Buyers Guide

Buying in Cambridge involves more than finding a home you like. Your budget, the property’s records and condition, the sale method and the settlement timetable all need to work together. Use this checklist to organise the questions to ask before you commit.

Set your brief and finance position

Separate essentials from preferences: location, layout, access, garaging, outdoor space and the work you are willing to take on. Compare your normal weekday routine as well as the open-home impression. Include legal advice, inspections, moving costs and ongoing ownership expenses in your budget.

Check your borrowing position and the lender’s requirements for the particular property. Pre-approval can have conditions and an expiry date; it is not a promise to lend on every home. You can use your own adviser or explore mortgage advice from Brett Wood. Our first-home resource covers further questions for first-time buyers.

Make each Cambridge viewing useful

Take the same short brief to every home so you can compare the property with your daily life, rather than only its presentation. For a Cambridge or Leamington home, that might mean space for a growing household, a quieter room for work, or a manageable garden after downsizing.

• Walk your routine: follow the route from the car to the kitchen, look at storage and laundry access, and measure furniture that must fit.
• Notice light and sound: record the time of your visit, the rooms you would use most and questions about road noise or neighbouring activity. Arrange another viewing if a different time matters to your decision.
• Look beyond the living room: note visible maintenance, drainage, heating and ventilation questions for your independent inspector. Ask before operating equipment or taking photographs.
• Test the setting: compare the actual journeys to work, shops and activities. Check current school enrolment information directly if eligibility matters to your purchase.
• Leave with an action list: request the sale documents, confirm the method and deadline, and identify what your lawyer, lender or inspector still needs to answer.

For a lifestyle shortlist, compare access, water, wastewater and the time needed to care for the land as well as the house. Use our lifestyle checklist and property-records guide for those follow-up questions. An open home helps you decide what to investigate; it does not replace an independent inspection.

If another buyer makes an offer

A multi-offer process involves more than one written offer. Ask the salesperson to explain the process, paperwork and closing time. You may have only one opportunity to put forward your preferred terms, so decide your limit and have your lawyer review the offer. Price, conditions and settlement all matter; the seller does not have to accept the highest figure or any offer.

Keep the protections your circumstances require. Read Settled’s multi-offer explanation before deciding how to respond.

Check the property before making a commitment

Ask your lawyer to review the record of title, sale agreement and relevant property information. Understand access rights, easements, covenants and any shared ownership or body corporate arrangements. Obtain the council records and LIM information appropriate to the property, and check alterations, consents and completion documents.

Arrange a suitable independent property inspection and ask what it covers. Consider hazards and whether acceptable insurance can be obtained, including any conditions or exclusions. A seller’s information pack is useful, but ask your advisers whether further checks are needed for your decision. Settled’s buyer-check guidance is a helpful starting point.

For land or lifestyle property, also investigate water, wastewater, boundaries, access and the responsibilities that come with the site. See our rural and lifestyle checklist.

Understand the sale method and your offer

Ask how the property is being sold and what deadlines apply. Get legal advice before signing. An offer may include conditions, but the wording, dates and consequences need to suit the transaction. Read Settled’s sale-and-purchase explanation.

For an auction, complete your checks and arrange finance before bidding, and have your lawyer review the auction terms. Ask about any variation you need in advance; it must be agreed. See Settled’s auction guidance.

Prepare to bid at auction

Auction purchases are normally unconditional. Before bidding, confirm finance for this property and ask your lawyer to check the auction agreement, title and any variation you need. Complete inspections and insurance enquiries in time. Register your interest with the listing salesperson and ask to be told about a pre-auction offer.

Confirm the date, venue, deposit arrangements and settlement terms. If you need to bid remotely, arrange the authorised process early; watching a livestream is not the same as registering to bid. Set a limit that fits your finances before the auction begins.

The seller’s reserve is not normally disclosed. Once the reserve is reached, the highest bid can secure the property. If the property passes in, a sale has not been completed at auction and further negotiation may follow. Ask the salesperson about the next steps. Use our Live Auctions page to watch and auction property listings to explore homes, then confirm the particular property’s arrangements with its agent.

Prepare for settlement and moving

Track the agreement’s conditions with your lawyer, arrange finance and insurance, and organise the pre-settlement inspection. Check the agreed chattels and condition against the contract, and raise issues with your lawyer promptly. Confirm how keys will be released once settlement is completed.

Bring the agreement to the pre-settlement inspection

Arrange access through the salesperson with time to raise any issues before settlement. Compare the property with the agreement, including listed chattels, agreed work and any damage since signing. Record specific concerns and contact your lawyer promptly; the inspection is not a substitute for the checks needed before purchase.

Confirm your finance, insurance, moving arrangements and how keys and remotes will be released after settlement. Read Settled’s settlement preparation guide and agree the timetable with your own advisers.

Ask about the Buyer’s Guide

For a Ray White Buyer’s Guide, contact the Cambridge office or use the enquiry form below to ask about the current copy and how to obtain it. Include “Buyer’s Guide” in your message so the team understands your request.

Find a property and ask your questions

Browse properties for sale, meet the Cambridge team or call 07 827 0222. The salesperson can explain the property and sale process; use your own lawyer and specialist advisers for independent advice.

Look more closely at the property

Our Property Guides cover different home types and the checks that go with them. Start with property records, LIMs and building reports to organise the information before your offer.