Some clients ask for a fast home sale so that they can become a first time buyer for their next home.  This approach gives people the confidence they want to approach the market when they are looking for their next home so that they get the best deals.

Although not immediately obvious, this approach has material benefits.  Once a person has sold their property to a property trader they are unencumbered with respect to having a chain and can classify themselves as a first time buyer.   The most obvious benefit this gives is the ability to negotiate a lower price with other sellers when offering to buy a property.  All sellers like a first time buyer as it gives them more chance of a quick transaction and less risk of it falling through because of the rest of the chain.  This can often be worth 5-10% in terms of price negotiation for the buyer.  This is especially true with new build homes.  With the market turbulence we are seeing at the moment first time buyers should easily be able to negotiate 15-30% of the asking price of a new build property, if they approach the developer at the right time in the development cycle.

Other benefits include the fact  that mortgage companies and banks will bend over backwards to give you a mortgage as they always want to catch first time buyers as they know there is a high chance the person will stay with them for a long time.  Helpful hints on how to approach this can be found at Moneysavingexpert.com.  Also, there are first time buyer schemes available to use if appropriate.  Some of these are listed in the property portal rightmove.

Once a person becomes a first time buyer, the advice we would give is not to fall into the same traps as other first time buyers.  We have listed below the things not to do:

• Do not fall in love with the house, treat it as a financial investment until you have bought it
• Don't lose control of your purchase, make sure you keep on top of the process and keep in touch with the selling agent at all times
• Don't be indecisive - there will be plenty of decisions and your ability to make these quickly will ensure the purchase does not fall through