The process of buying a home in the United Kingdom takes a ridiculously long time to complete, taking as much as four months after finding the actual property to buy. It is a fact that even the Britons themselves would be willing to admit. Hiring an estate agent to help you through the purchase would prove to be an invaluable experience.

An estate gent would be able to guide you through the process of purchasing a new home. Roughly, these are the steps that you should go through when buying a new home.

1. Decide how much you can afford. Naturally, you would want your new home to be something that is within your means, something that will not require you to get a second job just to be updated on mortgage payments. To compute just how much money you can dispose of in buying a house, add together:

• the amount you can get from the sale of your current property (if you have one)

• the amount you borrow from the bank

• the amount of savings you can afford to pour into the purchase.

Remember that the price of the home is not the only thing you need to worry about. There are also one-off costs to buying a home, such as legal fees, survey fees, estate agent fees, lender valuations, and other such fees.

2. Look at the mortgage. Few people can afford to pay for a home in full. This is why mortgages exist – to help people buy their dream home without waiting for an eternity to afford it. But because this involves a major purchase, you would need the services of a financial advisor to help you with it. A financial advisor would show you how much money you should borrow with your current income, as well as how to go about borrowing the money that you need to buy your property.

3. Find a solicitor. A solicitor, or perhaps a licensed conveyancer, would be the one to handle the transfer of ownership of the property to your hands. He or she will do all the legal paperwork so that you can be sure that the property is securely in your name after the purchase has been made.

4. Find the right property. With your budget firmly in mind, it would then be the right time to scout for the right property. Do you have a particular location or neighbourhood in mind? Buy property in a location wherein you would find it comfortable to live. Take the time to inspect the property yourself so you would have a feel for the house before you buy it.

If you like it, then make a bid for it. Just be clear with the seller that your bid is subject to changes, depending on the results of the survey and assessments you have commissioned.

5. Have experts assess the value of the property. Surveys and valuations are expensive ventures, but they need to be done. They will tell you just how much the property is worth and show you how much you should make a bid for the property that you want.

6. Get the legal work done. After your bid has been accepted, then it is time to get with your solicitor and do the paperwork. There will be an exchange of contracts delineating the details of the sale, a transfer of documents, enquiries on the property titles and possible liens, payment of land registry fees, finalisation of mortgage, and other legalities.

Once you have completed the process, then you can remodel or redecorate your new home to your liking and move in.