You need to be able to act quickly to secure the property you’ve found which is why it’s important that you sort your finances out as early as possible so you know exactly what your budget is. You are then ready to make an offer and once this is agreed in principle, you can then get the ball rolling on the purchase. The next step is to obtain your written mortgage offer (mortgage offers are often agreed verbally before you find a property) and then instruct a solicitor to deal with all the legal aspects of the purchase.