First-Time Buyers

20th October 2017

Getting the first foot on the property ladder can seem like a daunting task in the current market - but with the right help and advice, it is more than possible.

Halifax reported at the beginning of this year that the number of first-time buyers has reached a 10-year high - with 60% of first-time buyers choosing mortgage terms of 25+ years to improve affordability. However, in Brighton & Hove, the average cost of properties is a staggering £300,000 - 53% higher than the national average.


While that seems like an intimidating amount of money, there are ways to cut costs and use schemes to buy your dream property. We’ve pulled together our tips on how to save, what schemes are available and how to find the support you need.


Start saving for your first home

Saving for a deposit is a huge task for a first time buyer - but it doesn’t have to mean giving up your favourite things or having beans for dinner everyday. 



Existing schemes

There are a number of government schemes out there that can help you buy a home - but it’s often difficult to understand what you can actually do with them. We’ve highlighted the most popular ones below, and included a simple description of how they can help you get on the property ladder.



Getting the right support

If you’re thinking about buying your first property but you’ve got a small budget, it’s important to get the right advice. Make the journey easier and ensure that you’re kept in the loop by working with a trusted estate agent. 


At Maslen, we believe in complete transparency. That means we want to know exactly what you want, so we can avoid time-wasting, offer appropriate advice, and find the perfect property for you. Our expert estate agents will keep in regular contact to reassure you throughout the buying process.


It’s also important to get comprehensive advice and support from independent financial advisors and your bank - they can make sure you understand mortgages, and have calculated a reasonable budget, getting you in the best possible position to start the buying process.


Looking for more advice on buying your first property on a budget? Get in touch today for advice from our friendly advisors.

Testimonials

  • Thanks David, all very professional.

    Mrs Flowers Foxdown Road

  • First class service from a first class team.

    Mr & Mrs English The Ridgway

  • I wish we had used you to sell our property! Nice to meet honest people, who are genuinely interested in helping. Very pleased.

    Mrs Porter Taunton Road

  • Paula was fabulous and we felt really informed and supported. 

    Mr & Mrs Walker Lewes Road

  • Ben and Paula were calm and reassuring throughout a very difficult process!

    Ms Easterbrook Bear Road

  • I was new to the area and viewed a lot of properties with a lot of different agents. Maslens were by far the best I came in contact with, so when i...

    Mr & Mrs Heer Lewes Road

  • We were very impressed with the Nick from start to finish. 

    Mr & Mrs Smith Lewes Road

  • Please thank Paula at Lewes Road - Excellent service. 

    Mr & Mrs Nuthall Lewes Road

  • From start to finish the sale was dealt with in a thoroughly professional manner.  

    Mr Gibbs Lewes Road

  • Very good service and communication. Paula was excellent.

    Mr & Mrs Scarboro 1 Pevensey Road

  • The whole team were very committed from start to finish.

    Mr Pilgrim Lewes Road

  • Very pleased with the experience. I would definitely recommend you and use you again.

    Ms D Edmonds Horton Road

  • Sharon, Harvey and James were all excellent - very professional. Totally opposite to what I have experienced with other agents. Maslen have restore...

    Ms Lyons Woodingdean

  • Sold within 2 weeks for asking price "excellent!"

    Mr Grundy Bishops Road

  • The staff were very helpful, an excellent service. I would recommend you to others.

    Miss Hockly Fiveways

  • I have bought and sold 7 properties, and this was the best experience of an estate agents services I have found.

    Mrs Shepherd Hertford Road

  • An efficient, professional and friendly service. Helpful and a pleasure to do business with.

    Mr Beddington Brading Road

  • Excellent service from the Lewes Road branch. Martin Timms secured a quick sale & at a good price & Paula Carter worked really hard to secure...

    Ms Schulte Bear Road

  • All very professional, kept updated throughout. Very pleased - Would recommend. 

    Mrs Hammond Hove

  • Ben was particularly enthusiastic and helpful. Martin, Paula, Sam and Will are all hard workers.

    Ms Goodey Franklin Road

  • Thank you for everything!

    Ms Tucker Willow Close

  • Graham Griffin provided us, and continues to provide us, will all-round excellent advice. We trust his knowledge and expertise.

    Mr Blackmore & Ms O'Sullivan Financial Services

  • We were delighted with the service received from all the staff with whom we had contact,

    Dr Crichton The Ridgway

  • You were amazingly helpful throughout - a real pillar of strength with a very difficult sale.

    Mrs Parkin Fiveways

  • Harvey was helpful and easily reachable at the beginning of the process and Sharon kept us informed and was always happy to help.

    Ms Murch & Ms Mapa Ticehurst Road

  • As always, an excellent service. 

    Mr & Mrs Field Lewes Road

  • Very happy with the service we got from you guys, everyone we dealt with was extremely friendly, professional and helpful. Thanks!

    Mr Brown Titian Road

  • Good team. Straightforward. No nonsense.

    Mr Standing Newmarket Road

  • It was a long, drawn out process that the people at Maslen helped me through, without the impression that it was a chore. So extremely professional...

    Mr McLagan Lewes Road

  • First class service. Friendly and professional.

    Mr Thorne The Avenue

  • Cannot express our appreciation enough of all the efforts made by the Woodingdean team - they were fantastic.

    Mr John Mogridge Woodingdean

  • Very comprehensive and professional. Nice people to work with and highly recommended. 

    Mr Alderton Ladysmith Road

  • Very impressed with the service. Sharon Wareham works tirelessly, very professionally and is always there for advice. 

    Miss Matthews Kipling Avenue

  • Very professional service. Thank you!

    Miss New & Mr Jackson Buller Road

  • Paula is amazing!

    Ms Aspnall Gladstone Place

  • A really good experience.

    Mr Tibble Lewes Road

  • Paula's role was brilliant. Having someone office based and available was so appreciated and her promptness an impressive service - every Estate Agent...

    Ms Wynn-Jones Baxter Street

  • Our local office manager, Sharon Wareham was warm and friendly and kept us up to date at all times.

    Mr Hope The Brow

  • Extremely efficient. Nick and Paula are excellent. The weekly phone calls were much appreciated. 

    Ms Gray Lewes Road

  • Sharon and her team could not have done more in what was a difficult sale. 

    Ms Daly Woodingdean

  • All the staff I dealt with were excellent. Sharon worked really hard to complete the sale.

    Mrs Bent Falmer Gardens

  • A good team at Woodingdean helped us through a stressful time.

    Mr & Mrs Penton Sycamore Close

  • Sharon was excellent - kept us well informed, thank you so much!

    Ms Waters Cowley Drive

  • Excellent Service from start to finish.

    Mr T Mole Cromwell Road

  • Great service, always polite and friendly. Excellent contact and info all the way.

    Mr Wells Bishops Road

  • A very positive experience - I had most contact with the Fiveways office and they were so friendly and helpful.

    Ms A King Balfour Road

  • I found the service to be courteous, friendly and efficient.

    Mr Upton Buller Road

  • A completely painless experience from start to finish. Thank you.

    Mr Woolven & Mrs Bessant-Woolven Lewes Road

  • Very helpful and patient team.

    Mrs Shea Selborne Place

  • The sale was dealt with swiftly, professionally and successfully. Thank you Maslen!

    Mrs Lincoln Hove

  • Paul was absolutely brilliant. 

    Mrs Tasker Fiveways

  • Thanks for an excellent service. 

    Mr King Hove

  • Paul Wilkinson was extremely helpful and efficient. The only problem was the vendors solicitor and Paul warned me of this. A good transaction all r...

    Mr Lavender Fiveways

  • Very impressive - professional and friendly, both Martin Timms and Paula Carter were excellent at keeping in contact with sensible advice based on...

    Mrs O'Connor Hove

  • Maslens as a whole were really friendly and professional. I have to thank and congratulate Paula Carter for being superb at her job and exceeding m...

    Ms Warren Hove

  • All agents at Maslen were extremely helpful and polite from the beginning to the completion of sale. 

    Mr Johnson Fiveways

  • Sharon was excellent, she kept us informed at all stages and was a really calming objective influence in the process.

    Ms Frederick Channel View Road

  • Very pleased with the excellent service throughout. Professional, friendly, efficient and no hard sell. Achieved above asking price. Thank you!

    Mr Witten Lewes Road

  • Thank you Maslens, you were all excellent!

    Miss Jasper Taunton Road

  • Many thanks to Nick. It was an easy process thanks to you! I'm extremely satisfied with how the sale went, great job.

    Ms Mayanobe Aymer Road

  • Sharon was amazing! She kept us up to date the whole way through the process. We cannot fault Sharon or the rest of her team. 

    Mr & Mrs Ashley Woodingdean

  • Exceptional service throughout the process - should we decide to sell in the future we wouldn't hesitate to use your agency. You're a cut above the...

    Ms Windels & Mr Barham Fiveways

  • Very pleased with the service. Many thanks to Sharon and the boys!

    Mr Flynn Woodingdean

  • Very impressed with the efficient and friendly service, the staff were a pleasure to deal with. 

    Mr & Mrs Gill Lewes Road

  • Best Agents in Brighton.

    Mrs Field Tarner Road

  • The team worked very hard over a long period to ensure my sale went through - excellent service!

    Mr Patrick Gladstone Terrace

  • Very, very happy we chose you, felt right from the start! Thank you!

    Miss Blackadder Coniston Court, Holland Road

  • Thank you Paul and Archie, you gave an excellent service, as well as Kelly. I look forward to working with you again. 

    Mr White Fiveways

  • I would recommend Maslen to anyone. 

    Mrs Tripp Woodingdean

  • Excellent communication and advice throughout. It felt very reassuring to be in good hands.

    Mrs Brooker Buller Road

  • Paula was absolutely amazing!

    Mr & Mrs MacKay Lewes Road

  • Nick and Paula are total stars! They were incredibly supportive and present throughout. Thank you!

    Miss O'Haire Hove

  • Best Estate Agents ever experienced - professional, approachable, competent and exemplary. 

    Mr & Mrs Guest Riley Road

  • Superb service as usual, I would always recommend you.

    Ms S Hike Blackthorn Close

  • Very impressed with all dealings with Maslen. Paula Carter was in particular very knowledgeable and helpful. 

    Mr McBlane Hove

  • Excellent service as always

    Mr Field Ringmer Road

  • Hugely impressed with Ben & his team.

    Mrs Mead Upper Lewes Road

  • The Woodingdean team were very friendly and approachable.

    Mrs Palmer Pitt Gardens

  • We were very pleased with services provided by the Fiveways office.

    Mr & Mrs Sawyer Shaftesbury Road

  • Service exceeded my expectations overall at all stages of the process - I wouldn't hesitate to recommend you. Thanks. 

    Ms Greene Lewes Road

  • A very committed team who made the sale process very easy.

    Ms Rees Ticehurst Road

  • The whole team were excellent, each one of them felt like family. Sharon had a lot of sorting to do at times but coped very well, a true profession...

    Mr Vernon Woodingdean

  • Outstanding service from Sharon. James is an asset to Maslens & Harvey was so helpful and polite.

    Ms Cianchetta Selhurst Road

  • Compared to your rivals, your service was excellent

    Ms McGrigor Milner Road

  • Thank you. We found all the staff knowledgeable and really pleasant to deal with. 

    Ms Ansloos Lewes Road

  • Quality advice about when and how to sell, which was spot on. Thank you.

    Miss Coleman Buller Road

  • Fantastic service. By far the best agents we have ever used, I cannot recommend you highly enough.

    Mr Field Mafeking Road

  • Very thorough & very informative.

    Mr Michnowicz Waldegrave Road

  • We cannot recommend Maslen's estate agents enough.

    Many thanks to Paul, Donna, Janette and the...

    Linda & Les Wigmore Close

  • Excellent customer service throughout. I will definitely recommend you, and use you again. Thank you.

    Ms Longley Kingsbury Street

  • In February 2016 I was looking to buy and sell very rapidly. Competition among buyers at the time was very high. Sharon @ the Woodingdean branch sh...

    Ms Helen Lyons Woodingdean

  • Brilliant. Well done to Sharon and the Woodingdean team.

    Ms Curtis The Ridgway

  • Already recommended you! Thank you.

    Mr Edwards The Ridgway

  • It was an amazing experience, everyone involved were fantastic. 

    Mr & Mrs Knight Woodingdean

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