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Hello Dear Reader,
We moved just a little over a year ago and it was life changing for us. We moved from a large home to a small cottage and did so specifically to save money. We loved our previous home but it really cost us more than we could afford long term in mortgage and upkeep. Financially, we have found a level that is sustainable. Our energy bills and mortgage payments have halved. Our council tax is one third less than it was as is our home insurance. It made sense for us to move even though people with similar incomes to ourselves are looking for the 'wow factor', whilst we just want a cosy home.
However, the year we moved caused us financial strain and it's important to factor in house selling costs. To start, we had to work on our garden and it cost us a lot in landscaping even when we did most of it ourselves. We had to pay a builder to relay the paths and repair the patio. We had to decorate through and even a coat of paint in every room adds to the expense. In the end it was worth it but all of those 'house doctor' issues had to be addressed. By far our biggest expense was our estate agent. Now we were lucky as we signed up with an agent who had just opened in their first year of trading and hadn't earned enough to charge VAT yet and also had offers of 1% in their first year of trading to build a reputation. Those offers are not usually open to everyone and an average £250K home will cost £5000 at least to sell with agents taking 2% of the total price plus VAT of another £1000. If you then go an add stamp duty of 1% of purchase price and the legal fees on the sale and the purchase then a house move can cost nearer to £10,000. Still, it's worth moving if it will save your family money and lead to a more financially secure future.
Currently, there are few houses on the market and those on the market sell on average in sixty five days. The house goes on the market and search engines such as Right Move help us all to find the house we're looking for. We had an extremely good agent who worked hard on the buyers to sell them a house and negotiated hard on the part of the seller and buyer. Some agents just don't work that hard. The house goes onto Prime Location and Right Move and some don't organise viewings and just let the vendor show people around. You might wonder what you're paying for? It's no wonder more and more people are selling their house themselves using online services and paying a one off upfront fee and saving themselves a whole pile of money. (Click HERE for the evidence)
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There are ways to save money when buying and selling and if you're prepared to put in the work then the savings will be significant.
Selling - in the current buoyant market you could sell online with a company such as My online estate agent and save a lot of estate agent fees.
Don't spend too much renovating your house before selling. We painted all the woodwork white with gloss and all the walls magnolia. I had the carpets cleaned instead of replacing them and keeping the place clean and tidy doesn't cost anything at all.
Don't neglect the garden. Paint the fences and the shed it will freshen the place for very little. Weed all the borders, put down membrane and mulch, again low in cost but will tidy the place. Hire a jet washer and clean down the patio and drive way. It will look like new after that. Keep the windows cleaned and consider cleaning the gutters and exterior trim or woodwork. No need to spend anything on replacing just getting the place clean and tidy and you'll save the most money by doing the work yourself.
De-clutter and de-personalise. People can't envisage living there if they can't see through your possessions or family pictures. Let them imagine living there and not see you living there. Box everything up and put it in the loft, your friend's garage or better still the charity shop and have a clear out. Also, clear out the garage and show it with the car in it so they can imagine the enhanced security of having their car locked away.
When you get to your new house only spend within your means. Our furniture didn't suit our cottage and we sold it or freecycled it (it was mainly second hand anyway) so we bought our furniture for the cottage from a house clearance company. We then did it up by painting it and it kept the cost down.
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Hello Dear Reader,
We moved just a little over a year ago and it was life changing for us. We moved from a large home to a small cottage and did so specifically to save money. We loved our previous home but it really cost us more than we could afford long term in mortgage and upkeep. Financially, we have found a level that is sustainable. Our energy bills and mortgage payments have halved. Our council tax is one third less than it was as is our home insurance. It made sense for us to move even though people with similar incomes to ourselves are looking for the 'wow factor', whilst we just want a cosy home.
 |
| Our finished garden at our previous house, it was worth the work to get it sold. |
However, the year we moved caused us financial strain and it's important to factor in house selling costs. To start, we had to work on our garden and it cost us a lot in landscaping even when we did most of it ourselves. We had to pay a builder to relay the paths and repair the patio. We had to decorate through and even a coat of paint in every room adds to the expense. In the end it was worth it but all of those 'house doctor' issues had to be addressed. By far our biggest expense was our estate agent. Now we were lucky as we signed up with an agent who had just opened in their first year of trading and hadn't earned enough to charge VAT yet and also had offers of 1% in their first year of trading to build a reputation. Those offers are not usually open to everyone and an average £250K home will cost £5000 at least to sell with agents taking 2% of the total price plus VAT of another £1000. If you then go an add stamp duty of 1% of purchase price and the legal fees on the sale and the purchase then a house move can cost nearer to £10,000. Still, it's worth moving if it will save your family money and lead to a more financially secure future.
Currently, there are few houses on the market and those on the market sell on average in sixty five days. The house goes on the market and search engines such as Right Move help us all to find the house we're looking for. We had an extremely good agent who worked hard on the buyers to sell them a house and negotiated hard on the part of the seller and buyer. Some agents just don't work that hard. The house goes onto Prime Location and Right Move and some don't organise viewings and just let the vendor show people around. You might wonder what you're paying for? It's no wonder more and more people are selling their house themselves using online services and paying a one off upfront fee and saving themselves a whole pile of money. (Click HERE for the evidence)
There are ways to save money when buying and selling and if you're prepared to put in the work then the savings will be significant.
Selling - in the current buoyant market you could sell online with a company such as My online estate agent and save a lot of estate agent fees.
Don't spend too much renovating your house before selling. We painted all the woodwork white with gloss and all the walls magnolia. I had the carpets cleaned instead of replacing them and keeping the place clean and tidy doesn't cost anything at all.
Don't neglect the garden. Paint the fences and the shed it will freshen the place for very little. Weed all the borders, put down membrane and mulch, again low in cost but will tidy the place. Hire a jet washer and clean down the patio and drive way. It will look like new after that. Keep the windows cleaned and consider cleaning the gutters and exterior trim or woodwork. No need to spend anything on replacing just getting the place clean and tidy and you'll save the most money by doing the work yourself.
De-clutter and de-personalise. People can't envisage living there if they can't see through your possessions or family pictures. Let them imagine living there and not see you living there. Box everything up and put it in the loft, your friend's garage or better still the charity shop and have a clear out. Also, clear out the garage and show it with the car in it so they can imagine the enhanced security of having their car locked away.
When you get to your new house only spend within your means. Our furniture didn't suit our cottage and we sold it or freecycled it (it was mainly second hand anyway) so we bought our furniture for the cottage from a house clearance company. We then did it up by painting it and it kept the cost down.
Also, when furnishing your new home on a budget, don't forget the charity shops and car boot sales. My best bargain ever came from a charity shop where I bought almost new curtains for £10.
I also think that the best way to save money when you get to your new home is to live beneath your means and live in it and not show it off. You did all the fussing to sell your previous home and now you can put your feet up and enjoy your home.
Over to you, what advice can you share about keeping down the cost of moving home?
Until tomorrow,
Love Froogs xxxx
