Book Mortgage Appointment

PF

Moving House Mortgage

First Time Buyers

Remortgage

Bridging Loans

Interest Only Mortgages

Mortgage Review

Moving House Mortgages

Advice on handling your mortgage effectively when moving home.

How Much Can I Borrow?

Use our calculator to find out how much you can borrow.

Guarantor Mortgages

Bridging Loans

Lombard Loans

Unusual Properties

Complex Income

Auction Finance

Self Build Mortgages

International & Expat

Stamp Duty Calculator

Work out how much tax you may need to pay with our stamp duty calculator.

About Private Finance

Private Finance have been delivering independent mortgage advice since 1999.

Single Property BTL

Holiday Let

HMO

Limited Company BTL

Portfolio BTL

Multi Unit Block Mortgages

Airbnb Mortgage

Landlord Insurance

Protect your rental property, income and liability with specialist cover tailored to landlords.

ICR Stress Rate Calculator

Check how rental income, ICR and stress rates could affect your buy-to-let borrowing.

Accountants

Agency Workers

Company Directors

Doctors

Lawyers

Young Professionals

Mortgages For Accountants

Explore tailored mortgage options for accountants with lenders who understand professional career paths.

Mortgages For Lawyers

Explore tailored mortgage options for legal professionals with lenders who understand complex career paths.

Limited Company

Partnership

Sole Trader

Bonus Income

Commission Income

Contractors & Self Employed

Trust Income

Pension Income

Maintenance Income

Complex Income Mortgages

Learn how non-standard and variable income could support your mortgage application.

Mortgages For Self Employed

Explore mortgage options for contractors and self-employed borrowers with specialist income assessment.

4.97 out of 5 based on 2,400+ reviews

5 Reasons Why You Might Consider Using A Property Buying Agent

February 23rd, 2015

Rated 4.97 out of 5 from 2,400+ reviews

A number of our clients in London and the country are turning to the services of a property buying agent, not only to purchase £1million+ houses and apartments but also more modestly priced properties, for residential and sometimes investment purposes. Property buying agents’ fees are in line with the commission you would expect pay an estate agent to sell your home. So what do you get for your money?

See Properties That Never Make The Open Market

Property buying agents often hear privately about newly available properties before anyone else does, being shown around a property before it is fully prepared for sale, because they have a personal contact or because the seller wishes to avoid publicity.

As Ed Foster, buying agent for Middleton Advisors in the northern Home Counties, puts it “We are constantly in the market place and have such good working relationships with the selling agents that they will speak to us before they call anyone else.”

Save Valuble Time

If you are moving to the country, do you have several weekends spare, plus a budget for hotel bills, to travel hundreds of miles to see relatively few properties?

“We’re in easy reach of the regional centres of Norwich, Ipswich, Cambridge, Newmarket and Bury St Edmunds so can offer an active search and acquisition service for anyone who wants to relocate to the area,” says Lisa Dawson of Jackson-Stops & Staff’s Bespoke Property Search service in East Anglia.

If you are moving within London, how do you begin to select from the large number of properties available?

As James Geddes of Private Property Search notes, “In London, it’s not a geographical issue; you will probably be searching in a relatively small area. It is more the sheer volume of properties, especially in the £500,000 – £1million price range. We see over 100 properties a month so are well placed to offer a complete service from establishing the client’s brief to handling the search and acquisition process up to completion.”

A property buying agent will save you time, whether you face geographic challenges or a bewildering choice of property and don’t know where to start.

Save Money

A property buying agent will negotiate on the buyer’s behalf; it’s their profession, they are not emotionally involved and can stand their ground.

“Finding a home is such an emotional thing. Agents can be the voice of reason as well as being absolutely on your side,” says Lisa Dawson.

Access To Local Knowledge

If you are moving area, you might not know the local amenities, villages, schools or whether planning permission has been granted on new developments. By listening to your detailed list of requirements, a property buying agent can direct you to the few places that fit your wish list. This is especially true of rural searches where the geographical area can be huge, but can be just as true of London searches, where long term initiatives such as Crossrail and HS2 will affect the infrastructure in various parts of the capital.

“We have just moved a client into a house where some of the adjacent land was being looked at for development in the local plan,” says Ed Foster. “Through our local network we found out, before the council meeting had even happened, that none of the immediate sites were being put forward for approval to the council and the recommended site was going to be 5 miles away. This gave our client the comfort they needed to purchase the house, where an unrepresented buyer could have pulled out for fear of the unknown.”

Personal Support Throughout The Buying Process

It is the property buying agent’s job to present their client as the best buyer so that it is their offer that gets accepted. To be a good buyer, you need your finances in place; either the mortgage needs to be ready or the cash immediately available. Buying agents work with leading independent mortgage brokers such as Private Finance, in order to ensure you get the right finance for your individual requirements. Agents also connect you with recommended surveyors, architects and builders (to give you accurate estimates for planned alterations and extensions) plus removal firms, decorators and local tradespeople who can quickly help to get you settled into your new home.

“With 15 years of experience, I act as a consultant, steering the client’s decision-making as well as the house-buying process,” says James Geddes. “People come to us because they don’t know exactly what they want, but they do know that they don’t have time.”

Always ask for references from someone who has already used the property buying agent you are considering. As with most professional services, the best agents rely on word of mouth referrals for the majority of their business.

To learn more about your mortgage options, you can reach our team on 0800 652 0971 or email info@privatefinance.co.uk.

This article is based on information available on the date of issue, 23rd February 2015

Please remember that your home could be repossessed if you do not keep up with repayments on your mortgage.

PF

5 Reasons Why You Might Consider Using A Property Buying Agent

See Properties That Never Make The Open Market

Save Valuble Time

Save Money

Access To Local Knowledge

Personal Support Throughout The Buying Process

Other Articles You Might Like

Bank of England Holds the Base Rate at 3.75%, July 2026

From Auction Finance Bridging Loan to Long-Term Buy-to-Let Finance

£1.5m Interest-Only Remortgage On A Multi-Dwelling 50-Acre Estate

Bespoke Mortgage Requirements?

Comparing 300+ lenders accessing the best rates

Free initial consultation with no obligation to proceed

25+ years of industry experience and relationships

Legal

About

Services

Legal

Residential

Commercial

Private Office

Insurance

Calculators & Tools

About Us