Who will be involved in your house move?

Finding a mortgage lender will be one of your first priorities when buying a house, starting with securing a mortgage in principle which will show you’re in a position to move forward as a buyer. Once you’ve put in an offer on a new house, you’ll make your full mortgage application and your solicitor will liaise with your lender throughout the process. 

If you are buying a new house, get in touch with a New Homes Mortgage Adviser (NHMA). NHMAs are specialist mortgage advisers who will offer impartial advice and know about loans from across the whole of the market. 

If you’re moving into a newly built home, your first point of contact with the developer will be at the show home where you can have a look around, find out more about building schedules and ask questions. For older homes, estate agents will contact you to arrange viewings, whether you want to view a house or somebody wants to view yours. 

Conveyancing is the legal process of buying and selling house, and is usually handled by a solicitor. Once you’ve chosen a solicitor, they’ll handle all of the paperwork and contracts on your behalf, while keeping you updated with progress. If you are buying a new home, your solicitor will liaise with the developer’s solicitor, working towards a date for exchanging the contracts and eventually moving in. 

As you start looking at new houses to buy, it’s natural that you’ll show them to family and friends. While opinions can be good, bear in mind that too many thoughts and ideas can be overwhelming, so it’s worth limiting house-move conversations to people who will put your own unique needs before their own.

Of course, your family and friends aren’t just involved at the house-hunting stage. Their help is often crucial when it comes to moving day, whether that’s babysitting the kids, helping with packing or driving the van back-and-forth for DIY removals. 

When you get a moving date, you can book a removal company or choose to take the DIY approach and hire a van. Either way, you’ll need to have a plan of action for moving your belongings from your current house to your new home, so it’s worth planning this as soon as you have a firm date in place for the move.

When you move house, you’ll have to give your new address to lots of different people, including your doctor’s surgery, the DVLA, your home and car insurance company, the local council and your utility providers.

Some of the people you’ll need to contact include:

• Bank or building society
• Credit card or loan companies
• Dentist or doctor
• DVLA
• Gas and electricity suppliers
• HMRC
• Internet service provider
• Local council
• National savings and premium bonds
• Pension companies
• Private healthcare company
• Solicitor
• TV licensing company
• TV provider
• Water supplier
• Your employer

In some cases, monthly direct debits will go up or down once you move, so make sure you keep track of any changes to your outgoings.