Hmm Rightmove only seemed to show me nearby schools, I will have to try looking on a PC rather than the app.

I would likely change where I'm having the baby but I don't have any particular relationship with the midwives etc here (in fact they have been a bit rubbish) so I'm okay with that.

It's hard to explain the location of the schools, I might be being overly optimistic but I don't think they would park in this area- just because there's plenty of other places nearby for them to park instead as the schools are surrounded by residential streets.

Thanks for the fence and land registry tips!

Ask about the fence it may not actually belong to the property and could be the responsibility of what or whoever is the other side. Boundaries and fences can be problematic when it comes to replacing.

Double check the car parking permit situation, does the numbered space belong to the house or is it controlled by the local authorities.

Check TV reception if you watch terrestrial TV and broadband speeds etc if these are important to you.

As there is a football ground nearby, go down on match day. Although parking is restricted, check for noise, litter, crowds.

Great tips thanks. I thought the football thing might be an issue but DH thinks not as the house is located to the rear of the stadium, so they'd have to walk a long convoluted route. It's just a local football club I think.

Definitley a good point on the TV ariels- our current rented place is so bad for that. We have two signal boosters downstairs and even then it goes in and out. The upstairs point doesn't work at all. The letting agent says its not their problem.

Not sure if a parking permit is needed but definitley something to check.

How exciting to be looking for your first home, that's a lovely feeling.

My top advice would be to look inside the cupboards (kitchen mainly). My niece viewed a house and it had a lovely kitchen - or so she thought. Once she bought it, she realised they'd put new doors on and the carcasses were absolutely rotten. Cost her £6k for a new kitchen - lesson learnt. Open the doors and peek inside!

I would ask about any neighbour dispute (you will need to get this in writing via your solicitor). Nothing worse than them saying the neighbours are lovely, only for you to find out they are a nightmare and the people who sold to you had a mountain of complaints against them. This is against the law not to disclose I believe, but best to get the info up front.

Drive there at different times of the day and weekends to check out parking, noise etc. Walk around the area and get a feel for it.

Offer below if that's what you want, but have a reason for offering below. Being first time buyers, you are in a stronger position than someone in a chain, use that to your advantage. Make sure your offer has the caveat that if accepted, the house must be removed from all advertising and no more viewings accepted.

Ask about any management fees (if it's a newish house) - they can really add up each year and most require an extra payment when you remortgage.

Research future building plans for the area. You don't want to buy because it overlooks a beautiful meadow, then find out the farmer sold it and 200 houses are going to be built on it! Don't trust anyone else to do this research - do it yourselves for peace of mind.

If there is loft access, be sure to take a look so have a torch/step ladder in your car in case they say they don't have one available. A hidden ton of trouble could be up there (like daylight)!

Is there room to expand should you wish to? Out the back, on top or to the side? Have other houses in the street done extensions?

To finish (apologies for going on) - don't be too keen in front of the owners. Make nice comments if you want, but don't over-egg it. If this one is the right one, everything will fall into place, but don't let emotion rule your head. Something better will always turn up if this one doesn't work out.

Enjoy!
Joa

Where will we all park when you invite us all for the housewarming party?!;)

we used to knock on a couple of the neighbours houses and tell them we are thinking of buying the neighbouring house and ask what the road is like to live in - always worked well for us and gives you a realistic, honest view of the road/street :)

Thank you great tips. It looks new-ish but pretty sure its not classed as a new build under 2 years, we definitely need to ask about that as our decision in principal doesn't cover new properties.

Very good tip on bringing a torch. I've looked at other sold houses which are almost identical, just have their gardens done up better and one went for £15k more so it does make me wonder what is wrong with this one. Could it just be the garden and decoration? Or maybe it's Brexit affecting house prices?

It's a fairly built up area anyway, a modern development that backs onto an industrial estate (with a street or two separation from 'our' house) so no beautiful lakes to ruin lol. I don't think my mother approves as she keeps sending us links to scenic countryside cottages but we care more about the inside of the house and local amenities than the scenery! She also keeps sending me 'Kirsty and Phil say this' lol. One of them being ask them to take it off the market when an offer is accepted like you say!

No room to extend it, possibly bar a conservatory. But it's more than big enough for our needs anyway which is mostly what we love about it- even if we have more than one child we wouldn't need to move, it has 4 bedrooms 3 of which are doubles. From google satellite view it doesn't look like anyone else has done any extensions.


Lol! I think my parents might be displeased if there's nowhere to park, but worst case scenario it's a few minutes away from the park and ride so they can go there lol. It's a new-ish development (not new new) and of course nowadays it's all one allocated parking space per house and no spare parking.

Four bedroom houses with one space each - ouch...

would go round on a Saturday morning and look at the state of the parking. We live in a leafy, open, 70's suburb - 3 bed houses with driveways for 2-3 cars and plenty of road space to park - but on a Saturday when everyone is home with their 2 or more cars - it is like a car park, and just getting down the road can be hellish.

Drive down our street during the day , you see houses with double drives mainly empty. During the evenings/weekends it's like a slalom course driving down it. Houses with kids/parents cars everywhere. Makes me worry emergency vehicles won't get past.

We have Management Fees on a Freehold property as a 'New Build' bought in 2014. The fees are unregulated, they can increase the fees each year as much as they like. We have had to form as Residents Association to try and remove Management Company but it is not easy. We are lucky that the council are adopting the roads otherwise the fees would be even higher. Please check and if they say there are any small fees involved run away.