Buying a new build - what to look out for?

[Neitherherenorthere1]

Hi all we are considering buying a new build - what are the pros and cons and what things specifically should I be asking the sales agent?

Personally I wouldn’t buy a new build but if you have to I’d make sure there are no service charges related to the common areas / roads / gardening etc . Has to be a pure freehold with no other costs or charges . Make sure there is a water tight snagging process . Make sure the garden is made and not waterlogged in the winter so check drainage and what’s around , not built on a floodplain etc . Check any ‘ rules’ on the estate eg no caravan parking , designated parking if there’s no personal driveway. Probably loads of other things , in the main new builds are thrown up so check the overall quality and finish .

Freehold, freehold, freehold. We got ours thrown in as part of the deal, others didn't and are now in legal battles.

It is free hold but with an annual service charge.

Speak to any decent builder and they'll tell you to run far far away from any new build. There are no good developers, there are very few pros!

We bought a new build about 15 years ago off plan.

Our service charge has gone from about £100 annually to £500 annually.

See what you can get thrown in as part of your deal - grass, fences, carpets, shower over bath if it doesn't have one, outside tap.is the development finished or are they still building? It's the road outside finished? Ours wasn't tarmac for about 6 months but the one around the corner was about 18 months.

We part ex our old house so very convenient. We had no issues with the houses or builder (Morris Homes).

If it's Barratts run a mile...

Seriously check all conditions and that they don't have all sorts of rights over your house.

Be prepared to find they've used the cheapest stuff which looks okay for the first 6 months...

The service charge would put me right off. Check that the roads are adopted by the council and that you aren’t responsible for maintaining them. Check your boundary - don’t assume that the bit of grass and planting the developer has done around your door is actually your property. What is the parking like - as more and more skinny semis and “townhouses” are built in areas with no decent parking or public transport it becomes a nightmare. Are their guarantees for inbuilt appliances? They often use a good brand but commission a spectacularly shit spec to put in 1000s of houses. What is on the garden? Shove a spade in and see if it’s rubble, clay or topsoil.

There will be snags - if you are moving in towards the end of site completion (ie they are not still building), be prepared to fight tooth and nail to get the snagging fixed - it’s hard enough when they are still on site.

Check behind your bath panel - we had lots of rubbish hidden behind including half eaten sandwiches which the tradesmen had obviously left behind and we couldn’t work out where the smell was coming from!

Soundproofing.

Lack of soundproofing seems to be number one complaint from new build owners in my local Facebook group.

With some saying they can hear people gently clearing their throats next door.

Pros , lots of things eg appliances , carpets are often included. Garden turfed.
Cons, lack of storage space, lot of things on the snag list, albeit minor faults, often in the bathrooms. Finishing off not good on some. Rooms often small.Covenants which can be restrictive. Shared driveways, often a cause of friction between neighbours.

Do they have as a clause that if you don't pay the service charge then they can repossess their house?
Be aware that getting out of that can take months (and cost) and some mortgage providers (naturally) don't like it, which can make selling interesting.

Parking. You need enough private parking for all of the vehicles you own on a new build estate, especially one where there isn’t any parking on the road because it’s all dropped curbs or everywhere is on a bend.

People get so het up about parking.

Is the property freehold?

Service charges and any covenants on estate (my friend's has something about parking of motorhomes and caravans, no paving or tarmac on the grass in front of their house to extend their drive, no walls or boundary fences to be built to the front of the property. She found out about them after 1 neighbour bought a huge camper and parked it on his drive much to the chagrin of other residents who said they were not allowed to be parked on drives. The rule about not paving or tarmacing in front of house came up when they wanted to extend the drive to park 2 cars side by side as currently drive way is 1.5 cars wide. The no fence or wall at front came about when she wanted to put a fence or wall up to stop people walking across the grass at the front of her house- lives on a corner plot).

Is the road adopted or will you have to pay to maintain it? When will the top layer of tarmac go down and the road be properly finished? Local new build estate near us had raised ironworks and unfinished roads for nearly 2 years.

Based on people I know who live on 3 of the new build estates in our town (all big homebuilding companies). Is it built on boggy/ previously regularly flooded land? Two of the new build estates are pretty much waterlogged in the gardens year round. Do the gardens have leather jackets? Another of the estates pretty much has a leather jacket infestation and the other year everyone on the estate basically had mud gardens as the leather jackets had devoured the turf. House building company refused to do anything.

Snagging.

Parking - is there adequate parking provision for the estate? Every single one of my friends or family that live on new build estates seem to have huge issues with parking. It all seems to start with one CF and escalates from there.

What are the terms of the service charge? Is it capped or can it just increase as much as they feel like? There's a housing estate near me that's currently taking their management company to court as the service charge has jumped up by huge amounts and the company barely turns up to mow the verges.

Unfortunately, it looks like it's legal and there's not much they can do about it

I bought a new build two years ago- things to consider: as someone else said, soundproofing they don't insulate between downstairs ceiling/upstairs floor as it isn't required, parking can be an issue at least people moan about it, snagging is a bit of a pain we are still sorting 2 years later. However, if it wasn't a new build, you would just be stuck sorting issues out yourself! I never wanted to move to a new build but we needed something chain free, I love how new everything is and can't imagine buying a secondhand house again! It seems to build a bit of a community too which I like.

Take care looking at the show house. Sometimes the beds they use look like a double making you imagine a certain size of room but they aren’t a full double- look at the dimensions of the house you would be buying.

The spec will also be high on the show home.

When looking round think about - where will the bin go? Ironing board? Are there wardrobes in the bedrooms? Is the furniture ‘small’ to give the impression of space?
What about coats and laundry?

Walls are usually thin, and awkward layouts to give the impression of space -

Gardens, are they just full of rubble underneath?

Be prepared for it to take some time for the value to return to what you pay for it. I know someone who sold three years after they bought their newbuild and got less than they paid for it.

Get as many free extras added as you can. Don’t pay for turf because they do a terrible job laying it. It’s generally cheaper to get flooring done yourself rather than paying the developer. Get a snagging survey done and then don’t get off their case until they have fixed them all.

Make sure you have a good survey and personal walk through before you complete. I’d not personally touch a new build with a barge pole, but my dad bought one once and then died a year later. I cannot tell you the ridiculous things that were wrong with it that needed to be fixed before we could sell it. Like one of the bedroom windows was visibly crooked. It was like being in some sort of trippy funhouse. 😂

Also don’t get one of those ones with the back gardens that feel like a prison yard or dog kennels. Just row upon row of 10’x10’ boxes with high fences. My friend lives in one like that and it’s so depressingly claustrophobic.

Read online reviews. Check local facilities. The new builds in our town have all been built with no pavements to walk on to get anywhere. So many kids walking on like a 60mph A road to school with no pavement around blind bends. No public transport options, etc. Just no planning at all seemed to go into it.

What phase are you in? Will they definitely complete the development or will you need left in a building site for years?

Service charge for communal areas - your house may be freehold but the communal areas may be leasehold so you may get a new freeholder at some point who will increase charges etc. You’ll also have to pay to have your ownership registered with the management company so you’ll pay them several £££ to cut the grass half a dozen times a year then another 333 when ou join, your new buyer will have to pay them etc.

Check what additional amenities the site has proposed and at what stage they’ll be included. All the things they sell estates on make them zero money so they always fall off the Build List. Is that wonderful play park actually going to be anything other than a depressing slide and the frame for a swing? Our estate was started in 2007. Shops, pub, allotments, new school, fab park all included in Phase 2 in the plan. They’re about a 1/3 of the way through Phase 2 and started last year. I know they’re going to say there isn’t enough call for the school and the shops would take away business from the local shops etc. Looking forward to the dystopian playground though!

I wouldn’t actually ever buy a new build due to the depreciation (we paid £3k less than what they bought it for 6 years prior) and the build quality will be shocking. The only developers I would only consider are small, independents with a proven track record but they cost way over my budget.

If you are a keen gardener, DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT! New build gardens are basically garage piles. They might turf it, but it’s likely not to last as it’s laid on rubble with minimal trashy top soil. If you must, ask for a discount on an unfinished garden but ask them to take away the lumps of mortar there will invariably be.

Access arrangements with your neighbours.

Will it have a garage? Are you expecting to get your car in the garage because you won’t be able to.

Reservation fees/cancellation fees - READ THE SMALL PRINT.

Wangle some upgrades if you can.

Be prepared to complete on a number of days notice ie they tell you today you’ll be completing on June 6 so you’ll need your funds to be available. If you’re using your current house as funds you won’t know when you’re moving which will drive your buyers nuts. Sell and move into rented knowing you have no actual idea of when you’ll move in. They’ll tell you “very soon”…”within 4 weeks”…”just another couple of weeks”…”I’m afraid completion date has been pushed back by 8 weeks”…”Right, you’re moving in in 5 days. Get you £500k to us by 5pm Tuesday’.

Question everything. Don’t use a bucket shop conveyancer unless they’re used to dealing with new builds.

DON’T USE THE CONVEYANCER THE DEVELOPER SUGGESTS. Choose your own and don’t go for the cheapest. Ask around and get a recommendation from someone you know.

Don’t do it.

Oh, and watch some videos of that New Build Inspector on FB! He’ll tell you everything to check. Might be an idea to ask to see around a nearly finished house rather than the show home (when you’re looking at the show home be forensic when you’re looking at things. Check the calking up the stairs, open/close doors, run the taps, open and close windows, check the pointing, are the light switches straight, give everything a bit of a shoogle, are there those little vent thingies and are they correctly installed etc. It’s like Van Halen burying no brown M&Ms deep in their rider. They did that because they had an incredibly technical & complex show that needed a lot of attention to detail. If they walked in and saw brown M&Ms they knew they were working with a rubbish crew and could potentially die so they’d rip everything up and start again. If the developer can’t get basics right like doors that close then it’s only going to get worse. You shouldn’t be able to find anything wrong with a show home, it should be their absolute best work).

Final thing, DON’T DO IT 😬

In terms of depreciation - my nextdoor neighbour sold 18 months after we both bought at a £55k profit so they don't all depreciate.

I’ve been happy with new build for the past 7 years. Some snags that were easily sorted. Only invoiced for the annual service charge from this year. Had house valued recently and it’s gone up in line with local prices.

Things I would point out:
Extras at the point of deciding your exact spec can really put the price up
There are opportunities to negotiate esp depending upon the plot/ where they are at in terms of the development and how easy your situation is

Reading the comments it must depend on the area but there are a lot of new builds being built where I live and they go down in price massively after a year or two. We were recently house hunting and went to see some second-hand new builds which were brought for £530-£540k 2/3 years ago and the owners are now struggling to sell them for £480-£485k. If you are planning to stay for the long-term then that's not so bad, I imagine they eventually go up in price again.

I loved the spacious rooms in the new builds but what put us off were the very over-looked gardens, lack of parking, estate maintenance charges and just generally disliking the feel of new build estates. However, I have friends that live in the new builds who are very happy, apart from some garden issues.

Ive never seen a new build estate, right back to the 90s, to have adquate parking or big enough garages. The cars end up parked half on the pavement, the road isnt wide enough.

Lots of these estates are little off shoots from a busy A road, the A road having no lighting, no pavement or public transport. So people coming to you have no choice to drive, cant walk there, cant get the bus there, but also no where to park.