Buyers
When buying a property, you will need help from advisers on the process and how the things impacting the property will affect your planned use and enjoyment of the property.
Buyers may interact with any of the following advisers:
Estate Agent
provides accurate Material Information, responds promptly, treats buyers fairly, explains processes, and signposts complaints routes
Conveyancing Lawyer
in relation to the legal side to the transaction or the legal issues impacting the property
Financial Adviser
in relation to the financial side to the transaction and your ongoing affordability
Lender
will lend you money in the form of a mortgage (or charge), to fund the purchase of the property
Mortgage intermediary
if you need to take a mortgage to buy the property, to identify which lenders will lend money on that type of property
Surveyor
in relation to the physical condition of the property
Specialist Advisers
in relation to issues with the property requiring specialist expertise and knowledge
Complexity of the process
The 'tube map' demonstrates how complex the process is and the datasets each person involved in the process need to give advice on the property. The lines represent each of the key stakeholders in the process and the stations are the datasets which they need to interact with to perform their role.
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Asking for the Material Information (MI) and sharing it with your mortgage intermediary will ensure that you can get the right property, with the right lender, at the right price
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If you cannot see the image in full, please click here.
The current process
Below are the key stages in the home buying and selling process and who is involved at that point.
Material Information
Material Information means the information relevant to the property which would impact the average consumer’s ability to make an informed transactional decision.
This covers the legal and physical aspects of the property, along with the affordability of the financial aspects.​
​For a buyer, this allows you to make an informed buying decision and for your Lender, to confirm that the property meets their requirements.
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If you need a mortgage, you should get a Mortgage Decision in Principle before going to view property to ensure that you will be able to afford it.
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Once you see what Material Information is relevant to the property, you can get advice on it from a variety of specialist advisers. ​
Benefits of Material Information
Greater transparency
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Checking MI on adverts ensures you are aware of any issues, get advice from the correct specialist, and are happy to proceed to view the property.
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Mortgage intermediaries can identify your affordability and obtain more reliable decisions in principle, so you only look at affordable properties.
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Having MI available before an offer is made, means no nasty surprises during the process causing you to pull out or your lender to refuse to lend.
Faster certainty
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Because title, searches and seller information are gathered before a buyer makes an offer it means that the process can proceed more efficiently so that you know you have legally bought your property as soon as contracts are exchanged.
Better outcomes
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Less wasted time and money on transactions falling through.
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Better outcomes for consumers with improved understanding of the issues impacting the property.​
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Fewer surprises when you move into the property with all information provided upfront.