Do You Have To Have A Mortgage To Buy A Home?

Summary: Buying a house is almost certainly the most expensive purchase you will ever have to make. Finding or saving the funds to buy your first home and get your foot on to the property ladder used to be almost impossible without taking out a mortgage to lend you the required funds.

Buying a house is almost certainly the most expensive purchase you will ever have to make. Finding or saving the funds to buy your first home and get your foot on to the property ladder used to be almost impossible without taking out a mortgage to lend you the required funds. Although most people still don't have access to the amount of cash you would need to buy a home, alternate options to the mortgage are starting to be explored. With the increased use of the internet to search for your new home, and the increased involvement of the buyer and seller of the house, direct communication between the two parties has never been better. Buyers and sellers are now communicating together to see if they can reach a compromise for the exchange for the house which doesn't always include financial payment. These deals are becoming increasingly creative and can accommodate a whole host of requirements for either or both parties. The most widely used alternative to the traditional mortgage is that of the seller mortgage. Most buyers, particularly first time buyers, require a substantial down payment towards the purchase of their new home. This is usually a percentage of the overall price and is 10% as standard. The cost of houses in the UK has risen hugely over the past decade and so this can be as much as