PROPERTY: AN EXPATRIATE’S GUIDE TO BUYING LONDON PROPERTY dealing with agents you make clear your criteria so you are not inundated with various listings that don’t match your needs. Many agents will book you in to see your requested properties but end up showing you a bunch of things that don’t have any correlation to what you’re looking for. While it’s always great to see other options, you’ll need to be efficient in viewing schedules so as not to waste too much time on properties that just don’t suit.
Moving to London and the UK is a really exciting proposition for many, and I’m grateful to have helped dozens of families settle into life in this incredible city. London is a vibrant and dynamic city with incredible art, culture, schools and fabulous neighbours. So while there’s lots to be excited about, making an international move can be very stressful and at times frustrating. The UK property market operates very differently from other countries, so the more you can be prepared, the smoother the process will be. In this article I share top tips and advice on both the rental and buying process. Here is my summary of some of the major differences between buying a property overseas versus the UK.
Make An Offer Once you've found the right property, you can make an offer. This is very different than in other countries, where you have very little chance of negotiating. For rentals this means you don’t have to just accept the landlord’s asking price, especially if it’s a renters market. Make sure to put in any key criteria that you're going to want to have, including furnishings. You may want to consider whether you’d like to add a "break clause" which allows one or both parties the right to give notice (and terminate the lease) after a minimum of 6 months. So say you are happy to commit to 12 months, a 6 month break clause will mean that you have the right to give notice to terminate starting from month 6 (just remember that if you ask for a break clause, the landlord may demand the same).
RENTING PROCESS What’s Your Budget? The first thing to consider is what’s your budget? Keep in mind that compared to many other cities, London property prices are pretty expensive. Many people have dreams of where they want to live in London, but the closer you get to prime central London, the more expensive it is. Spaces are also a lot smaller on average, so you’ll need to consider the trade-off of location, space, schools, proximity to transport and style (modern versus traditional) and other amenities that may impact the budget. A good number of rental properties may actually come furnished so you’ll need to factor that in as well (though furnished versus unfurnished doesn’t typically change the price). If you’re travelling with a pet, that too may limit options, although the law may be changing on whether landlords can restrict pets in their properties.
Holding Deposit/Security Deposit While as a tenant you no longer have to pay any costs associated with starting your tenancy (such as administration or inventory check-in), most agents will ask for a holding deposit. This is capped at one week’s rent and the purpose is to secure the property for you, subject to passing tenant referencing (but it will go towards the monies required to move in). Having said that, be prepared to not pass tenant referencing as a foreigner. Why? Because one of the key criteria will be that you have a UK bank account (but in order to open a bank account, you need a UK address, so very circular). My tip is to open an online bank account as that may suffice. If you’re not able to pass tenant referencing, many landlords will request at least 6 months rent in advance to
Start Searching If you’re working on your own, you’ll start your search with the online portals such as Rightmove and Zoopla. Once you identify properties that might suit your criteria, you’ll have to contact each agent regarding their respective listing and arrange viewings. My tip is to make sure that when you're 35
