To have a first world wtf moan!?

[Kitchenbattle]

So we are buying a new house, it’s gorgeous. I love it. It’s a new build and will be home for the absolute foreseeable.
I am absolutely bowled over by how much it’s costing to get the house in a live in condition!
nearly 30k for appliances including fitting ( cooker, hob, dishwasher, washing machine, dryer, microwave oven, quooker tap), tiles and fitting in all downstairs apart from sitting room, tiles and fitting in main bathroom and two en-suites, bathroom sink units, wood floors and fitting in 5 beds and sitting room and painting.

We haven’t even looked at carpet for the stairs yet and I need to get the dc bedroom furniture!! This is insane.

Moan is the wrong word I suppose but oh my god…haemorrhaging money is an understatement 😭

If it was a house that had been owned before I could put up with it but these are bare walls and concrete floors. Desirable still yes but I would like to have this things done on moving in. I can sort the decor as we go

Honestly, lots of people have nothing and build up. Sounds like you’re in a very fortunate position if you’re able to buy new appliances, etc. Very exciting!

My husband wanted one. So I humoured him, went and had a look, told him yeah it was amazing, but that we would need to make sure it was done to the same standard as our own home.

added 80k onto the price just for getting wardrobes and the best kitchen and bathrooms. This was on a house that cost around 320k to start with.

needless to say he realised that having just redone our kitchen and bathroom ourselves, it was not worth the extra money to move

Coming from rented, I don’t own an appliance so I have to, otherwise I would be taking them all 🤣 but yes it’s exciting at the same time. Thank you

you are painting straight away? You really need to leave the house to settle.you will end up with cracks at the woodwork as the house settles and opens up with the heating on. There is a reason builders do everything g the one colour until the house settles - what if you have snagging works to be done? Customer care might not repaint in your new colours

I echo the pp - I think they usually recommend waiting a while before painting a new build. May be about a year. Might be a good idea to check.

My parents paid nowhere near that for their new build.

Don’t paint for a while. Some cracks won’t be fixed until you’ve lived there for a year and you’d be doing it again. Particularly blown tape and ceiling and under window cracks as the house settles.

This house has been sat there for 6-7 months by the time we paint it will be nearly 9months they said it will be fine

I remember years ago when it was cheaper to buy a new build house than a "used" house. You'd pay for the extras and have a brand new house in perfect condition for almost the same price as a non new build.

Nowadays they're much more expensive in the first place, then you still have to fork out a load of money for floor coverings and lawns plus kitchens and bathrooms if you don't just want the cheapest option they include.

Meanwhile, I'm living in a 30 year old house that's valued at around £100k less than a nearby new build of the same number of bedrooms, though ours has a bigger floor area and garden.

Yes, my kitchen is at least 15 years old, but it's definitely not going to cost me the price difference between that and a new build. Oh and I have 4 offroad parking spaces, plus a wide open road to park on, rather than one solitary space and a garage that you can only fit a fiat 500 in it, like the new builds round here have.

Sorry OP - I do hope you'll be very happy in your new home, but as you can tell, new builds aren't for me!

You do not need to spend that much.

I moved into a brand new build and spent £1k on appliances and £1.5k on some flooring.

Two FT working parents here. Sheila Maid hangs off the ceiling so takes up no space. And we’ve had a cement floor in the kitchen for getting on for three years — it’s actually fine, and non-dusty.

Fully agree about the painting.
It is quite possible that there will be some shrinkage cracks anything up to 2yrs later so I would not worry about decorating straight away.
Our developer had a policy of revisiting after 6-months and making good any cracking, scuffs etc (beyond any snagging or warranty work). In our case there was very little to be done but they did leave us an extra tin of paint (in addition to the one given at completion).

Sounds about right really. A chunk of it will be the labour.

It took a good year for our new build to settle and the snags to be fixed so we didn’t repaint til after that and it’s not essential . We had to order and pay for blinds and carpet but everything else was included , flooring downstairs , cooker , dishwasher etc only appliance we needed was a washing machine seems a lot that isn’t included for a new build . It does sound a reasonable price for everything you are having doing tho .

Yeah don't get a hot tap.
They spit and the servicing is awful so you need a kettle anyway. This defeating the point of a hot tap.
And the tea doesn't taste right

Hot taps are the 2020 equivalent to a 1990s wine fridge.

I bought my new build last year. I had no furniture or appliances as all mine got sold with the previous house. I was also renting and needed to be out on my exchange date.

I bought extras from the developer as it was convenient. Integrated appliances, flooring and upgrades. I did cap it at £16k, so concentrated on essentials and stuff I would get most use out of.

my house was a shell. I could have gotten it cheaper if I did it myself. But the developer wouldn’t have put in casing for my appliances. Also I had saved for ages and just wanted everything new. It’s the only time i will do this. I did dace lots on furniture in sales, nearly new shops and looking around.

but be aware. I didn’t cost up a back garden. Mine came with 6 paving slabs and soil. That was expensive but I managed to find a local company to make it useful.

Wow OK, our appliances were all included as they're integrated. Bosch, Neff etc. I'm actually shocked you're having to pay on top.

Carpets were included and hard floors, but extra if you wanted to upgrade.

I can't believe they can call a house without floors a new build. That's shocking. It should be turn key, that's what you pay for.

We waited to paint as the house needs to settle first and if the developers need to come in and fix things they will only touch up with white.

It is quite possible to spend far in excess of the sum quoted by the OP when buying a NB but it is indeed a 1st world problem and one entirely in the control of the buyer. Having been there & done that, we were "happy" to do so as it meant we were getting the home of our dreams.

Had to google Quooker tap and man, that is one fancy tap.
It seems like a gimmick to me but I'm not judging you for it...I can still see the appeal. If your heart desires one in your gorgeous new house and you can afford it, have it. I hope you enjoy it.
Happy moving in day when it comes. x

1.5k on flooring for a 5 bed would be impossible . 1k on appliances maybe but they need to be integrated

I know where they go, the design of the utility room won’t allow for one unfortunately

Yes it really is, but if that’s what they charge there’s nothing I can do. I would like it done right.

The garden is actually done!! Thank god!

Just think how lovely it will look when you are all moved in though.

We've just bought a new to us (but old) house and have a budget of 5k for floors/painting/appliances/minor electrics.

Looks like we'll be getting good at DIY! Obviously we'll get the professionals in for anything with gas/electricity but we'll have to do nearly everything else ourselves.