Struggling to get onto the property ladder? Tired of being estate agent fodder? Bamboozled by jargon and complications? Prices spiralling away from your budget? Struggling to agree with your partner about what kind of house you need, or what you can afford? Sick of losing out in bidding wars? Need some professional help at an affordable price? We have put together a new package of services specially tailored to help, at an affordable fee, young Cumbrians to find and buy their first home.

We have both personal and professional experience of this struggle and we would like to use this to help you. We will act as a mentor for you with professional assistance to help you avoid the potential pitfalls surrounding buying your first home, to give you the information, contacts and confidence to make this sometimes scary step. We believe that we can help you achieve your goals and can save you time and money far in excess of our fee. We have negotiated on your behalf; free consultation with a reputable local financial/mortgage advisor and discounted conveyancing fees from a reputable local solicitor. The savings on the two services alone may pay for the fee you pay us.

Our FTBs package begins with us coming to your home to meet you and help you get ‘offer-ready’; getting you financially and mentally prepared. This consultation will offer simple, plain-speaking advice about the issues you need to consider, the steps you need to take, and the experts you need to deal with. We will ask you about your needs and help you draw up a plan of action. Buying a home needn’t be a complicated and intimidating business but it too often is, this first meeting with you is designed to take the fear out of it and replace it with knowledge and a plan.

This meeting will result in us designing for you a personal checklist that you can judge properties against, giving you a clearer sense of your priorities and putting different factors into perspective.

If you wish, we will then send a reputable independent mortgage/financial advisor to meet you, free of charge, to give you honest plain-speaking advice about your options and the financial steps you need to take, to get a mortgage agreement in principle.

Then, as you search for properties we will monitor you progress and offer help and advice, helping you to search efficiently and productively.

And, when you find a property that fits the bill we will help you by viewing the property with you, offering an experienced second opinion, and help you by advising you on tactics, and negotiations.

And then, when you have placed a successful offer we will help you to interpret your surveys or searches and will advise you on any renegotiation of price in the light of the survey.

And when you secure property we can refer you to a reputable local firm of solicitors at a special discounted rate for your conveyancing fees (this may save you £150+ in fees on an £80,000 house).

The fee for this FTBs package is £199 for a limited period only (including a one-hour initial consultation, personalized house-hunting checklist, free meeting with an independent financial advisor, mentoring as you homesearch, viewing of favoured property, advice on purchasing, advice on interpreting surveys and searches, assistance with price negotiation, and discounted conveyancing fees). This offer applies only to FTBs within 30 miles of our offices. Our visits to properties to advise are limited to three visits, thereafter a payment of £40 per viewing will be charged to cover costs.