New builds - yay or nay?

[JoanApple]

Just that really...

I wouldn't buy a new build from one of the big developers on a big estate. Suspect quality, eggshell cardboard walls, loft's you can't use, parking problems, mostly overlooked, the social housing lottery, quality of life impacted by 'cram as many plots on to maximise profit' ethos etc.

I'd gladly have my own built though, or buy from a small local developer which seem to be far better in the main & often have more character.

No. Rooms are often too small gardens will be totally empty upon arrival and usually too small. Most new developments say 10 years and newer all have the same cramped feeling where its clear the developer has rammed in as many houses as they were able to fit. Lastly in my experience I dont generally find the people living in new builds are as personable as those living in older houses.

No I hate new builds and having worked briefly in the building industry I know from having spoken to tradesmen they are poor quality for what they ask for them.

They new build estates always remind me of a rats maze no space no decent sized gardens houses so close to one another you could properly reach out and touch your neighbour from your bathroom window etc.

Seen and read enough horror stories about people who've bought new builds to find they are worthless or falling apart due to the poor quality of materials used.

Also they give you snag list when you move in that's not a good sign if somethings brand new you don't expect to have issues straight away.

Give me an older house any day better built better space just nicer.

And another thing new build houses look grotty within a few years the houses look awful from the outside and most are built on awful land.

I have lived in three 'new builds'

Not all tiny and rubbish

Pm if you want a positive tale 😊

Another thing op which I didn't realise until someone pointed it out to me but the show homes don't have bedroom doors on to make the upstairs feel bigger than it is someone who knows for a living said they purposely leave off the doors to make it appear larger than it is.
Just something to be aware of if you've been to see a show house.

My daughter has a lovely two bed new build. Beautiful, warm, energy efficient. Perfect for just her.

I like the idea of everything being brand new and fresh but no I wouldn't buy a new build. They seem to be built so close together nowadays, tiny gardens, not enough parking spaces, often only one good sized bedroom and the others pretty small. Loads of toilets to clean too.

I'd love to build my own house though. I already know exactly how I'd like it, even though I'd never be able to afford it 😆

Loads of toilets to clean too

I have noticed that too . Many of the 3 and 4 bed newbuilds near me have 3 of 4 toilets/ensuites. Must make sense to have the one bathroom and better sizes rooms. I can only assume the idea is aimed a pretentious people who want to be able to say they have ensuites. I can understand 2 toilets but 3 or 4?

I'm a yay. We bought our house brand new 16 years ago. 4 double bedrooms, 1 single, 4 toilets and 3 bathrooms. Our bathrooms need a redo now as they are quite tired but generally nothing has fallen apart or broken down. If we were to sell tomorrow it would have gone up approximately £150K and the market seems strong on our street regardless of time of year as we are close to a train station to walk but not close enough to hear the trains. I'm still happy with our decision 16 years later.

We went for a newish build, it was 10 years old when we moved it. I love it, having lived old terrace houses before I love how it’s easier to clean the walls are straight which means furniture is easy to fit. However it’s not a normal shape it’s on a corner so is an L shape so has more space.
Before I saw this house I wasn’t taken by new builds they felt very boxy

No, I would never buy a new build.

No. Crap quality, small rooms and difficult to get the house builder to sort problems. And NHBC not worth the paper it's printed on.

Definitely depends on the site and plot. We have lived in a new build flat and now new build house and love both. So nice moving into to everything fresh and being able to make your own choices before it's built. Plots can make a big difference though so well worth spending time selecting the right plot. Plenty of parking space and not too cramped together so no issues on that front. Ours wouldn't budge on house price but we did manage to get extras (stamp duty discount, discount on extras etc) so same end result. I've heard a lot of horror stories but in my experience I'd say yay!

I'm waiting for some social housing to be released on a couple near me, both estates have around 60-80 houses with 20% social housing mixed in, one Barratt & the other Miller Homes. I'm past living on massive council estates, they get run down, have more than their fair share of idiots & social problems, I'm older now with a teenage ds, I want to be somewhere that has less problems.

I grew up in what was a 'new build' house. Hated every bit of it if I am honest. Only good thing was I had loads of other kids to play with in the estate. The rooms, even though multiple always felt small.

Bought my first place 3 and half years ago and even when looking I didn't even go and look at a new build. We r in a house that is over 100 years old. Massive amounts of floor space and high ceilings. The only down side is now I have had one child and another on the way. House is fine for 2 adults and 2 kids but to add a 3rd child would mean we would have to move as we don't have enough bedrooms. In Scotland the older properties seem to go like hot cakes and are much more expensive so I doubt I will be in an old property forever. New builds in Scotland seem to be the go to for first time buyers.

I always get a bit sceptical at the quality considering how quickly they throw the houses up.

I wouldn't completely rule one out as I will need to put the children's needs first but it would pain me to move to a new build, I can't lie about that x

My issue is the management companies that inevitably come with them.

It's really not freehold when you're subject to 3 pages of covenants, a couple of hundred quid a year for 'estate maintenance' and often the roads they are built on aren't yet adopted.

Even aside from that, the tiny gardens, awful parking and soulless design of the small rooms is just no.

Whilst our new build had multiple plumbing leaks I couldn't fault the soundproofing. Building regs changed around 2000/2001, and as a result soundproofing is much much better than homes built before this date. We could only ever hear our neighbours front door slam, and never voices/music through the walls.

I would have said no but my son's new build by Bellway is detached and really lovely. I was very surprised. It is much bigger than I was expecting and has 2 bathrooms upstairs and downstairs a downstairs cloakroom and a garage. The garden is not too small either.

It is freehold and does not seem to come with restrictions other than those my own house does such as you cannot run a garage business from home kind of thing.

Nay from me, I’ve lived in new and old houses, yes new builds are cheaper to run and warmer, but the negatives massively outweigh that imo.

-Very small for the price
-Overlooked and cramped estates
-Often have no real front garden, just a small border of shrubs or grass
-Often don’t age well and look tired after a few years
-Service charges that can increase massively
-Very hard to get the building company to make any repairs despite the guarantees

• Gardens are tiny, overlooked and built on rubble
• Lack of decent parking

-Can end up next to social housing tenants who can be a nightmare -Often difficult to make any money on if you sell after only a few years

• No character
• Can be a contrast stream of new neighbours in the first few years, especially when many are purchased by buy to let landlords

-Poor soundproofing

Obviously, this may not apply to all new builds, but we viewed many many new build estates when looking for a house and these were common themes. Also, I’m not sure why people don’t realise you can (could prior to Covid), buy an older house with a 5% deposit as well.

Only if I can build it myself . I would love to plan my own home.

They are building loads of homes in a town close to us. I took a look around a new build with a friend pre-Covid. They were all so squashed in, and so small overall for the money. I have a design background, so have good space awareness, and can see past all the tricks and "clever" staging. Friend was not impressed, as she said - "There are 3 places to pee, but nowhere to put my hoover!!

@2beautifulbabs That's very interesting! Thanks!

We live in a new build. All 4 bedrooms can fit a double bed and have one or two double wardrobes built in. Lovely bright big rooms. The garden is smaller but big enough for our needs. I've lived in houses with bigger gardens and want to enjoy my garden, not spend all of my time gardening.

All of the neighbours are lovely and look out for each other, stop for a chat etc.

I've seen three older "solid" houses in our neighbourhood have to have full walls taken down and rebuilt. Older houses have their share of problems too.

Mumsnet hates new builds!

I would love a period property, but they are way out of our price range here. I didn't particularly want a new build but it was the only real option and it's actually suited us very well. There's obviously good and bad examples - I'm not sure I would buy a 2 or 3 bed. A lot also comes down the local planning - our council insisted that the streets aren't straight, the layout is mixed and there is green space and trees.

We've been in our new build for 5 years. It has good sized rooms, large garden, plenty of parking. It is unbelievable cheap to run - our energy bills are less then in the 2 bedroom flat we moved from. If anything, it's too hot and we barely have the heating on. I could put the car in the garage if I wanted to, but couldn't be bothered with that! I'd rather use it to store garden things and outdoor toys. We aren't overlooked at the back, unless you count the deer. The community is strong, we all helped each other a lot during lockdown. Lots of kids born after moving in so there's lots of lovely friendships away from school. Houses that have recently gone on sale have sold within 3 days and for 30-40k over the original purchase price.

We had an issue with the builder and our garden, but were compensated for it and have now resolved the issue.

Like many have said, unless it's a self build or done by a trusted, local builder i wouldn't.

I can't speak for living in one but they are built very haphazardly, i think they are built to just stretch past about 5 years and they start falling apart, i always dread working on them because you never know what you will find, lots of little things a bit janky.

I always wonder if everyone on Mumsnet who slates new builds has lived in one or are working on heresay. Yes they often have a bad rep and certainly the newer developments can be rather crammed in but as I said we've been in ours for 16 years without issue and we don't have a management company to deal with. Ours is a Wimpey home.