Why can Buying a Home be Cheaper than Renting?
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Why Buying a Home can be Cheaper than Renting
Is buying a home cheaper than renting? Although buying a house can be very costly, especially considering all conveyancing costs, the deposit and initial spend on decorating and furniture, buying can work out to be more cost effective, depending on your circumstances.
For the majority of young people in Britain, moving out of the family home will mean finding a property of their own to rent.
Renting has always appealed to younger generations but recently, the flaws of choosing to rent have become more significant and alternatives are now being considered more widely.
It’s no secret that the cost of renting in the UK is blowing up beyond control with the average rent payment now being valued at £900 per month.
Are you looking at buying your first home? Our conveyancing solicitors will be there for you.
Is Buying your Home Cheaper than Renting?
The average monthly UK mortgage payment is £200 cheaper than the monthly cost of renting, which means that homeowners can save on average over £2,000 every year compared to renters.
Buying a home is inarguably cheaper than renting in the long-run, but it can understandably be difficult for young or first-time buyers to generate such a large amount of money up-front for a sizeable deposit and conveyancing fees. The process can also be quite difficult, and you will likely need a mortgage advisor and conveyancing solicitor to get through the buying process.
The Average Deposit
Santander recently revealed that the average UK deposit stands at around £51,000 and that 38% of first-time buyers would move back in with their parents in order to save up.
Conveyancing, on the other hand, should not be thought of as a vast financial hurdle as there are some savvy ways in which you can save on the cost of the process.
What is Conveyancing and How Much does it Cost?
Conveyancing refers to the legalities of buying a property and it is a huge part of the home-buying process.
The importance of the conveyancing process must never be undermined as the work your conveyancing solicitor will do on your behalf could make or break the sale.
Our conveyancing solicitors can help you with the conveyancing process from start to finish.
What Conveyancing Work Will Need to be Carried Out?
A conveyancing solicitor will complete the following tasks for you, as well as guide you through the complex, albeit exciting, journey to owning your own home.
- Carry out all the legal paper work, negotiate with your seller’s solicitor and offer readily-available advice. Depending on the firm you work with, this could cost anywhere between £500 to £1,500
- Complete a range of searches. These searches will be used to uncover less-obvious information about your property, such as its flood risk and mining history. Each search tends to cost £200-£400
- Carry out an anti-money laundering check. This will cost £20 maximum
- Manage Land Registry charges and Stamp Duty tax. The cost of these fees will depend on the value of your property, but Land Registry tends to reach a maximum of £300. Stamp Duty often totals several thousand pounds, but most first-time buyers are exempt from this
- Assist with transactions. Banks will charge you a fee of £25-£30 for large transactions between you and your solicitor
How to Save Money and Time on Conveyancing
When buying a house, it’s almost definite that you will incur unexpected fees along the way.
Conveyancing is one of the few aspects of the home buying process where you may be able to save some money and we recommend following our advice if you wish to do so.
Be Wary of Referral Fees
Firstly, we advise that you do not hastily accept to work with the solicitor offered by your estate agent or lender until you have consulted with them thoroughly.
They will probably have been offered to you because your estate agent has a referral agreement in place with them, which could mean an even higher bill on your behalf.
Know Exactly what you are Paying for
On the other hand, they may offer a reduced price if you work with their ideal solicitor.
You should treat this offer with caution and be sure to always obtain a detailed quote showing a breakdown of their services and fees.
We also advise you to be wary of cheap conveyancing solicitors, as they may not carry out all of the tasks you require. This will likely cost you further money and time to correct.
Ideally, you should also seek a solicitor who offers to work on a fixed fee basis with all the necessary services included, in order to avoid any nasty surprise charges.
What does 'No-Sale No-Fee' Mean?
If you are not completely confident in your seller or you believe that the purchase still carries some risk, you should find a solicitor who utilises no-sale no-fee agreements.
This will mean you do not owe your conveyancing solicitor a penny if the property sale falls through for whatever reason.
Renting VS Owning your Home
When you weigh up the benefits of owning your own property compared to renting one, it becomes inarguably obvious why most people dream of owning their own house.
The first benefit is the lower monthly costs, which, unlike rent that goes straight into the pocket of a landlord, means that every month you are one step closer to officially owning your home.
You also have the freedom to decorate your property, start a family and buy pets without any kind of worry, which is a million miles away from the luxuries offered to renters.
Living in a property that belongs to you gives you a greater sense of stability and assurance for the future than you could ever predict.
Contact us for Conveyancing Services and Advice
The journey towards buying a house is lengthy and circumstances can change along the way which may impact the conveyancing process, ultimately increasing or decreasing the final bill you are left with.
Conveyancing fees may also be higher for expensive properties, which makes it very difficult for us to give you a realistic estimate applicable to all of our clients.
Generally speaking however, you should expect to spend anything between £900 to £2,500 on the conveyancing process with a reputable solicitor for a standard property.
AWH Solicitors will assess exactly which services you require from our conveyancing team and ensure that the quote we give you is accurate, honest and reflective of your wishes.
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