Learning The Homeowner’s Vocabulary: A First Time Buyer’s Guide

Buying a home can be a long-drawn-out process, with the average property purchaser taking six months to make their way from that very first viewing to getting their hands on the keys to their new abode. During this time, you’ll come up against a LOT of jargon, terms that can leave even the most seasoned buyer scratching their head.

Our new homes in Darlington have attracted individuals from all walks of life and with varying property buying experience, yet we’re as keen as you to keep the property buying process as straightforward, simple and jargon-free as possible. That’s why we’ve penned this guide to the key terms to understand when buying your first home.

Freehold

You’ll come across two main property types during your search – freehold and leasehold. Most properties within the UK are sold as freehold, this means you own the property and the land it is constructed on.

Leasehold

While less common, there are a huge number of leasehold properties in the UK. The majority of leasehold properties however tend to be apartments. With a leasehold property, you do not own the land. Instead, you own the property for a set period of time while the land it sits on remains the property of the freeholder.

When buying a leasehold property, pay attention to the time left on the lease. Ideally, it should be between 125 and 999 years. Shorter leases can be extended with the freeholder or landlord’s permission.

Conveyancing

Once you’ve found your perfect freehold or leasehold property, there’s more house buying terminology to contend with. Conveyancing refers to the actual process used to transfer property or land ownership from a seller to a buyer, and it consists of several hoops that both parties must jump through.

Conveyancing begins as soon as your offer is accepted. To get you from start to finish, you’ll need to instruct a conveyancer or solicitor. They’ll fulfil various duties to ensure all those legal boxes are ticked.

Chain

The conveyancing process can be made more complicated with the presence of a chain. In property, a chain refers to a group of buyers and sellers that are connected by a purchase or sale, and these chains can be short or exceedingly long.

With long chains, there is more potential for something to go wrong, with all those transactions taking time and relying on their own chain of events to reach completion. That’s why chain-free sellers and first time buyers are so desirable.

Exchange

The exchange of contracts is an important stage of the conveyancing process. Not to be confused with completion – more on that next! – the exchange of contracts makes the transfer of ownership legally binding. This means both parties are obligated to complete based on the terms agreed.

Completion

This signals the end of the conveyancing process, and occurs once those contracts have been signed, and the associated deeds and funds transferred. Upon completion, you are the legal owner of the property.