New Build Mortgages

There's something special about buying a brand new home. From energy efficient features and lower maintenance costs to the excitement of being the very first owner, new build properties offer plenty of advantages for buyers at every stage of life.

Whether you're a first time buyer, moving into your next home, or considering building your own property from the ground up, there are specialist mortgage options and home buying schemes that could help make it happen. At Emerald Mortgages, we'll guide you through the process, explain your options in plain English, and help you find the mortgage that's right for your plans.

On this page you'll find everything you need to know about buying a new build property, along with helpful information if you're exploring a self build project too.

New Build Process

In 3 simple stages

Affordability Checks and reservation

Before you reserve your new home, the developer will usually ask you to demonstrate that you can afford it. This is normally done with an Agreement in Principle, and some developers may also ask you to complete a simple affordability assessment.

Once you've found the right plot, you'll agree any incentives being offered by the developer and pay a reservation fee to secure the property. From this point, the buying process officially begins, and there are often deadlines to meet, so it's important to get your mortgage application underway as soon as possible.

Mortgage application, legal works and Exchange

Once you've reserved your property, the developer will provide a reservation form confirming the details of your purchase, including any agreed incentives. You'll then have a set period, usually around 6 to 8 weeks, to exchange contracts.

During this time, you'll need to secure your mortgage offer, your lender will arrange a valuation of the property, and your solicitor will complete most of the legal work. Once contracts are exchanged, you're legally committed to buying the property, making it important to keep everything moving from the outset.

Build finish and completion

Once you've exchanged contracts, it's simply a case of waiting for your new home to be completed and signed off.

Depending on how early you reserved the property, you may have the opportunity to personalise it with optional upgrades, such as flooring, kitchen or bathroom finishes, and other extras offered by the developer.

When the property is ready, your solicitor and the developer will agree a completion date. On completion day, your solicitor will transfer the funds, and once the developer has confirmed they've received payment, you'll be able to collect the keys to your brand new home.

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Back to Mortgages

I've spent a large part of my career specialising in new build mortgages, helping buyers navigate what is a different process to purchasing an older property.

New build mortgages come with a few extra things to think about, from making sure your mortgage offer lasts long enough if the build is delayed, to understanding how developer incentives or schemes can affect which lenders are available to you. There can also be different lending rules for some new build properties, particularly flats, so it's important to get advice that's tailored to your purchase.

If you're buying a brand new home, we'll guide you through the process from start to finish, helping you choose a lender that's the right fit and keeping everything on track.

If you're a property developer looking for a reliable mortgage broker to support your buyers and help purchases progress smoothly, we'd love to hear from you too.

A message from our new build expert

Charley