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Buying a home

This content applies to Scotland only.

Housing laws vary between Scotland and England. This page applies to Scotland only. Get advice relating to England

This section looks at how to go about buying a home in Scotland, including how to find a suitable property and how the buying process works. It also has information on buying a home if you're disabled, and grants and loans that may be available to help buyers. If you are a council or housing association tenant, you may have the right to buy your home - this section explains how this works.

Overview

If you watch a lot of home buying and selling programmes on TV, you'll probably be familiar with the buying process... in England. In Scotland, however, the process is different. This page explains it step by step. Read more

Working out your finances

If you are planning to buy your own home, you will have to work out how you are going to pay for it. Buying a home isn't just about getting a mortgage, there are other costs involved in the buying process. You also need to be sure you'll be able to afford the running expenses of your new home. Read more

Finding a solicitor

In order to buy a home, you'll need to find a solicitor to give you advice and carry out the legal work involved in buying a home. Read more

Finding a property

Got your mortgage and your solicitor sorted out? Then you're ready to move on to the next step: finding somewhere to buy. Read more

Valuations and surveys

Once you've found a home you like, you will need to get a formal mortgage offer from a lender. The lender must carry out a valuation of the property before they can make you an offer. You'll also need to get a survey done. Read more

Making an offer

Once you have found a property you like, you know that you can afford it and the bank or building society will lend you enough money, your next step is to make the seller an offer. Read more

Getting your offer accepted

Once you have made your offer you have the nerve-wracking experience of waiting to see if it is accepted. This page talks you through what happens after you have made your offer. Read more

Finalising the sale

Once your offer has been verbally accepted, your solicitor will negotiate in detail all the conditions of sale with the seller's solicitor before ownership of the property is transferred to you. This process is called concluding the missives. Read more

Title deeds

Title deeds are the legal documents which show who owns a property or piece of land. This page explains what title deeds are for, where they are kept and what you need to do if you want to change them. Read more

Moving in

This page looks at problems that could occur once you have moved into your new home. Read more

New build homes

New build homes are becoming increasingly popular in Scotland. The process for buying a new build home is slightly different from the process for buying a second-hand home, especially if building work on the property is not yet finished. This page looks at how the process works and what you can do if you're not happy with your new home. Read more

Buying at auction

More and more people are starting to use property auctions as a way to buy a new home cheaply and quickly. This page explains how the auction process works. Read more

Buying if you're a disabled person

If you're a disabled person, buying your own home can lead to greater independence. You can choose where and how you want to live, and adapt your home to suit your lifestyle. This page looks at the things you'll need to consider. Read more

Buying with other people

If you are buying a home with other people, such as a partner, friend or family member, you need to decide who will legally own the property and what financial share each of you will have. Otherwise it may be difficult to agree what you are each entitled to if you later want to sell the property, or if your relationship breaks down. Read more