|
From mouse to house
Can
the internet really help to speed up the homebuying process or will
using it just add to the problems that every homebuyer already faces?
Amanda Jarvis finds out
The internet is supposed to make
our life easier. We’re promised speed, efficiency, access
to information and cheap products. While some sites certainly do
help to cut down on the hassle of buying a home, sites that enable
you to do everything online are rare. You usually have to fill in
forms and be at the mercy of the postal service – and the
efficiency of your computer.
Despite the obvious frustrations, the internet has a large part
to play in the homebuying process, and more and more people are
turning to it as a research tool as much as a way of buying financial
products. Remember that until online signatures are developed what
you can actually do online will be restricted. And it’s unlikely
that even the most sophisticated website will ever save you from
having to go round and look at houses in person. However, there
is a lot you can do online to help save time. We give you the lowdown
on where to look – and don’t forget our website www.homebuying.co.uk
and our sister website
www.whatmortgage online.co.uk.
.
Finding a home
There are several ways to search for a home online. Your
first step should be the property portals such as Asserta Home,
Rightmove and Fish4Homes. The main advantage of using one of these
sites is that they hold a database of thousands of properties from
dozens of estate agents, so you get to see the properties on the
books of several estate agents at once. Some also include details
of private sales from local papers and websites and some have a
section on brand-new properties.
The property details are posted on the site by estate agents, but
this does mean that the estate agent has to remember to update the
site and indicate once a property is under offer and take it off
once it’s been sold. After a few searches you will start to
get an idea of which sites hold details of the estate agents in
your chosen area.
When you go to a site to do a property search you can select the
area you want to search in, the type of property you are looking
for, the number of bedrooms, the maximum price, whether you want
a garden, a garage, a new property, an old property, and so on.
You will be shown a list of properties that match your search criteria.
If you don’t find anything suitable you can amend your search.
Rightmove allows you to select the radius within which the search
will take place, while Asserta will bring up a list of areas near
to your initial search area, so you can widen your search if you
want to.
If you see anything you are interested in you can either link directly
to the estate agent’s website or call the estate agent’s
office and ask for details. You can also register online with an
estate agent to receive property details. You can usually register
to receive e-mails or text messages of properties that match your
search criteria too.
Sue Caplan from Blackheath, South East London, used these sites
to search for a new home last year. “I would recommend using
them as they give you a good idea of what is available,” she
says. “I didn’t know the area very well, so it meant
I could do a lot of research from my computer to save having to
drive around after work. The property sites were not always up-to-date,
though.”
She eventually found a property she was interested in and clicked
through the estate agent’s website to discover it had been
sold. The estate agent continued to send her details and eventually
she found a property she liked. “As I was new to the area
I didn’t know which were the best estate agents to use, but
by searching online I found out which agents offered the best properties
in my area.”
Most estate agents now have websites, and if you know which estate
agents operate in the area you are interested in you can browse
the sites to see if there is anything of interest. Some sites give
virtual tours of properties too, so you can get a 360-degree view
of the rooms. “I found the virtual tours really useful,”
says Richard Evans, who was looking for a buy-to-let property in
Worcester last year. “I didn’t want to have to do any
work on the property, so I could get a good idea just by looking
online if a property was going to be suitable, which saved me a
lot of time,” he says.
You can also search on a DIY sale site. These are private-sale websites
where no estate agent is involved. There are obvious advantages
to the seller in using a DIY site, but for the buyer the process
is similar to using an estate agent except that all your dealings
are done directly with the seller. And you may find a bargain, as
there is no estate agent pumping up prices to earn higher commission.
One of the advantages to the buyer is that you can contact a seller
at any time rather than waiting for the estate agent to pass on
your request.
Most property sites have information on homebuying and mortgages,
calculators and links to other useful sites. For addresses of the
websites mentioned and other sites.
Looking for a mortgage Most people are happy to get credit cards
or buy insurance online, but when it comes to taking out a mortgage
most of us prefer the human touch. There is evidence to suggest
that people are doing their research online, but very few applications
are completed online. The paperwork is complicated and you can only
go so far with most sites – the rest has to be done on the
phone, in the post or in person at a branch.
But before you even get to that stage, you can use a mortgage website
to do some simple calculations. Most mortgage-related sites will
help you to calculate how much you can afford. At their most basic
level, these calculators ask you to put in your income details (and
partner’s details, if you are taking out a joint mortgage),
ask about a deposit and then work out how much you can borrow based
on these details. The more complex calculators ask for details of
debts, credit cards, maintenance payments and monthly outgoings
such as food bills.
Online conveyancing
Not only can the legal process be one of the most stressful
aspects of homebuying but legal fees can also leave a dent in your
bank balance. Online conveyancing pro-mises to speed up the legal
process as well as reduce your legal bills, and you can track the
pro-gress of your case at your convenience.
Online conveyancing enables you to follow the progress of your house
purchase online or by text messages. The Land Registry – the
government agency that collects house price data – is hoping
to develop a fully automated system of e-conveyancing in England
and Wales, but the scheme is unlikely to be fully operational before
2005. Supporters of e-conveyancing, such as the Consumers’
Association, say that it speeds up the process and makes it easier
for buyers to see what’s happening because they have 24-hour
access to their case.
When you buy a house you
normally pay a solicitor or conveyancer by the hour, or
a percentage of the property price, or a fixed fee. Prices can range
from £300 to thousands of pounds, depending on the price of
the property, the complexity of the purchase and the area in which
you live. On top of this you will have to pay around £350
for disbursements, which include local search, Land Registry fees
and environmental fees. E-conveyancing services usually quote a
fixed price and work on a ‘no completion, no fee basis’,
which means if you get gazumped you won’t face a large bill
as well as the loss of your new home.
The internet is a great way of discovering what is available to
you in terms of both property and mortgages. Being able to look
at photographs – or even a 360 degree video – of a property
helps you to get a glimpse of what it is like and therefore eliminates
trips to properties that are just not suitable. Of course, you should
actually go and view your future home before you buy it because
the internet can’t do everything – but I’m sure
that’s only a matter of time!
PREVIOUS Complete guide to Homebuying FEATURES
|
PREVIOUS Complete guide to Homebuying FEATURES 
