Edward Everett Root Publishers Co. Ltd.
EER
Launched at Ideal Home Show
22 March 2019
Olympia, London
The Street-wise Guide to Buying,
Improving and Selling Your Home
Georgina Burnett
'The Home Genie'
About this book
This book is for anyone who wants to get onto and climb the property ladder.
And for anyone buying, letting, improving or selling their home.
- This book will help you to put yourself in the right place at the right time - and most importantly with the right attitude
- It will enable you to be streetwise in the biggest investment you are probably ever going to make
- Georgina Burnett, the fully-independent and nationally known housing adviser draws on her extensive recent experience of having been-there-and-done it more than once. She has rented, bought, renovated and sold properties. She knows what’s what!
- By doing what she has done you can soon move up that ladder and live where you want to.
- Every key property issue – such as how to get a deposit together; getting a mortgage; and insurance - is covered carefully.
- The book gives many insider-tips (such as how to improve your credit rating) which will give you a powerful new approach to buying, improving and selling your home. It covers the many ‘what-if’ questions which people ask. It guides you on how to do well on property too, and how to think-ahead.
- The book is as up-to-date as it has been possible to make it.
- If you are a first-time buyer it should have just about everything you need to know.
- If you just want to buy in a savvy way and improve your home so that you can enjoy it for as long as it fits your lifestyle, this book is relevant.
- It will even be suitable for you if think that you will never be able to afford to buy your own home. The author does some typical sums to show how you can move from the rental to the home-owning market.
- If you already own property, or have done so in the past, this strategy for moving on up will still work for you.
- If you are selling, the book offers street-wise advice on how to do so in the most cost-effective ways.
- As tax-laws and government policies and markets change it gives guidance to recommended links to find the most up-to-date information online.
Contents:
Introduction
Part One. Buying Your Home.
Chapter 1. Why and when to buy: Exit plan; When is the best time to buy?
Chapter 2. Preparing to Buy. Getting a deposit together. Let’s talk about Mr and Mrs average earner (statistically speaking). Borrowing money from family. Improve your Credit rating. What can you afford? Stamp Duty. First time buyer incentives. Buying with a friend. Partnering with an investor.
Chapter 3. What you need before speaking to a mortgage advisor or broker. How to find a mortgage advisor or broker: By recommendation, Through an estate agent; Through a bank or building society; Search online; Types of mortgage: Fixed rate. Variable rate mortgages. Tracker. Discounted mortgage. Offset mortgage. Mortgage agreement in principle or AIP. Remortgaging.
Chapter 4. What type of property and where? Home vision board. First home wish list. Where to buy. Location fit for your exit plan. Personal location needs. Negative location factors. Type of property - new build or old wreck? The inbetweener. New-builds. Self-build.
Chapter 5. How to find a property: Internet search portals. Agents. Online agents. Local paper. Auction. Repossession properties. Property scouts. Proactive house-hunting. Leafleting!
Chapter 6. Bagging a bargain. Who is the ideal vendor? Divorce. Debt. Death. Urgent sellers. Left on the shelf. Property with potential. Freehold v. leasehold. In need of modernisation. Possibility to expand. Good current location. A location with potential. Suitable rental property. Something quirky.
Chapter 7. Savvy house hunting. Viewings spread sheet . Booking your viewings. Property viewing checklist. Know your particulars inside-out Do a drive-by. Poker face. Be a surveyor. Damp. Is it a crack den? Does it suit your needs? Do the stamp and knock. New kitchen needed? The roof. Windows. Electrics and plumbing. Get a builder’s opinion. Parking. Go with your gut. Ask the agent. Open-house viewings.
Chapter 8. Making an offer, to moving in. Making an offer - choose with your heart, but buy with your head. Deciding how much to offer. Making the offer. Getting a mortgage. Surveys. Condition report. HomeBuyer’s report. Building survey. Conveyancing. Gazumping, gazundering and gazanging. Exchange and completion. Making it through! Preparing to move. Set up a mail redirection. Keep an address change list. Book a removal van. Pack. Moving from rental accommodation. What to expect on moving day. Everybody needs good neighbours.
Part Two. Improving your Home.
Chapter 9. Planning home improvements. Where to start. Vision board. What you want v. what actually adds value. Home improvement to-do –list. Live in amongst the mess? Identifying urgent problems. Electrics. Plumbing.
Chapter 10. Structural improvements. Reconfiguring. Extending. Loft conversion. Extension. Cellar conversion. Garage conversion. Conservatory. Overdeveloping.
Chapter 11. Getting the work done. Can you really DIY? Top 3 DIY tips: Preparation. The right tools. Enough time. Finding a builder and getting the best out of them. Get the right recommendation. Get at least 3 quotes. Check the paperwork. Set a budget and deadline – obviously!
Chapter 12. Making improvements. Improving the kitchen. Do you need new units? Kitchen colours. Choosing and buying a kitchen. The layout of your kitchen. Improving the bathroom. Bathroom layout. Bathroom storage. Choosing and buying new bathroom furniture. Tiling. Decorating and accessorising in your bathroom. Bathroom flooring. Relocating your bathroom. Windows. UPVC windows. Replacing sash windows. Front door. Flooring. Floorboards. Tiling. Carpet. Underfloor heating. Lighting. Radiators. Fireplaces. Improving internal doors.
Chapter 13. Decorating and interiors. Decorating your home. Wall colour. Guide to painting and decorating. Removing wallpaper. Testers. Finish. Woodwork. Ceilings. Choosing paint brands. Safer paints. Brushes. Other tips. Paint rollers. Preparing the room. Tapeing. Preparing the walls. Priming. Mix the paint. Cutting in. Roller painting. Job done! Wallpaper. How to create a colour scheme. Colour psychology. Guide to the colour wheel. Primary, secondary and tertiary colours. Warm and cold colours. Analogous. Tints, tones and shades. Complementary colours. Split complementary. Triad and tetrad. Mood boards. Furnishing and accessorising your home. Window dressing. Accessorising.
Chapter 14. Other improvements. Improving the exterior. Driveway. Roof External walls. Porches. Garden. Improving the energy efficiency.
Part Three. Selling Your Home.
Chapter 15. Preparing to sell your home. When to sell. Preparing for marketing. Dressing your home. Deciding how much your property is worth. Sell your property yourself? Choosing an estate agent. Online agents.
Chapter 16. Getting the old place sold quickly. Help to sell your home. Preparing your home for viewings. Dealing with viewings. Open house viewings.
Chapter 17. Accepting an offer, to moving day. Accepting an offer. The conveyancing process. Proof of identity. Title deeds. Property information forms. Leasehold Information Form. Most recent utility bills. Leasehold or shared freehold documents. Energy performance certificate. Moving day.
About the author
Georgina Burnett is a BBC presenter, popular property and DIY interiors vlogger, writer and property developer. She is best known as the popular presenter of The Home Genie.
She is also a regular freelance presenter and reporter for BBC News and Weather. You can often hear Georgina on BBC radio and chatting about property and DIY decor with Martin Roberts on Talk Radio.
When Georgina’s not presenting she’s getting her hands dirty renovating her own properties.
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