Stamp duty has increased over recent years. The current bands are as follows:

£0-£125,000 0%
£125,001 – £250,000 1%
£250,001 – £500,000 3%
£500,000 or more 4%.

Before you start to look for a property to purchase it is very important to ascertain how much you can afford. We would strongly advise that, if you have a property to sell, you ask for 2 or 3 valuations in order to gain a realistic price for your property. A buyer will not pay an unrealistic price for a property. Therefore be wary of estate agents who may give unrealistic quotes.

If you require a mortgage, it is important to find out the best deal that would suit your own financial requirements. In order to do this you need to speak to an Independent Financial Advisor who is not tied to one particular Lender but rather can search the whole market for you. We would therefore suggest you speak to Lynch & Company Financial Services, who are Independent Financial Advisors, to get best advice. Contact Lengwe on 01483 751000 or 01483 772000, or go direct to
www.mortgagesinwoking.co.uk

We would also strongly recommend that you have a survey carried out on the property that you are purchasing, even if it is a brand new house.

If you require a mortgage it is best to ask your advisor to see if the surveyor can carry out your own survey at the same time as the Mortgage Valuation. This will often save you some money, as it will require only one visit to the property rather than two.

If you have any other questions that you would like answered, or you feel would be helpful to have in this section for others to benefit from please send them direct to tony@housesinwoking.com.