Buying a house!

[Em]

Ok, am in the process of buying my first house, after living in rented accomodation for 5 years.

Im very streesed at the moment, and just wondered if you guys have any tips for someone in my position?

For example - how to save money (its costing a fortune!)
things I need to remember
how to be less stressed!

I dont have much famliy neither does my other half really, and I might be 23 but i think I need a grown up to guide me through bits and pieces I will forget about!

Many thanks if you can help!

[Kim]

If you or your other half own a van or lorry or could borrow one, use that to move your belongings. My parents saved money that way.

[Trinity]

Congratulations - it is a big step, and well worth it.

When I bought my first flat in 1988 interest rates rocketed to 13% within months and saving money was something that I got quite good at, lol

I think that we lived of homemade soup and baked potatoes for most of the first year.

Also - remember that you don't need to buy everything new. You can pick up furniture that it quite ok and servicable in charity/junk shops for a pittance.

Things like sofas are really expensive - don't fall for all that buy now and pay in 5 years garbage - by the time you start paying you are fed up with the sofa and you won't beable to afford another one for years.

The most important thing is the house - everything else will come with time. If you are sensible and don't expect everything to be perfect at once you will be fine.

Try to keep away from credit cards as well. If you do need to buy things such as fridges washing machines etc then try to get an interest free deal - there are still a lot of them about.

When you start to decorate and do your place up try to concentrate on one room at a time - if you have one room that is finished then it is great to go in it - shut the door and forget about the rest of the place for a while.

Shop around for solicitors - the fees are not standard and you will find some are cheaper than others. See if anyone you know can recommend someone.

It is really worth not getting into a lot of unsecured debt if you can, i.e. credit cards etc.

My first flat was a 2 bed, everything we had was 2nd hand but we managed without getting into a lot of debt other than the mortgage. One of my friend also bought a 2 bed flat at that time - everything was perfect and new and shiney - and expensive. When we moved up to our next house she was still paying for all the gear she bought for the flat.

She still lives in the same flat 18 years later and I live in a 5 bed detatched.....

[Rain_]

Everyone was asking what to buy me as a housewarming gift. I asked for a laundry basket filled with cleaning products etc. All my friends chipped in and i got a huge basket of washing up liquid, cleaning products, cloths, washing powder, paint brushes etc. You'd be surprised at how much of this stuff you forget when you move house.