NewStats: 3,264,913 , 8,185,079 topics. Date: Thursday, 12 June 2025 at 07:18 PM 134428

Congratulations!

Kunleop:
Alhamdulilah

Keys in our hands.

I'm here to show my appreciation to everyone that I have been contributed positively to this group.

Special appreciation to @lexusgs430 and @madam Ticha, your valuable and advice really go a long way in purchasing our first home. Thank you so much your time despite calling and emailing at odd hours, you still find time to respond.

I'm happy to inform everyone that we got our keys to our first home yesterday and we happy to start our beautiful journey in this beautiful 3bedroom semi-detached new build property.

All the developer had their own incentive and try to push for more incentive if you are looking to buy a new build. Our property came with 5% deposit contribution, 50% flooring packages upgraded garden and integrated dishwasher, I did not go for upgraded kitchen.

Mr @lexusgs430 really helped me to push for more when my lender undervalued the property with £10k however we negotiated the price and the property was reduced by 5k abs was given full integrated kitchen.

My journey to purchase a house started in March despite that I'm not up to 2years in the country, I have been able to gained more knowledge in house buying, thanks to this group for dropping valuable informations.

This year make it 2years we came in to this country and Alhamdulilah we able to purchase our first home where we are hoping and believes our little ones are going to creates everlasting memories.

May almighty God make it easy and possible for everyone.

Rent money 💰 is a dead 💰

That is out Motto.

Congratulations Pacy.

PrettyPacy:
Short post alert…
Good evening everyone, I have come to give God the glory and appreciate everyone here who encourages and give free and detailed information about mortgage, thank you. I got the house keys today and the feeling can not be described… thank you everyone, thank you.

Congratulations.

babajeje123:

Yippee...it's testimony time and a very long one it is.
The whole journey started in August and we had December as our move-in date. Our searches led us to Persimmon, paid reservation fee however we had no peace of mind. One, how they would be able to finish the plot in a space of few months, two the reviews we read about Persimmon were not encouraging and the fact that we would stick to their Internet provider discouraged us from proceeding with them. So we requested for what we paid as reservation fee.

Then, we moved to Keepmoat. A very decent property with a lot of freebies for shikini money. Integrated fridge & freezer, washing machine, dishwasher, flooring with carpet in all rooms, turf in the garden, and a wardrobe in the master bedroom. All for 167k pere with 5% deposit. We reserved that day! But the property is in a different location from where we are. We didn't even care, so happy submitting all docs till the result of the local searches came out. The area is prone to flooding. Wetin be this? We sha consulted, talked to people and the advised we should go ahead as the area has never experienced flooding in the last 50 years. But my mind no touch ground at though we kept moving by faith. Went to do door knocking one day and the guy I spoke to talked well of the area. No serious snagging issues since he moved in, quick response time for little issues that came up, he sha spoke well but mind refused to touch ground. Then one day, I felt like checking what the council tax in that area is for same property. £174! I've found a good reason to cancel. Currently paying £110, paying £174 means we will be doing 010 daily. Brain-washed madam and we cancelled though we lost so money. We continued to search and we found Gentoo. They didn't think all our boxes but ticked the important ones. We can sleep well without praying that it should not rain and council tax will make us do 101 at least . We knew we won't cancel cos we found peace throughout the whole process.

Contract exchanged yesterday, completion was today, going for keys tomorrow. Let somebody shout hallelujah

Congrats!

Goodenoch:
So, we picked up our new (to us) house keys yesterday.

Offer to completion took just shy of 7 months, but it really could and should have been much shorter, maybe even just a couple of months. Sellers' first lawyers were just unresponsive and then the new ones they got four months in missed something crucial that made us have to go back to the land registry a day before our original target completion date, and then spend an additional three weeks sorting it out till we exchanged and completed yesterday (same day).

I've said all the above to plead with you to please in the name of God don't go for the cheapest lawyers you find online because you want to save a few hundred quid. If you do you might end up with an online-only, call center-esque law firm like our sellers' one.

Another issue was the AML checks we had to do for our broker. We had to submit close to two years' worth of statements from multiple bank and investment s and it was extremely frustrating, albeit understandable in the circumstances.

Other than those, it was all good and we're really stoked to get started doing up the house. We only viewed three houses because we had very specific requirements (particularly a spare ground floor room that'd function as a home gym). We were initially tempted by one 1930s house but after meeting the owners on the second viewing we realized there were many issues the agents had glossed over. The owner literally told us "I haven't done a lot of maintenance I should have because I don't have the money." We ran away as fast our legs would carry us.

Second one was good but on the small side, had an awkward multi-level garden and most crucially was in a very inconvenient location.

The one we went for was perfect in all respects - very large main house and with a garage + home office extension. Also, madam fell in love with it as soon as she saw the large garden and excercised her veto power - even though it'll be me mowing the lawn but wetin man go do?

Thanks to everyone here, particularly madam Ticha for all the guidance here and directly, and to the person who first posted about it being possible to get a mortgage without having spent 2 years in the country.

Congrats!

missb50:
Thank God, finally, it's my testimony time!

We got our keys 13/09, and moved in 15/09.

Got over 6k extra using LISA.

Special thanks to Oga Lexus, Madam Ticha, and everyone contributing to this thread.

Rent money is dead money

Reacting to a situation or person that threatens my existence is rational.

Also, the absence of emotions is also a display of some sort of emotion.

BeckyB1:
Thank you very much for stating this fact.
A lot of people trying to jump on her do not want to understand that she expresses her sincere opinion without sentiments and "expected" emotions.

Congratulations!

hustla:



Bossman, job search dey

Between Jan and April, did about 12 interviews, finally got 2 jobs before graduation..

I rest my case

Lol.

You still don't get it. You may never sha.

Let someone who's a recent Nigerian(lol) or person of colour to go through your last few posts and responses and see if they also misinterprete your comments.

Intentionally or not, there's something blocking or influencing your general views, which is standard for everyone. But on these issues, nah.
Also, there's no need to (try to) apologise. You're who you are.

Zahra29:


Sigh. Another one.

I fail to see how this comment about asylum seekers translates to me disregarding attacks against Nigerians and PoC in Newcastle or Sunderland. However I apologise if that's how you misinterpreted my comment.

I hope you and your loved ones stay safe and that the unrest/riots calm down very soon.

Welcome back!

Howfar with the job search?

hustla:
I being on this thread, ranting about how immigrants, especially legal immigrants like students are portrayed by the English media...

I also some people here defending their racist actions and portrayal of immigrants, same people who now would be afraid to go out due to the anti immigrant protests going on right now

I hope we can all see that no matter the spree spree English you speak with your nose and the government you defend cos you feel you're now part of them, you're still black and a bloody immigrant at the end of the day

Light n*gga, dark n*gga, faux n*gga, real n*gga
Rich n*gga, poor n*gga , house n*gga, field n*gga..
... Still n*gga

You have the right to your opinions but this is distasteful.

I live in Newcastle and work in Sunderland. You may be far removed from the reality of a possibility of violence

You shouldn't however discount the people affected directly.

If you were here, youd be a target too because you're not white. Your education, accent, visa type or port colour counts for zilch.

This is also a thread on a forum for people of largely Nigerian/black/coloured origins. Read the room.

Your advice nuggets on UKVI policies are lovely, but for this one, your penalty went over the line for a throw-in.

Zahra29:


That's because they no longer consider them as Illegal migrants, but fellow migrants.

One positive thing to come out of these riots - instead of vilifying those crossing by boat as the problem migrants who are tainting the reputation of the superior legal migrants, there's now a bit more comion towards them. Or at least less disdain.

Not friendly immigration policies.

Rather, necessary immigration policies.

ReesheesuKnack:


@ the bolded
That’s the problem. Facts & figures don’t matter. Just keep regurgitating lines without evidence.

Rishi Sunak (CONSERVATIVES) is "the most liberal prime minister we've ever had on immigration".

Guess who made the quote above?
If you know who made that quote, you will see why your argument above falls like a pack of cards.

When it comes to immigration, the Tories are damned if they do, damned if they don’t. The Tories are/were accused by folks like you to be anti-immigration. Meanwhile, the Labour Leader (as of June 4 2024) accused the Tory prime minister of being the most immigration-liberal PM the UK has ever had. Shuoooo…

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/tax-immigration-keir-starmer-rishi-sunak-leader-tv-debates-general-election-b1162131.html#


PS: If not for the very friendly and liberal immigration policies of the Tories (such as Health Care Visa, unbundling the tier-2 visa, Global talent visa etc…) a lot, lot of immigrants (including many on this thread) wouldn’t have immigrated to the UK.
Under the Tories, net (LEGAL) migration for Last year was over 650,000. Yet, some folks still keep rehashing the lines that Tories are anti-migration and Labour is pro-migration.

The rate is currently one of the best in the market.

I hopenit all goes through smoothly! I'm rooting for you.

It seems like a new build and that price would most likely be around the North East, correct?

babajeje123:
Hello! We've been talking to a builder and we are going there today to pay reservation fee and ID checks. We used the builder's financial advisor and it appears as if they are reasonable however we need to double check. This is what they are offering us, what do you think? We're initially looking for something that our monthly repayment won't be up to 1k however it seems as if that won't be possible due to the purchase price.
Secondly, the builder recommended a solicitor and their charge is £824 excluding the fee for acting as our mortgage lender which is £150, can we get something cheaper? Any recommendation?
@Ticha @Lexusgs430 @all

Thanks for the info.

I'll do just that. I appreciate the tips.

Thank you.

Schoolhike:


Make sure you understand essential criteria very well, understand the behavioral questions to be asked, have scenarios to explain them all.

Good luck.

Please has anyone aced a Civil Service interview role recently? Something around a Grade 7? Please I'll be needing some tips if any. And if you have some knowledge of how to scale through, I'd appreciate the help.

Thank you!

Congratulations!

Paxziano:
Good day guys

Just got a job with DWP as a work coach (EO position).. Any advice.

@schoolhike I see you've ed this stage or something similar... Any tips you can give me?

You should be able to see the factors affecting your credit score. How are you checking your credit score?

EJIOGBENIMI:
Senior men, I need some guidance.
Will low credit score impact my chances of getting a mortgage? I’ve been here for 15months, waiting to reach 2 years before I commence my search.
My credit score has dropped points for a reason I don’t fully understand but I do not have any record of default on any of my direct debits and I’m not on any loan at the moment.
My savings are in Moneybox’s LISA/ISA/instant cash savings.

You'll get a bonus based on the anount you fund the LISA with as long as it's funded between the cutoff date in April. (Please confirm the date)

mayowa94:
Good morning,
Can I still open LISA and get the bonus?

Congratulations

labiola:


Thank you for your response. I notified the seller and he confirmed that it was done three years ago and since then, he has not experienced leakages. We got someone to check it and he said it is okay that it does not mean the tiles will break in the next 5yrs.

We have decided to proceed with the exchanging of contract. We have our keys now.

Glory be to God.

Congratulations!

Jamesclooney:
Testimony time

(Ushers please be on standby with the offering basket )

The Lord built (bought) us a house!!!!

Signed, sealed and delivered. The bunch of keys dey our hand now. Very heavy lol.

Jokes apart, just an appreciation post for everyone ‘s contribution on here (as well as Chidera Peters on YouTube). The guidance received from this forum has been invaluable. Visited over 12 developers/sites; didn’t care about the fuel burnt because a house is a big deal and even if I didn’t like some houses/location, it helped us narrow it down as we discovered what we liked/didn’t like.

KEY DETAILS
House type - Newbuild
Developer - Persimmons
Lender - Halifax (90% LTV)
Incentives - 5% deposit boost plus flooring package
Mortgage rate - 4.97% ,5yrs fixed (although rates dropped to 4.87% when it was 2 weeks to completion)
LISA bonus - £6k (my wife and I) in the space of 15months, took advantage of the tax windows
Mortgage adviser - Threshold Financial Services (got the recommendation from this thread)


Ps - send funds because everywhere don dry. Surviving on tap water till further notice.

You missed World War 3, 4 and the landing on Mercury.

Welcome (but you never left)

justwise:
Good morning people, what did i miss?

This is your opinion, not a fact.

The racism in football, point being the recent slim loss to Iceland in a warm up friendly (basically an unimportant match), where (black) Bukayo Saka came on for 25 minutes but was splashed on all sports pages as the face of the loss can be termed as what?

Blacklash(sic) for dropping out of tournaments recently?

Racism exists, you can choose to ignore it.

Zahra29:


If you keep looking for/imagining racism, you will find it in some form. Most Brits are not racist today, they may have preconceived notions and might be reserved to start with, but most are fair and will ultimately judge a person on merit. If you work hard and are honest and open/friendly/polite, you will get on fine with most people in most places.

Besides, Africans/Nigerians have just as many stereotypes and isms against white people. "They are lazy, they are not clean, why don't they wash their trainers, they are not home trained etc etc" - these are examples of comments I have heard made against Brits, which is obviously not nice and we would cry racism if they made similar comments against us.

Congratulations!

Santa2:
Completed on Friday, I don collect Key.

The guidance's received from this thread has been immeasurable. Started looking at properties last year April, we werent ready then, was just browsing to see what was available.

Late January we saw this property and decided to take the plunge, reserved in February and have been taking baby steps since as we werent in a hurry to complete, wanted completion to coincide with end of school term. Developers no gree for our pace.lol. We fixed with Barclays for 5 years at 4.55%, 10% deposit and 3/2-year residence in UK. Just before completion we checked if the rate had gone down but naaa, it was up to 4.83 or thereabout.

Its still surreal to me.

Thanks to every one that keeps spurring newbies like us on. I the rent money/dead money arguments on the other thread sometime ago. while some would take it as offensive others would see it as motivation. Na so life be. If I start to mention names for here we no go comot today, Lexus, Ticha, Lagosishome, Solumtoya, profemebee, Peerielass, Pearlyfaze, Estroller.. Na God go bless una. To Semmyk wey start this thread, thank for curating all those resources, you are special one, And I hope you doing great.

Does anyone have firsthand experience with both Tritek & RYK for Business Analysis/Project Management and Scrum Master/Product Owner trainings?

Are they too good to be true?

I'm leaning towards one based on their responsiveness and customer service but it's not enough to know who's a better provider.

I'd appreciate any personal testimonies or experiences.

Thanks.

Either way works, but you still have to reach out to your mortgage provider to either increase the direct debit amount as you may not be able to increase it on your own or you find out how much your overpayment allowance/limit is annually. It usually varies between 10 - 20% of your outstanding loan amount.

If you make a bulk payment ensure to clarify with the Mortgage Advisor whether you'd like to maintain your monthly repayment amount or have it reduced with the tenor remaining the same (this is where they usually make the mistake).

Viruses:
How is mortgage excess paid?

Is it to increase the monthly DD or to your and make one off payments?

Here's a link to a different perspective from the Guardian on Kemi Badenoch's Empire & Slavery argument - https://amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/may/05/so-empire-and-the-slave-trade-contributed-little-to-britains-wealth-pull-the-other-one-kemi-badenoch

Interesting perspective.

Wondering how they make the money back then, abi na jazz

wonlasewonimi:


Bro.. Buffet morning afternoon and night. All fruits organic. Those guys have hacked how to make holidays enjoyable. The beach was so clean and serene. They bring drinks to you by the beach, you walk about 50 feet to get roasted gbogbo ero for snacks. You watch different shows every night with bottomless cocktails. Too much igbadun dey there abeg. I go try the one you suggested too

How pocket-friendly are they?

Lexusgs430:


Get from any Schengen country.......

May I recommend Labranda beach resort, Corfu in Greece and RIU Hotel Madeira, in Portugal........

That would be relative.

In South Shields you can see shops and amenities at every 5 minutes walk. It's more populated, there are more job opportunities too.

You'd have to choose between 'cheap' and more urban. You can have a look at Cramlington for larger and cheaper properties too.

The 'expensive' houses are in Gosforth, Heaton & Jesmond.

Dharmie02:


That's good. Houses in South Shields are expensive then.

Ah nice!

You should buy a mansion! The houses out there are bigger and have more space.

Im further north in Newcastle.

teeebest:


Okay Boss.

Near Sunderland. Peterlee precisely.

I hope they review this person's case files. Would the person alosnhabe denied applicants who refused to pay or couldn't afford it?

Lexusgs430:



A bad egg would always exist........ This worker go chop beans....... 😂

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-68828054.amp

Scary!

Basically selling decisions and reaching out to applicants directly.

Go on the Barclays website and search mortgages then request for a call-back from a Financial Guide, you'd be able to have 1 option in that.

What part of the North East are you in?

teeebest:


Thank you Boss. We are in the North east hence the 126k.