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Do your research

Your offer should be based on how much you are willing to pay, and how much the seller is willing to accept. Before you make an offer, you should decide:

• The lowest amount you want to offer.

• The highest amount you are willing to pay for the property.

Then, consider all these other variables:

• The asking price.

• The price the property was valued at.

• Interest in the property.

  • if the property is new on the market, interest may be high.

  • if the property has been on the market for a long time, there may be a better chance for negotiation on the asking price.

• The seller's circumstances - does the seller need to move by a certain date? Has the seller already bought another property to move into?

• How confident are you in the strength of your offer and your ability to negotiate?

Get the opening offer right

Houses and flats do not have fixed price tags and you can make savings with good negotiation skills. It's important to get the opening offer right, as this influences the amount you eventually pay. Usually an opening offer is 5-10% less than the asking price and this is a starting point for discussion. When you make an offer, the estate agent will ask questions like:

• What percentage of the price is a mortgage required for?

• Have you got a mortgage offer in place?

• What are your timescales for the move?

• Do you have any other outstanding offers?

• Do you need to sell you property first?

This will help the agent to determine your eligibility and communicate your situation to the seller. A verbal offer is not legally binding so you may be asked to put your final offer in writing. If they do, please ensure that you write 'Subject to Contract' on the top of any correspondence. In Scotland an offer is legally binding from the moment it is accepted.

Appoint a solicitor

At this point in the process you should appoint a solicitor to look after the legalities for you. It's worth getting three quotes to make sure the prices you're being quoted are competitive. When you get the solicitor's quotes, check whether the estimates cover absolutely all costs.

Although expensive, a solicitor is well worth the money to successfully complete the purchase and resolve issues. Once chosen, your solicitor will get the ball rolling by writing to the seller's solicitor, confirming that they are acting on your behalf and from then on, will help guide you through the paperwork.