. 

• Make sure you know your personal affordability. If you want to be really organised you could arrange to get a mortgage in principal through an  reputable mortgage broker.

• Research the area that you want to move to. Check out the schools, local amenities, conveniences, parks, crime reports and doctors surgeries. 

• Make sure you view several properties, it's so easy to fall in love with the first property you like the look of but it's so important to get a feel for what houses are for sale and if they match your requirements. 

• Be realistic about your expectations. Unless you are building your own property it's unlikely that a house will tick every single box, you may have to compromise over a double garage, or a bigger garden or a study. 

• Try to see past decor and what the house looks like with the current owners in it, imagine it as a blank canvas that you can put your own stamp on it. 

• Ask the current owners questions about the area, also the estate agents should also know the area pretty well too so make sure you interrogate them too. 

• Remember to find out council tax rates, that's always handy to know so it doesn't come as a shock if you do decide to move into this certain property and you end up being on a top end council tax rate. 

• Enjoy it! You don't get to house hunt that often and if you're like me it's really interesting seeing other people's interior design choices and looking around properties!

* Collaborative post.