specialenvoy:
For those in IT, Please I need leads on where I can get contract jobs specifically on Data Analyst roles

Thanks

Linkedin. Set up varied job alerts and make sure you visit the "jobs" section on the app to view jobs and apply.

2 of my 3 recent roles have been via LinkedIn (the first I saw on my feed because someone I was following reposted and the second, the recruiter contacted me directly via linkedin). The 3rd role was via indeed - it was advertised and I applied.

I'm currently interviewing for another role and it was also via LinkedIn (I was redirected to apply for the role on monster.com).

mex551:
I PMed you the day you posted it but u did not respond

I am so sorry, I replied your pm but I didn't see your response.

mex551:
I PMed you the day you posted it but u did not respond

Sorry, Do you still want it please ?

Biko, please, ejoor. People of Newcastle, Which App do you use for your buses.
I will be coming in tomorrow from Edinburgh. Help me as usual.
Thank you dear Ancestors.
You people are doing well Oooooin.

Temi231:


Madam, how many months do you think someone can start thinking of buying a house of its own in the Uk. When do you think I can approach a bank and what advantage do someone that already have at least 20% of the deposit for intending house? Thank you always for your insightful advice

You can do it straightaway. You have a deposit (they'll want to trace proof of funds too), have a job and a visa longer than 18 months - you're good to go. The higher your deposit, the less your interest rate, that's the biggest advantage of a higher deposit. However interest rates are currently quite low so use the lowest deposit allowed and fix for a longer period then invest the rest of the deposit or even just overpay on the mortgage regularly.

Temi231:


Madam, how many months do you think someone can start thinking of buying a house of its own in the Uk. When do you think I can approach a bank and what advantage do someone that already have at least 20% of the deposit for intending house? Thank you always for your insightful advice

Its not just about having a deposit. The bank looks at affordability. That is, can you pay your mortgage monthly through the term of the mortgage without defaulting? You need to have stable and regular income to demonstrate affordability.

If you have a job that covers your expenses including the monthly repayments, then you are good to go.

Thank you for this but if am doing outside IR35 will mean that I have to use my own registered company and sort out all the tax payments myself?

Ralphlauren:


Outside IR35 is better as you are able to claim expenses which means your take home pay is much more depending on your tax arrangements. Eg. Getting paid minimum wage every month and taking a lump dividend payment at the end of the company's financial year.

Regarding the frequency of wage payments, it depends on the recruitment agency. Some pay weekly but majority pay monthly. Some crazy ones have 45-60 days payment policy especially for roles outside IR35.

Just another quick one, can I get a mortgage if am on a contract job?

Seems Lenders tend to favour those on a permanent contract more than those on contract jobs, is that true?

Ralphlauren:


Its not just about having a deposit. The bank looks at affordability. That is, can you pay your mortgage monthly through the term of the mortgage without defaulting? You need to have stable and regular income to demonstrate affordability.

If you have a job that covers your expenses including the monthly repayments, then you are good to go.

specialenvoy:
Thank you for this but if am doing outside IR35 will mean that I have to use my own registered company and sort out all the tax payments myself?

Yes, you can get paid using your registered company where you have to pay corporation tax, etc or you can use an umbrella company.

If you decide to use your registered company, get yourself a good accountant. Asians or Nigerian accountants are usually good.

specialenvoy:
Just another quick one, can I get a mortgage if am on a contract job?

Seems Lenders tend to favour those on a permanent contract more than those on contract jobs, is that true?

Yes, you can. I currently have 2 mortgages. My source of income and affordability tests were based on my contract jobs.

I used very good mortgage brokers/advisors that sourced the lowest possible interest rates for me though.

Anything is possible if you have a very good mortgage broker that knows his stuff.

Ralphlauren:


Its not just about having a deposit. The bank looks at affordability. That is, can you pay your mortgage monthly through the term of the mortgage without defaulting? You need to have stable and regular income to demonstrate affordability.

If you have a job that covers your expenses including the monthly repayments, then you are good to go.

Okay. I have a regular income too. That means I am good to go. Thanks

Ralphlauren:


Yes, you can. I currently have 2 mortgages. My source of income and affordability tests were based on my contract jobs.

I used very good mortgage brokera/advisors that sourced the lowest possible interest rates for me though.

Anything is possible if you have a very good [b]mortgage broker [/b]that knows his stuff.

Can you advice/ suggest on this

Ticha:


You can do it straightaway. You have a deposit (they'll want to trace proof of funds too), have a job and a visa longer than 18 months - you're good to go. The higher your deposit, the less your interest rate, that's the biggest advantage of a higher deposit. However interest rates are currently quite low so use the lowest deposit allowed and fix for a longer period then invest the rest of the deposit or even just overpay on the mortgage regularly.

Thank you so much. Please can I DM you. I know you have talked much about property here but still have some questions. I don’t want to be flooding the post with questions you might have answered before. Let me know if it’s okay.

Please flood oo. We are following with keen interest

Temi231:


Thank you so much. Please can I DM you. I know you have talked much about property here but still have some questions. I don’t want to be flooding the post with questions you might have answered before. Let me know if it’s okay.

Okay. I think I can go ahead and ask my questions to help people in my shoes that want to stop paying rent money like oga Lexus dey talk . My question is this:
1. What is the step-by-step process of getting property in the Uk? My curiosity is saying; getting a house you like, meeting your bank, meeting mortgage broker( Don’t have anyone now) needs advice on this too, have a lawyer…. Please help us with the detailed process. This country needs guidance to live. Madam Ticha, Oga Ralphlauren, and other Uk ancestors, please help me put mouth.
What does repayment interest rate mean in reality? Not theoretical term. I checked on money market for comparison but needs more guide. How to pick the best.

Temi231:
Okay. I think I can go ahead and ask my questions to help people in my shoes that want to stop paying rent money like oga Lexus dey talk . My question is this:
1. What is the step-by-step process of getting property in the Uk? My curiosity is saying; getting a house you like, meeting your bank, meeting mortgage broker( Don’t have anyone now) needs advice on this too, have a lawyer…. Please help us with the detailed process. This country needs guidance to live. Oga Ralphlauren, and other Uk ancestors, please help me put mouth.

I shared the info below last year on the old thread. Its still very relevant with the exception of the stamp duty holiday which was closed last year.

https://www.nairaland.com/4158866/living-uk-life-uk-immigrant/523#98157720

===================

I have a lot to share but I will start with pricing.

Houses are usually advertised as FIXED PRICE, OFFERS IN THE REGION OF and OFFERS ABOVE A CERTAIN PRICE.

Before you place a bid or even consider buying a property, the first thing you should look at and read carefully is the valuation report (called the Home report in Scotland). This report is prepared by a valuer registered with the Royal institute of Chartered Surveyors and it details independent checks carried out by the valuer on the property, the reinstatement value of the property and most importantly, the value of the property in the open market.

The value of the property as stated in the valuation report should be compared with the starting price advertised by the sellers and the price at which similar properties have sold within the same area for a particular period.

Please note that there isn't any bank that will lend you money (mortgage) that is higher than the value of the property stated on the valuation report. A lot of first time buyers make this mistake/false assumption and when they realise they can't fork out the difference, they pull put of the purchase and the sale falls through, leaving them with legal fees and disgusted sellers, etc.

For example, if a property is valued by the valuer as £300,000 and the seller asks for offers above £300,000 and he accepts a bid of £350,000, the bank will lend up to £300,000. This means the buyer would have to put down a deposit of 15% of £300,000 (most lenders are currently not accepting deposits below 15% because of the current economic uncertainty due to covid) and the £50,000 difference will come from the sellers purse plus additional legal fees. So in total, the buyer is putting down £95,000 as deposit.

Its very important not to get carried away with bidding wars and pay over the value of a property. My first purchase was advertised as fixed price and I was able to get £1000 knocked off as the property didn't come with a fridge/freezer and washing machine. Personally, I have never bought a property above the value stated on the valuation report. I take my time, do my research and get the one that fits my budget. grin

When bidding/buying a property, calculator is your best friend. grin you need to have a budget and stick to it. During bidding, start with £1000 above the guide price and instruct your lawyers to keep in regular touch with the seller's solicitors until you agree on an acceptable bid or you walk away.

My most recent purchase was advertised as asking for offers £10,000 below the value of the property. I started bidding by adding £1,000 each time and after some back and forth and assurances to them that missives will be completed within 5 weeks, they accepted a final sale price which was exactly the value as seen on the valuation report.

I will also suggest leaving an impression with the sellers during viewing. I have a friend who bidded for a property but the sellers accepted a lower bid from a young couple because they said my friend was buying the property for investment unlike the young couple that were just starting out with a baby on the way.

If you are not the first time buyer of the property, I will suggest you look at the previous sale price and how much the property has appreciated or depreciated in value throughout its history. You can do same for similar properties in the area and this will give you an idea on the potential future value of the property.

Set up property notification alerts on zoopla,, rightmove, espc, etc and arrange a viewing as soon as you see a property you like. The earlier you put in a bid before other buyers, the better. You do not have to wait until your lawyers put in an offer on your behalf. Let the selling solicitors know that you would like to put in an informal note of interest and your solicitors will be in touch.

You also have to consider legal fees, mortgage advisor fees and stamp duty fees.

Stamp duty fees are so annoying. What you pay depends on if the value of your property is above a certain threshold and whether or not its your first home/main home. There is currently stamp duty holiday which i believes end in March.

Finally, interior decor of a property is key. It can influence the value of a property and attract big spenders to purchase the property.

If you have other questions, tag me and I'll respond.

Ralphlauren:


Yes, you can. I currently have 2 mortgages. My source of income and affordability tests were based on my contract jobs.

I used very good mortgage brokera/advisors that sourced the lowest possible interest rates for me though.

Anything is possible if you have a very good mortgage broker that knows his stuff.

Thanks for this information. I will definitely need their contact when it's time

Temi231:


Thank you so much. Please can I DM you. I know you have talked much about property here but still have some questions. I don’t want to be flooding the post with questions you might have answered before. Let me know if it’s okay.

Yes you can

Temi231:
Okay. I think I can go ahead and ask my questions to help people in my shoes that want to stop paying rent money like oga Lexus dey talk . My question is this:
1. What is the step-by-step process of getting property in the Uk? My curiosity is saying; getting a house you like, meeting your bank, meeting mortgage broker( Don’t have anyone now) needs advice on this too, have a lawyer…. Please help us with the detailed process. This country needs guidance to live. Madam Ticha, Oga Ralphlauren, and other Uk ancestors, please help me put mouth.
What does repayment interest rate mean in reality? Not theoretical term. I checked on money market for comparison but needs more guide. How to pick the best.

All this applies to England and Wales. In Scotland, you can skip the survey part as a home valuation pack is always included from the get go and solicitors also handle the negotiation process.

1. Firstly get an approval in principle. It's easier to get this from your own bank. It doesn't tie you to them either. An approval in principle or decision in principle gives you a very good ball park of how much the bank (give or take most banks) will lend you. This tells you what sort of budget to set when you eventually start house hunting. A broker can also do this for you. Use a whole of market broker. Some brokers aee restricted to certain lenders. If in doubt, use London and Country. They have brokers everywhere.

2. Set up an alert on Rightmove. There is a chrome extension called property log - it shows you what changes have been made to listed properties, how long they've been listed for etc. Some agents will remove and relist a property every 14 days if it's not selling. Some will tinker slightly with the prices often. Property log shows you all this.

3. Decide on where and then what you want to buy. Where - location, access to schools, transport links or hubs. What - house, flat, no of bedrooms. Semi, mid or stand alone, garden (orientation of the garden as well), south facing gardens gets the most sun in the UK. In Scotland, find a solicitor. I use McVey and Murricane Solicitors.

4. Start viewing houses. Be friendly with the agents. Never, ever give them your full budget - remember their duty is to get the most amount possible for the vendor. Some big chains (Countrywide etc) will insist you get qualified by their mortgage advisor and some will not even show you a property or take your offer unless you do so. It's not illegal although it's questionable as by law they must present all offers to the vendor. If you have a broker - direct them to your broker at this point, Otherwise, you can share the AIP but be aware they will then try to push you to your max budget.

5. When you view houses, take a note pad with you. Note things as you go along. The state of the inside, outside, roof (cross the street and check for missing tiles etc). Open every cupboard and door. Check if it has an attic - check that it is lined or insulated (climb in), check for basements. Look out for damp walls, bulging paint work (evidence of issues), musty smells (damp) etc
Check what the electrics and boiler looks like. Seek permission and take pictures and or a video. Some will say no hence the notebook so you can remember as all the houses will start blurring into each other.

6. Call agents regularly. Some will call you before the property even hits Rightmove if you have a good relationship with them.

7. When you find a place you like, visit the street at different times of the day. For houses we live in, I do mornings (rush hour), afternoons (rush hour) and evenings/ night (party central, people hanging about aimlessly etc). Properties are flying off the shelves now so you may not even have time for this.

8. Make an offer if you like it. It's a bargaining process. The rule of thumb is knock 20% of what is your best and final offer and inch towards the final figure. Some agents will openly tell you offers below a certain amount won't be considered. Ignore them and make an offer anyway. In Scotland - your lawyers handle this process

9. When your offer is accepted, instruct a solicitor. Find out from your bank or broker if they have a panel (some do and won't accept a solicitor not on their panel) Stay away from solicitors recommended by the agent. I tend to also avoid online solicitors even though they're cheap. Experience tells me they are slow and also shift work around so you end up having more than 1 person to deal with.

10. If you want to carry out a survey, find a surveyor once you've instructed a solicitor. Ensure that they are a RICS surveyor. Be prepared to spend between £600 and £1000. You own this report and the surveyor works for you. A lot of surveys will also contain many arse covering statements which can be pretty daunting at first glance. Ask the surveyor to list and split into categories like must do now, can do in the next 3 to 6 months and can do within 12 months. Use the survey to negotiate further. We once got 20k off the agreed price after the survey. We then finally pulled out and sold the survey to the seller join

11. Put in a full mortgage application. This can take upto 4-6 weeks to come through. Your broker will do this once an offer has been accepted if you have one. Or the bank will do it if going direct.

12. Be patient and be prepared to wait! It takes an average of 12 weeks to complete on a property. The solicitor will complete searches, AML checks then come back to you with an exchange date. Once contracts are exchanged, you don buy house be that and cannot pull out without incurring penalties. However, you can pull out with no consequences as can the seller till you exchange contracts. The exchange process is faster in Scotland and can be binding from earlier on as well (called missives rather than contract).

In a fast moving market - like now, you probably may skip several of these steps as FOMO sets in.

Anything else I've missed, please chip in!

PS - Interest rates - go to any bank site, click on mortgages. You should be able to play around with interest rates and monthly payments.
This is from Natwest. https://www.natwest.com/mortgages/mortgage-calculators/how-much-can-i-borrow.html

Fixing for 2. 3. 5 years means you pay the same amount every month for that duration. Being on a variable rate means your payments fluctuates as interest rates fluctuates.

Oh and always set some money aside for a rainy fund. You own a house and all the responsibility is yours. Boiler breaks down? You need funds for that. Fence blows over in the storm? You pay. Toilet blocks? You pay. Basically learn to do minor house repairs on your. Painting, tiling, cleaning gutters, hanging and removing wall papers etc are all skills I have learnt from owning our own home.

Solicitor fees is usually between £300 and £600 ish

Most brokers are free to you - they get commission from the bank.

Stamp duty is payable on properties above £125k so budget for that as well - https://www.gov.uk/stamp-duty-land-tax/residential-property-rates.

If you buy a flat or apartment, you will also pay a service charge and/or lease charge plus ground rent. For any apartments, your solicitor should check how much the sinking fund is, when major repairs were last undertaken (imagine moving in and being stung for a roof replacement!) etc. Check the length of the lease. If shorter than 110 years, abandon ship!

I'll add more as I remember.

Pearlyfaze:
Biko, please, ejoor. People of Newcastle, Which App do you use for your buses.
I will be coming in tomorrow from Edinburgh. Help me as usual.
Thank you dear Ancestors.
You people are doing well Oooooin.

Google map will suffice.

Ralphlauren:


Yes, you can. I currently have 2 mortgages. My source of income and affordability tests were based on my contract jobs.

I used very good mortgage brokera/advisors that sourced the lowest possible interest rates for me though.

Anything is possible if you have a very good mortgage broker that knows his stuff.

Which mortgage broker do you use please?

Ticha:


All this applies to England and Wales. In Scotland, you can skip the survey part as a home valuation pack is always included from the get go and solicitors also handle the negotiation process.

Thank you so much!

Good Morning Everyone.

I am looking for a Flatmate in Glasgow.

G31 4TS
3 bed 1 Tiolet
Can only be occupied by 2 Tenant
£700 per month
1 month deposit £700
Total £1400
tenant 1. available already paid. £700. Looking for tenant 2 to pay £700. Monthly rent will later be £350 each.

Anyone interested should please dm

Ticha:


Yes, you can

I have messaged you

Can someone please help with information on how to change employers under sponsorship in the UK. And the costs related.

To add to what the property 'gurus' have posted

1. Be wary of buying flats especially leasehold flats especially in England when management companies are involved else you will just turn to cash machine for these management companies.

2. Flats again - the cladding issue has trapped a lot of property owners where lots of them are going into depression because their flats are not mortgageable and cannot be bought. In one estate we used to live years ago, flats listed are cash only buyers because a lot of banks will not offer mortgage to buyers so sellers have had to drastically reduce the asking price for these properties. If you see a flat with asking price too good to be true, look twice and look again.

3. Read your is it TP50? and read it again. If you don't understand understand a clause or anything there, call your solicitor and ask for explanation. That is what you are paying them for.

4. When you exchange contracts, you don buy house be that. You cannot pull out without penalties. Make sure you understand what you are getting into before you exchange.

5. If you don't like the terms of the contract - pull out of the deal, other opportunities will come. Better to take the hit for legal fees than to be trapped and be at the mercy of some freeholder or management company, those guys are merciless.

6. Ask questions no matter how silly, this may save your life.

specialenvoy:
For those in IT, Please I need leads on where I can get contract jobs specifically on Data Analyst roles

Thanks

Optimize your linkedin and attend data analyst events around you and post online. Recruiters will reach out to you.

ukay2:


Which mortgage broker do you use please?

I used a company called freelancer financial. They even paid me £200 back for using them to remortgage

Chairmen,
Please which other apps have credit building features like Monese?

okay, thanks

mex551:
if you are still in Naija.

Just freeze the oil. Wrap it that morning of your travel with newspaper, and caron, use celotape to tie it well . Put it inside a waterproof and thank me later. I came with 5 litres of oil and another 3 liters. . For the other items excluding Meat, put them in ziploc transparent bags and get it labeled. You are good to go.