To ask for help deciding which house to go for? Sorry posting for traffic as need advice x

[Auramigraine]

Hi all

So currently renting but have saved a deposit up over past 10 years and ready to step onto the property ladder. We live in a small village, our DC have a lovely school so for this reason we are quite restricted to houses in the immediate area.

There is a development at the moment being built, I would say it has about 50 houses built and moved into and currently building another 100, we went along thinking not much but found a plot that is perfect, own drive, affordable for our budget, layout great, the sales woman said it will be ready in about December, she has put our name down on the plot and will ring when it’s ready to reserve, but we haven’t put a penny down yet.

Last week I was driving down a street near my DC school and saw a house for sale, couldn’t find details online so rang and found it was to be put up this week, I have booked a viewing for this week. This street is quite popular, two houses I have noticed previously been interested in sold within 3 days so I know I have to act fast if I want it. This house is nice, nice location, but a bit on the small side, the front room is quite small (viewed a house on street before and its exact same)

BUT the seller has left so we could move in as soon as we sort mortgage. The other house on the other hand is months away, brexit is coming and I feel risk putting 10% down (exchange 28 days after reserve) and I do have anxiety so I know waiting after legally exchanging is going to be a stressful time for me.

Saying no to either house is not an option, we have been house hunting for over two years.

The new house would be our forever home, the other MIGHT be but I can’t say for definite it would be.

I don’t want my desperation to be a home owner cloud my judgement but I have no idea what to do.

Any advice? Sorry it’s long x

Oops forgot to mention the new build is freehold and no service charges, otherwise I would have walked away x

The new build sounds like the option I'd pick; depending on your budget, stamp duty costs a fortune so why would you move twice when you could move once into your forever home?

Presumably you have time to offer on the second house to see what happens before having to decide on the new build. If you were 100% on the new build what made you look the second house up?

I’d normally say avoid new build as you pay a premium you may not got back if you need to sell soon after but if you think it’s a forever home then go for it. The anxiety you have is general buyer anxiety which is understandable as this is a big deal! But, all the factors you mention in relation to the new build are surely just as applicable to the other house too?

What's the price difference between the two?

Thank you both for replying

@AlunWynsKnee In all honesty, because of my anxiety of waiting months for completion. Fear of something drastic happening to me or OH in the wait and us loosing our money, that and impatience I think x

@Craiglang about 20k

The second house is about 20 years old

Is there a difference in price and is there scope to extend the second property in the longer term? I owned a flat on a nice new build estate, but I wouldn't buy a new build again personally, especially as a forever home

Which is cheaper?

Also twenty years old isn't really an older house with the abstracts advantages you get there (usually bigger plot, solidly built etc), so go with the one you love

I’d say new build if it’s bigger- you’ll be glad when the dc are older for the space!

I'm not a fan of new builds and obviously the second house is more desirable to other people as the other homes have sold so quickly. I'd go for the second house.

It sounds like the only thing stopping you going for the one not yet built is the wait, is that right? If so I'd wait not least because I have bought a few houses and can say with some certainty that the estate agents communications about how long it will take to move (they always seem to say 6 weeks???) are fanciful. The fact that the other property is vacant is no guarantee that you'd be in in before December anyway. You need to find a way to cope with the anxiety of waiting as one way or another you will probably have to. And if you're compromising on what you want when you don't have to, I think that will just pop up as a different anxiety very soon.

I wouldn't want a new build generally, but you have issues with the other house so you should not buy it. If you feel the new build is that great then it's the right house for you and you should buy that one. (Also check Department of Environment online flood maps for the new build!)

I would say go for your favourite location. We have lived in locations we dislike, ones that are just inconvenient and some nice places. We have also lived in houses that are too small and ones that are just right.

I would always choose your favourite location because you can declutter and find storage savers but you can't pick your house up and move it.

It made us far more miserable living in an area we disliked or that was inconvenient than having a smaller house.

I think the one by your children's school sounds nicer.

It's impossible to guess what will happen with Brexit and therefore the housing or job market. You could buy now and end up in negative equity come December or you could be tied into a high price for the new build or the market might fall before you exchange on the new build.
I think you should look at #2 and if you like it then offer what you think would be a good deal.

I am in my second new build and love them. Are you able to see a Shoshone that will be the same as yours so you can see the storage etc. What I love is everything is Under warranty, you pick your own fixtures etc. I actually don’t understand why people hate them without living in one

Don't wait for the new build - they may be fresh and new but
a) you don't know when it will be ready whatever the developer says
b) your mortgage offer may run out as a result
c) you know just what you are getting with the 'second-hand' property
d) newbuilds tend to lose value rather like a new car when it leaves the garage forecourt
e) do you want to live on an estate or a street?
finally
f) location, location, location is always what wins for me
f) room sizes tend to be smaller in new build houses than older houses

Freehold is good - no service charges surprised me if this house is part of an estate with common grounds that need upkeep.

DD and SiL moved into a new build house part of a large development frrehold too and do have charges for maintenance of the gardens and playground.

They had awful problems too and the houses needed a complete rebuild a year after they moved in. They had to live in another house on the estate for 18 months! They would never buy new build again obv.

Location is more important. Would go for established street over new build estate, personally. New builds can drag on months past their target date, tend to drop in value immediately after first sale and the snagging can be a pain.

I do have a bias though - just hate the bright orange brick, the way they tend to look the same and the awful bland postage stamp gardens. Appreciate some smaller developers may be nicer than the Taylor Wimpey and Barratt ones I’ve seen round here.

Check out the new estate, is there good parking, road width. Have the established parts been maintained? Talk to current residents, how have the builders been with the snagging? Talk to your potential mortgage provider, is a new build mortgage as easy to achieve?

I'd go for the house that's already there. Near school allows children more freedom later on to visit school friends, walk to and from school. You know what it's like around the area - a new build on an estate with anther 100 houses still to be built may feel much less pleasant in a year's time than it does now. The older house should have had all the initial snags ironed out.

Thanks all for the advice, to answer a few questions

The new build is definitely bigger in some aspects, I have seen both houses inside, the second house had a slightly bigger kitchen but the front room is definitely a lot smaller and seems a bit cramped. The bedrooms are roughly the same size.
New build I have been into the show home of the house we have picked, the whole back of the house is the living room wall to wall if I make sense.
Location wise the second house is about five mins walk from the school, new build is five mins drive. New build on estate, second home on a street then a main road next to that.

One thing that worry’s me is delays on the new build and mortgage offer expiring, I have been advised to have a clause in contract stating that if they run over and my mortgage offer does expire we can get our deposit back, hopefully that can happen, if not then I probably wouldn’t proceed further as it’s too much risk to loose 10% of the property price.

Talk to your mortgage provider though, and maybe use a broker to find one who can give you a 6 month offer. Sounds like the new build is your best bet. Check out the other house first though.

I too worried about the no service charge thing, but the woman’s adamant there isn’t and won’t be 🤷‍♀️ The developer basically has bought a massive piece of land and allowed two other developers to build houses on it, those houses are leasehold as the ground is rented from the developer I’m thinking of buying off, those houses are two years old and two of them have recently been up for sale. I rang the estate agent pretending to be interested and enquired about service charges and they told me there is ground rent but no service charges.

Hope that makes sense. Will definitely go the viewing this week and hopefully my gut feeling will give me an answer.