First Time Buyer June/July 2020 - Jade Vanriel

the Ultimate Guide to... GETTING ON THE LADDER, THE PROPERTY MARKET AND HELP TO BUY

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June/

July 2020

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“Go on as many viewings as you possibly can – you will come to know exactly what you do and don't want”

Jade Vanriel Vlogger and Influencer

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THE VIEW

Watch this space!

Jade Vanriel has a real passion for property and is a talented young YouTuber. She has more than 47,000 subscribers on her YouTube channel and her property videos reach over three millions views. She bought her first home when she was just 23 and has always been driven to work hard and save hard. She talks to Lynda Clark about how she managed to save and buy a home, her fascinating career and her advice for first time buyers

There are very few people who I speak to who are so full

of enthusiasm as Jade is. Her joie-de-vivre is infectious and her story inspirational. Jade grew up in Kensal Green in north west London with her mum and their dog Richie, and had a very happy chldhood. She said, “We never moved and although I loved where we lived I always wanted to move somewhere else. I did have my own room which was my paradise. I then went to college in King's Cross and this was the first time I had ever stepped out of my comfort zone.

Even though I was studying, I got several different jobs in central London and managed to save some money. Eventually I went to university in Birmingham and it was the first time I had ever been away from home. I didn’t know anyone there and had no friends but I loved it and really enjoyed my independence. I also worked while I was at university and got jobs in shops like Selfridges, House of Fraser and Ted Baker and again I saved the money I made. During the summer holidays I went to work in Harrods and continued to keep saving – in fact I felt guilty when I did buy anything! I worked hard and didn’t really have any spare time to see friends, and by then I had got into the habit of working and saving so it never felt like a hardshhip.”

Jade studied law as eventually she thought she would like to be a lawyer. Then in her second year her grandmother, who Jade was very close to, sadly passed away and she was so upset

that she didn’t really want to be in Birmingham. It was then that she knew she wasn’t cut out to go in law. “I finished my degree though, and my mum told me to follow my heart and do whatever I wanted to do. I did some temp work in a legal company but I didn’t want to move back in with my mum as I really enjoyed my independent lifstyle. I moved in with my dad and stepmother for a little while, but they had a new baby so it wasn’t really ideal. Then my aunt, who lives alone in a four bedroom house, said I could move in with her and stay in her spare room. It worked out really well and I paid her £400 a month rent and I still managed to save.”

She then got a job as a product analyst for a legal firm which she really enjoyed, and it came with a good salary so she was able to ramp up her savings. “My outgoings were very low as I had no car and rarely went out socialising. I also sold things like my old clothes on eBay as I didn’t have much space at my aunt's house and all the money I made went into my savings pot. I really sacrificed a lot of things but I knew that I wanted my own space and my home and I was really determined. I spoke about my dream to my dad and he was sure that with the money I had saved I could buy somewhere. He set up an appointment with a mortgage broker to see what my position really was. I had about £24,000 saved and I was absolutely sure it wasn’t enough, but to my surprise the broker said I could carry on saving but that actually I had enough to buy a place of my own. I was over the

"I HAVE 47,000 SUBSCRIBERS AND ALMOST 14,000 PEOPLE FOLLOWING ME ON INSTAGRAM. I SHARE VIDEOS ON RENOVATIONS, DIY PROJECTS AND TIPS ON HOW TO SAVE. I HAVE ALSO RECENTLY CREATED MY OWN MINI-SERIES, SHOWCASING PROSPECTIVE HOMES ESPECIALLY TO FIRST TIME BUYERS"

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THE VIEW

"I RECOMMEND NOT BEING RIGID ABOUT THE LOCATION

YOU ARE LOOKING IN. OPENING UP YOUR SEARCH WILL LEAD YOU TO POSSIBLY

BEING ABLE TO AFFORD A BIGGER PLACE AND

LOOK IN AREAS THAT ARE BEING REGENERATED"

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THE VIEW

"OVERSAVE – TRY TO HAVE £5,000 MORE THAN YOU REALLY NEED AS BUYING YOUR FIRST HOME HAS SO MANY COSTS YOU DON’T ALWAYS CONSIDER LIKE SURVEYS, SEARCHES, EVEN MOVING COSTS"

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THE VIEW

moon and immediately started looking for my first house.

"One of the most important things the broker did was to encourage me to get a Mortgage in Principle. I am so happy that I did, as in the end it really worked in my favour. My dad never needed to do this as when he had bought some years before there were never any bidding wars to deal with. I went every Saturday to view places and I always took a notebook with me and logged absoutely everything I could. Sometimes I took along either of my parents or my boyfriend as it was so much better to have a second opinion.

"My boyfriend and I found a tiny place we loved in Ockendon but when my dad saw it he said that I could do better. I decided to widen my search and start looking further afield and I discovered that I could get so much more for my money! Then I just happened to stumble across Harlow which I didn’t know at all except my grandmother had been in a hospice there. Apart from visiting her I didn’t know the area at all.

“I originally wanted a new build and my dad and I arranged a viewing one Saturday. He was to meet me at the station but I was 10 minutes late and when we got to the property the agent had left so we couldn’t view it. I was very upset and wanted to go home but my dad thought we should wait and see the next property even though we had three hours to kill. I am so happy that we did hang around as I found the home of my dreams. It was an older place which was not at all desirable from the outside, but I walked in and got such a shock as it had masses of potential and was so big! It had terrible stained wallpaper and carpets that smelt but I could see straightaway that if I gutted it, it would be a fantastic home.”

Jade was the first person to view the property and she knew there were other people lined up to see it, so on the Monday morning she made an offer. She was told that her offer was not the largest but that they wanted to go ahead with her because she had the Mortgage in Principle. “So it all worked out and I moved in the July four years ago and completely changed it. I took up the smelly carpet and lived with the original concrete floors for four months until I could afford the flooring I wanted.

"I painted all the walls white, changed the cabinet doors in the kitchen and painted the old wooden worktops with a soft grey wood paint which looks amazing. I couldn’t afford a sofa so I lived without one until I had the money and I taught myself so many skills along the way. During all the work I documented it and put it on YouTube where I began to get a huge following. In fact it became practically a full-time job. Then in 2019 I was made redundant and I decided it was an opportunity to

start blogging full time and become selfemployed. It was a gamble, but it has certainly paid off as my original story went viral and now I have 47,000 subscribers and almost 14,000 people following me on Instagram. I share videos on renovations, DIY projects and tips on how to save. I have also recently created my own mini-series, showcasing prospective homes especially to first time buyers.”

There is also another passion that Jade is moving forward with – she loves clothes and interiors and has done a few interior design jobs in the past. She particularly likes soft furnishings and to save money she decided to try to make cushions, throws and accessories for herself. She bought a sewing machine and some gorgeous fabrics and people saw them on her various social media channels and asked where she bought them from.

“I realised that there was potential in making these things so I launched a website and now make the accessories to sell on there. It’s proving to be really successful and I really enjoy doing it. I had never sewn before but I taught myself and now I’m inundated with orders.”

Jade has three excellent pieces of advice for first time buyers. Firstly, she says, “Oversave – try to have £5,000 more than you really need as buying your first home has so many costs you don’t always consider like surveys, searches, even moving costs. You will also eventually move into your new first home and have to furnish it which all

costs money. You can never have too much, so it’s a really good idea to have some in the pot for emergencies.

"Secondly, I recommend not being rigid about the location you are looking in. Opening up your search will lead you to possibly being able to afford a bigger place. Look in areas that are being regenerated. I never imagined I would buy in Harlow but it’s changed so much during the time I have been living here with new developemnts being built and businesses moving to the area. Consequently house prices have gone up which will benefit you when you sell.

"Lastly, go on as many viewings as you possible can. You may imagine you want an open-plan kichen/sitting room but when you view a home you may decide otherwise. I wanted lots of storage, for example, and some of the properties I looked at had just one cupboard which would never have worked for me. When you go and look you will come to know exactly what you do and don’t want and that helps to narrow down your search.”

Jade is a real property guru and I am left in total admiration for the way she has sacrificed so much to buy her first home and is now helping others to do what she did. I am sure we will be seeing a lot more from Jade in the future – it’s a question of watch this space!

Instagram – @jadevanrielx Twitter – @Jadevanriel Youtube – Youtube.com/c/Jadevanrielx

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