One of the greatest drivers in owning a home of our own is the desire to create a safe space where we can truly be ourselves. However, it’s rarely straightforward – even if not your first rodeo, buying a home takes patience, diligence, and vision.
We spoke to three buyers about their experiences navigating this major milestone – from the maze of people and paperwork to the peace they felt once finally settled in their new space – so that you can be inspired to make your own move when the time comes.
Samia Hadjadji, teacher, 50, single, mother of one
Location: Leyton, east London
Property: three-bedroom terrace house
The imminent arrival of her daughter kicked off Samia Hadjadji’s property search, before a series of unplanned viewings led her, and her partner at the time, to purchase a home in Leyton.
In 2010 the couple were renting a flat in Canary Wharf and initially started their property search there, but were sidetracked when their plans to view a house in the area fell through. Hadjadji says: “The estate agent didn’t have the keys, so he said: ‘I can show you a few properties in Leyton.’ I hadn’t even thought about moving to Leyton. The first two were a bit small, then the third one – I just fell in love.”
Compared with Canary Wharf prices, the location was much more affordable, and being close to the Olympic Park, it was an area of regeneration. The garden caught Hadjadji’s eye and is still her favourite space: “It’s funny because the indoors hasn’t changed that much, but the garden – I constantly change things, literally every summer.”
Being six months pregnant when they started the house search, Hadjadji was glad the process was moved along by being prepared. For example, they had already organised a mortgage in principle, as suggested by their mortgage adviser, so they knew how much they could afford. While not binding like a mortgage offer, a mortgage in principle (which you can get through Rightmove) does show a seller you’re serious about buying.
She recalls: “We moved in with a brand new baby three months later – everyone told us we were crazy!”
Hadjadji’s daughter is now 14, and apart from raising her child, having this home is her proudest achievement. She describes buying her ex-partner out of the property in 2015 as “the best decision of my life”, despite the extra stretch on her finances, with the value of the house having now nearly doubled.
“You know, you’re really attached to your first house, and my daughter is too. So that was the best decision I made, to keep the house and just do it on my own.”
Kwame Gyamfi, mechanical engineer, 45, single
Location: Clapham Junction, south London
Property: studio flat
Kwame Gyamfi had been renting a studio flat in Clapham Junction for more than a decade, but always believed he would buy his own place. “I was looking but could never find a flat that was both within my price range and in an area I wanted. Then, while I was going for viewings, my landlord put the flat I was renting up for sale.”
This lucky chain of events saw Gyamfi open up a conversation with his landlord and, “for a quick sale, he agreed to sell it to me”.
Gyamfi used Rightmove to look at properties in the area, and their values and prices over time, which came in very handy when negotiating the price for his flat. Using Rightmove meant he could get an instant valuation to see how much the flat was worth, as well as local sold prices. “I did a lot of my own research and looked through Rightmove for properties in the area as a comparison,” says Gyamfi.
His biggest obstacle during the process? “Getting the deal completed. The solicitor on my side kept dragging their feet, but I just had to ride it out. The actual buying of the property took about a year.” While a year is exceptional, the buying process is longer than you might think – the average time from agreeing a sale to legal completion is five months, or 154 days, according to Rightmove.
Gyamfi has now owned the flat for three-and-a-half years, but it already felt like home because of his years renting there. “Now I’m at liberty to do what I want to with the flat, and it feels good to own my own home rather than be renting.”
Not much has happened by way of renovation, except a lick of paint – but he describes the living room as an extension of his personality: “It reflects my identity. The books, the music, the pictures on the wall.”
Mel Mills, cake business owner, 43, married with two children aged two and five
Location: Bromsgrove, Worcestershire
Property: four-bedroom semi-detached Victorian house
Mel Mills and her husband, John, 39, started their property search with one request, that the house had to be on the main train line through Birmingham. “I worked in the centre of Birmingham at the time as an NHS sonographer [using ultrasound],” she says. “John worked all over the place, so he needed good motorway access.”
Rightmove was their starting point, and it was while searching that John, a solutions architect, found the property that would become home to their future family.
Mel recalls: “I wasn’t that fussed about viewing it as my heart was set on another property on the opposite side of Birmingham. But we came through the front door, and I just got this feeling. We were standing behind the owners and I remember holding on to John’s sleeve, tugging it, going: ‘Oh my gosh!’, but trying to be cool.”
She adds that while they tried to negotiate on the price, the sellers weren’t very keen on haggling as they had just dropped it. Because of this, the property had come into their budget and searches and, armed with a mortgage in principle, they could offer at the top end of their budget.
The sale of their house fell through four times by the time they had completed. Mel’s advice to those on the start of their home buying journey? “Be patient. Do expect things to go wrong.”
On the house feeling like a home, it took the couple – and their cat – a while to settle in: “It felt like we were in someone else’s house. Our cat moved with us – he was traumatised by the whole thing and it took him about three weeks to actually venture down from upstairs.
“When he was finally snuggled up on the sofa, purring, I knew, OK, this is good.”
With the UK’s largest choice of homes and helpful affordability tools, find out how Rightmove can help you make your move.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on a mortgage secured against it. The information and opinions provided in this article are not intended to be financial advice and should not be relied upon when making financial decisions. Please seek advice from a regulated mortgage adviser.
Rightmove Group Limited (RMG), Firm Reference No. 491645, is an Appointed Representative of Rightmove Financial Services Limited (RMFS), which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, Firm Reference No. 805415. This can be checked on the FCA register at www.fca.org.uk/register