A new survey suggests that it is the other fees associated with moving house - not estate agents’ charges - that come as the biggest and least welcome surprise to first time buyers.
Without a home to sell and therefore not having to pay agents’ fees, around a quarter of FTBs admit instead that they do not budget for what they call “unexpected” charges such as bank transfer fees and mortgage set-up charges.
A similar proportion are reported to be in the dark over Land Registry fees with only slightly smaller numbers caught out by the existence of stamp duty and even solicitors’ costs.
The unworldliness of first time buyers does not change when they set foot inside their first owned property, either.
The same survey - by Pegasus Personal Finance - reveals that 20 per cent were unaware of the likely cost of utilities in a new home, and did not factor in the possibility of car insurance fees increasing thanks to a change of postcode.
One surprising outcome of the study saw respondents reveal a lack of knowledge surrounding interest rates and the impact they can have on the combined cost of a mortgage.
Some 13.5 per cent of new homeowners - presumed to be those with variable rate mortgages - say they are unprepared for any increase in interest rates.
A substantial 24.6 per cent of participants underestimated removal charges, too.
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I must admit, I have read some ridiculous surveys on this site, but this one REALLY takes the biscuit!! It seems like Pegasus asked people on the street who have never even seen a mortgage broker, let alone talked to one. The only surprising thing to me is that EAT even published this nonsense.
I am not surprised at all. In my view EAT publish quite a lot of nonsense.
What IS surprising is that Mr Norwood has made no negative mention of OTM today.
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