Be prepared

• Set your price - decide how much you want to pay. Don't fall into the trap of admitting you can pay more
• Show you're serious - tell the agent you have your mortgage in place
• Ask questions - find out how long a property's been on the market. If it was taken off the market and put back on, ask why
• Don't be too keen - try not to make an offer on the spot. Go away, work out your finances and think it over

Once you've had your offer accepted

• Apply for your chosen mortgage - don't overstretch yourself. You don't want to be left struggling to meet the monthly repayments
• Appoint your professionals - ask a solicitor or licensed conveyancer to carry out the legal side of buying and selling, known as conveyancing. Get recommendations from friends, your bank or contact The Law Society
• Arrange a survey - although your mortgage lender will organise a valuation, this doesn't give you any detailed information about the condition of the property. Your lender can also arrange the survey on your behalf. Read the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors' guide to understanding surveys
• Negotiate - if the valuation or survey shows up any problems, you can try to agree a new price with the seller
• Exchange contracts - at this stage you sign a copy of the contract, while the seller signs an identical copy. These contracts are then exchanged by the solicitors. Once this has taken place, you and the seller are both legally committed to the agreement. You should now receive your completion date
• Congratulations - completion is when the transfer of ownership passes from the seller to the buyer - and the seller gets their money. You usually move in on completion day. Your solicitor will send you a completion statement listing the financial transactions that have taken place, and his or her bill.