ANy experience of new Build houses

[Eve]

I live in a small market town and even though we really like our current house, its too small.

Only issue is that the only think available of the size we want is a new Build Taylor Wimpey home.

I'm slightly nervous of them.. having only lived in older , more established houses before.

Any experience.. reputation etc

We live in a 4/5 bed TW built 2 years ago. DH is a building surveyor so did the snagging well but no real issues.
Lack of storage space and not a great size of garden but insulation and soundproofing are fine.

Mine is 10 years old - its shite.

Plasterboard walls that need replacing.

Kitchen needs replacing.

Ensuite shower needs replacing

Etc etc

Almost no developer employs an architect - other than to create the 'artist's impressions'.

Most spec. housing is 'designed' by technicians / engineers / quantity surveyors / accountants.

And it shows...

(Yes I am annoyed)

Pendeen, as long as they pass building regs it doesn't need an architect, the buildings dont push the boundaries so why pay for something they dont need.

Why would you think they would need one?

I have an old house but everyone I know seems to have new builds. The main thing I notice is how warm they are. The proportions are less generous and every bit of space has been used so there is nowhere to extend into if you want to in a few years. The thing that most winds me up about new builds is that the halls are always too small to store coats so the downstairs toilet is always crammed full of them!

If you are buying off plan, check where all the switches are including sockets are as sometimes they can be illogical, eg in our last house if you came in the back door the kitchen light switch was at the other side of the room.

Also find out the gradient of the garden as i have seen so many that are too steep to be of any use.

After a year you will get settlement but they should fix it without any problems. Also when the workmen come in to sort the snag list keep them on side as often they will do a lot more than they should - we got paint touched up that had been damaged by our toddler and a big tin of paint left.

My hall is big enough for coats! Coat hooks was one of DH Christmas holidays jobs.

If you get a new build now the hallways are built to allow wheelchairs so they are pretty wide.

I agree, OrangeLily. My hallway has an Ikea wardrobe behind the front door for all coats, shoes and bags.

Coats were in the downstairs loo for a while, but that was only while I was waiting for Ikea to deliver the wardrobe!

I do agree with Shenanigans about the garden - some of the houses on this estate have really steep drops. However, there are plenty of older houses round here with similar gardens because this part of the city is ex-mining land, and it's all hills.

Mine are in my downstairs loo, why would you want messy coats on show?

I have room but no just no.

Thank you all, went and tested parking with my 4x4 tank and Dh's car and they fit nicey.

Issue is that planning round here has been so tight for years only houses of a reasonable size are new build. 4bed + houses are in short supply & to get one n to move to the villages and pay loads more...

We do the toilet test when we go visit again.

This is sharing a friend's experiences who moved into a new build in our village, and my own thoughts on his house

• he was perfectly happy with the house
• the garden needed re-doing from scratch, i.e. topsoil, re-landscaping and the lot, despite what had been said by the builders and paying extra for turf.
• he was a bit disappointed to find that the lovely big windows in his upstairs sitting room eventually looked straight out on someone else's lovely big windows and not onto a wood

He drove everywhere (I mean, literally everywhere) so didn't notice the problems I did.

• they didn't finish the road surfaces until all the houses were finished, which was grim on a bike
• they didn't put in sodding pavements until the houses were finished, which was incredibly grim on foot with lorries going past you.
• you've guessed it - street lighting didn't go in until all the houses were finished
• although there were a few shops about 100m away as the crow flies, there was no way to get there except by walking all the way up out of the development along the unmade road in the dark, doubling back on yourself and walking all the way back to the shops, and then retracing your steps

So I would check very carefully what will actually be finished and when, and not expect anything to be done when you move in.

On our last new build before this one, we were the 4th house occupied and one winter evening coming home from work by foot in the darkness, I fell into a huge pile of sand! I complained the next day and we got street lights a couple of days later - think they were afraid of being sued for an accident. On the plus side the builders would leave us a handy skip for all our extra rubbish - e.g. packaging stuff and carpet offcuts etc and would fix stuff for free - they even sorted us out with some bricks to build a bbq to match the house and give the wee ones a trip on the digger :)

My parents bought new in 2001 - they love it and no problems- but they have commented that they had to spend lots immediately on all the bits that are often left behind and you can replace gradually - loo roll holders, curtain poles, etc etc - so plan into your budget - you will get a blank canvas and have a shopping list to fill it!

We are selling our new build that we bought new 8 years ago. The house is small but has been fine. Our problem is with the way the street has developed. A lot of the houses have been bought up by buy to let landlords which causes problems with groups of young people sharing, noise, dumping rubbish etc. Also, its a cul de sac and seems to attract groups of outdoor drinkers to come and hang around in. You just can't tell what the neighbourhood will be like when it's not even built yet.

I like the warmth and convenience of new build and have been tempted again, but after the issues we've had we're wary and have gone for a much older house in an established neighbourhood.

We did have to spend a lot of money straight away as well - the garden, carpets, all curtains etc. A lot when you are paying a 'turn key' price.

MrsBucketxx

Why would you need an architect?

Because design, innovation, flair, experience, education and talent are not 'free' at all. Seven years education and training followed by years of experiance is not 'free'.

The reason most developer-built houses are so poor is precisely because most developers 'design' their monstrosities using accountants, quantity surveyors and technicians and don't employ architects.

We live in a new-build (built 1999, we bought two years ago from the original owners). It is warm, well-insulated, big enough for us, decent sized garden, lovely neighbours. Living on a new-build estate is not my dream location due to distance from amenities (though we are lucky to have a great school on the estate) but the house itself is by far the nicest (and biggest!) I've ever lived in!

I love my newbuild and our last new build too. We walked away from TW twice. First time due to the paltry part ex offer and this time another builder gave us much more house for our money. If you do easymove or part ex they are less likely to give you anything else. Barrat gave us £20k more plus flooring, appliances and legal fees. Current builder paid all estate agency fees, gave us free upgraded kitchen, fitted wardrobes and tiling in the bathroom. Be careful to look at TW objectively, all we could think was 'where the hell do you put a tv?'there wasn't one in showhome and no obvious place to put it.