New build and NHBC Guarantee

[Ocelotstripes]

After searching for a house and being in rented for nearly 5 years we have concluded that we're going to need to buy a new build to be in this area and near DC's school - nothing has ever come up we remotely like or can afford. We did look at reno costs but we did a massive one in 2014 and I don’t want to do again really - plus build costs currently are obscene!

So new build, only problem is I hate it, it’s just a box the kitchens offered are
poor quality, poorly laid, and not configured how I would like - similarly the
floor coverings offered are cheap and in the family room the windows are tiny
and make it feel like a dark.

If I were to buy it I would want to make some changes however we are being told this would invalidate the NHBC guarantee, this seems to be a two tier. thing 3 and 10 years?? So, can I not make changes for 3 years or is it 10? Someone has
even told me it might invalidate the Mortgage also??

Both have me wanting to walk away to be honest, I'm nearly 45 after being in rented nearly 5 years (moved to due to DH's job) I don't want to live with a set up prescribed by someone else which doesn't work for our family or is not to my
taste for much longer.

The kitchen offered is tiny in terms of units and it’s all cupboards pretty much as
they’re cheaper for them to put in I suppose - I know we'll end up living out
of boxes and random bits of storage as what's there won’t accommodate our
belongings - I cannot face spending all that money (the house isn't exactly
cheap) and having to do that for another 3 years let alone 10 years.

Part of the reason the kitchen is tiny (as in units not the space) as there’s 4 separate doors leading in/out! This is overkill/unnecessary we would want to block one of them up - stud wall, put our own kitchen and appliances is (I have a beautiful, good quality range cooker in storage!) and make the windows bigger to let more light in, and put new flooring throughout the whole of downstairs as well as things like some shelves and possibly a fire in the living room.

What do people think?

It's not realistic to buy something under warranty, then make changes and expect the warranty to still apply IMO. This wouldn't happen with any other product (car dishwasher etc) and you wouldn't expect to be able to do it with a house.

Putting in new stud walls or blocking doorways is not a major structural change, but replacing windows is, because you are changing the structure of a load bearing wall.

Why would you expect the original builders warranty to still be valid if you call in new builders to make mods ? They might make a complete hash of it and then who would be responsible if the mods cause the house to collapse ?

I would expect to be able to fit my own appliances if I wanted to though.

@GasPanic sorry I've perhaps not being clear this isn’t a moan about why they wouldn’t cover this, more it’s something We didn’t know about having never bought one and what people’s thoughts were too go ahead and make the changes anyway and b) are you really not expected to make changes for 10 years, seems excessive.

Don't do it, the house isn't right for you

Don’t think this new build is right for you! Are you sure there are not other houses that would not be more to your liking? Really feel for you. Not easy trying to find a suitable house.

Find a better new build?

Good luck

https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1856879/darwin-green-cambridge-houses-demolished

There are more (new build) houses out there so why go for one that fails to tick so many boxes?

Living in a (recent) newbuild myself I have to say that the development in the above link looks hideous and must be where people get the impression that all newbuild developments are just row upon row of soulless, identical dwellings. 😲
Glad to say ours is the exact opposite and bears no similarity to that. 😎

you'll invalidate the warranty for the parts you change. so obviously you can't claim for electrical damage if you have them fiddled with or kitchen replaced etc but the warranty should still cover your roof for example. (I work with nhbc & premier)

@Cotswoldbee @LindaDawn @Twiglets1 we don’t particularly want a new build we need a house in a certain area with 4 beds and after 4 years of searching this seems like to only viable option. Aesthetically they’re not really my taste, however;

It’s an area with low supply and where the majority of what comes on needs major modernising and in most cases fault rectifying - re-roofing, damp proofing etc. new windows - a lot of what I’ve seen I know will be cold.

Also much of what we’ve seen are just too grotty to live in for a while first and having been in rented for so long my patience has expired - I don’t want the children to have to put up with that, we are in a better rental now but the first one we had for nearly 2 yrs was awful.

We have a chunk of capital and we have been through the motions with architects builders. But build costs are currently extreme. There hasn’t been a house on a plot we’ve loved enough to spend the money we’ve been quoted.

The limited amount of houses that do come up which are right bedroom/loc wise which have been ‘done’ are so few and far between that this pushes them out of our price band. There is nothing done which is 4 bed plus which comes in under 650k.

We even pushed our search area to the max in the past 2 yrs.

These new builds seem like the first viable option in 4 years They’re just not to our taste but would leave us some capital to make the changes we would like we just can’t because we feel like essentially we’re ‘not allowed’ which at 45 yo has me feeling 😐. I just feel like I’m a little past compromising.

Oh also there are only another house builder building. They’re a v big name builder and whilst a lot cheaper are much poorer quality/room size and are basically on a business park.

Ah thank you @Truebee we’re buying off plan and had asked to make some of the structural things at the build they said no so we said okay we’ll do it and they said anything you touch will invalidate the whole warranty - exactly what they said. Even repainting. I find it so strange to be spending over 500,000k and not be able to have the paint colour washing machine or oven I want let alone any of the more structural things.

So out of what you’ve described how deeply do you think it would effect the guarantee? I just find it all so strange. We’re obvs not going to fiddle with the electrics but what about say 18 months/2 Yr in you say wanted your telly on a different wall or an extra socket somewhere - would you not be able to have it??