New builds
- Thread starter ChrisD.
- Start date
Soldato
- Joined
- 19 Oct 2008
- Posts
- 6,063
A few ideas, some might be laughable.
QUality of finish
Quality if white goods to be fitted
Big or small developers? I'm currently buying a new build and it's been a PITA - but not as bad as the other property (it's one of two) which has so far taken 17 months and still not complete! A local builder and small developer/development and lots of mistakes means even with no chain on either side it's so far taken over 5 months.
Do they use the same builders/trades or just contract anyone available when they're needed. That can affect the quality.
Throughly inspect the house including trying all showers, cupboards, in fact everythingc.
Does it have phone sockets in each room/tv sockets? Alarm? wiring for media services to be connected up to? To me it's a shame the likes of bt might have to drill a hole in a nice new wall to put a new phone line in
Ensure you get a good solicitor as some may rush through a purchase but could leave you with issues to resolve in the future yourself when you come to sell it. The house I am buying fell through at exchange previously yet it's been a struggle to get as far as I now am(5+months in) and we're not near exchange yet - my solicitors can only think the solicitors working on behalf of the previous buyer were just not being thorough. Even things like gas and boiler installation certificates(required by building regs) we have stuggled to get hold of and it's obvious that they're now been issued retrospectivlty as the dates on them are recent- the previous buyers should have got nowhere near exchange without those!
QUality of finish
Quality if white goods to be fitted
Big or small developers? I'm currently buying a new build and it's been a PITA - but not as bad as the other property (it's one of two) which has so far taken 17 months and still not complete! A local builder and small developer/development and lots of mistakes means even with no chain on either side it's so far taken over 5 months.
Do they use the same builders/trades or just contract anyone available when they're needed. That can affect the quality.
Throughly inspect the house including trying all showers, cupboards, in fact everythingc.
Does it have phone sockets in each room/tv sockets? Alarm? wiring for media services to be connected up to? To me it's a shame the likes of bt might have to drill a hole in a nice new wall to put a new phone line in
Ensure you get a good solicitor as some may rush through a purchase but could leave you with issues to resolve in the future yourself when you come to sell it. The house I am buying fell through at exchange previously yet it's been a struggle to get as far as I now am(5+months in) and we're not near exchange yet - my solicitors can only think the solicitors working on behalf of the previous buyer were just not being thorough. Even things like gas and boiler installation certificates(required by building regs) we have stuggled to get hold of and it's obvious that they're now been issued retrospectivlty as the dates on them are recent- the previous buyers should have got nowhere near exchange without those!
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See if they are on the Help To Buy scheme (NewBuy) that means you can get a 20% interest free loan from Mr Cameron.
Check what's included in the price and what's not. I've seen some where the only additional charge was carpets, and others where literally everything (right down to door handles, plug sockets, light switches, etc) were additional.
Check what's included in the price and what's not. I've seen some where the only additional charge was carpets, and others where literally everything (right down to door handles, plug sockets, light switches, etc) were additional.
Mixed bag of thoughts below - some of these will not be relevant for an initial visit but more if and when you decide you want to buy a specific property there:
-If there is a detatched garage and/or parking spaces get all the exact details such as freehold/leasehold, what exact land you own, what restrictions are there on nearby spaces etc (in our section of the estate for example there are five garages but only 2 can be parked in front of)
-Any restrictions on satellite dish positioning (if you want one)
-Broadband availability
-Phone sockets and in particular where the master socket is (relative to where you want to position your router) and making sure they don't 'daisy chain' sockets
-Pricelist for 'finishing touches', which will typically run to thousands of pounds (flooring, tiling, lighting, turfing, taps etc etc). You will need to work out what you want the developer to do and what you will do yourself after completion (if you don't need to move in straight away you can probably save on some stuff but arranging it independently).
-Do they do part exchange and if so what is the process (if you have a property to sell)
-Weigh up how realistic a show home is relative to what you are buying e.g. if buying a mid-terrace it may have fewer windows (for obvious reasons)
-What is the position with utilities e.g. does it use an IGT (will carry extra charges from some suppliers)
-What is the snagging process
-How long will the site manager be onsite for after you move in (reason being it can make snagging easier)
-What other development is planned in the area e.g. is that nice field out the back going to be there forever, will a new estate spring up closer to local schools and push me out of catchment area etc
-When will the show-homes go on the market
-Are there any additional maintenance charges e.g. for upkeep of green areas etc
-Council tax banding (tends to be quite bad on new builds.... my house is Band E, which seems quite ridiculous for a 3-bed terrace)
General advice:
-Don't buy all their BS about how they can't give you brochures because they would run out in five minutes, they can't make appointments because they would be turning people away, about how they have dozens of buyers literally queueing up round the block chequebooks in hand the second a new plot is released. The sales patter tends to be quite haughty and designed to make you feel you can't request a significant discount. To be honest at this time of year I would guess they have targets to hit plus typically less people looking to move so don't be scared to leave a sensible offer on the table even if it is lower than asking price. That said, some developments will genuinely be in demand so if you are really keen then make a sensible bid.
-If it is a mature development where previous phases have completed, look online at what properties of the same type have sold for to get a feel for how much discount may be available
-Once you've driven down the price get them to throw in extras to seal the deal i.e. an allowance towards the finishing touches (explain that you can't afford to spend another £5k+ on making the property liveable)
-If there is a detatched garage and/or parking spaces get all the exact details such as freehold/leasehold, what exact land you own, what restrictions are there on nearby spaces etc (in our section of the estate for example there are five garages but only 2 can be parked in front of)
-Any restrictions on satellite dish positioning (if you want one)
-Broadband availability
-Phone sockets and in particular where the master socket is (relative to where you want to position your router) and making sure they don't 'daisy chain' sockets
-Pricelist for 'finishing touches', which will typically run to thousands of pounds (flooring, tiling, lighting, turfing, taps etc etc). You will need to work out what you want the developer to do and what you will do yourself after completion (if you don't need to move in straight away you can probably save on some stuff but arranging it independently).
-Do they do part exchange and if so what is the process (if you have a property to sell)
-Weigh up how realistic a show home is relative to what you are buying e.g. if buying a mid-terrace it may have fewer windows (for obvious reasons)
-What is the position with utilities e.g. does it use an IGT (will carry extra charges from some suppliers)
-What is the snagging process
-How long will the site manager be onsite for after you move in (reason being it can make snagging easier)
-What other development is planned in the area e.g. is that nice field out the back going to be there forever, will a new estate spring up closer to local schools and push me out of catchment area etc
-When will the show-homes go on the market
-Are there any additional maintenance charges e.g. for upkeep of green areas etc
-Council tax banding (tends to be quite bad on new builds.... my house is Band E, which seems quite ridiculous for a 3-bed terrace)
General advice:
-Don't buy all their BS about how they can't give you brochures because they would run out in five minutes, they can't make appointments because they would be turning people away, about how they have dozens of buyers literally queueing up round the block chequebooks in hand the second a new plot is released. The sales patter tends to be quite haughty and designed to make you feel you can't request a significant discount. To be honest at this time of year I would guess they have targets to hit plus typically less people looking to move so don't be scared to leave a sensible offer on the table even if it is lower than asking price. That said, some developments will genuinely be in demand so if you are really keen then make a sensible bid.
-If it is a mature development where previous phases have completed, look online at what properties of the same type have sold for to get a feel for how much discount may be available
-Once you've driven down the price get them to throw in extras to seal the deal i.e. an allowance towards the finishing touches (explain that you can't afford to spend another £5k+ on making the property liveable)
Does depend on the developer to a point as to how decent it'll be, but even then it can be pot luck depending on the development.
My folks have had a number of new builds over the years, their current one I don't think they are too impressed with few bits that have been done badly. One of their toilets hadn't been connected up and was just flushing into the ground, luckily was one they didn't use so could have been a lot worse.
We moved into a new build a year ago now and luckily the issues we've had have all been minor, we know what some of the neighbours have had wrong and we've not had anything as bad. A lot of it is stupid things though, I know the people over the road had an issue where a light switch for one of the bedrooms had been put in the hallway outside of the room.
As for the buying process, there was some BS from the developer and they generally made things very difficult for us. We had all but walked away at one stage and only after I'd mailed the chief exec did things get back on track but even then we were never treated very well.
The big plus side to it all was the house was great value and ticked a lot of boxes, oddly the only 'haggling' we did lasted about 5 minutes when we said what we'd pay and what extras we wanted thrown in, they said ok to it all pretty damn quick. We were first to reserve on the development which maybe had something to do with it, upshot is we paid a fair chunk less than other 3 people who bought the same house type.
I'd always get them to throw in carpets, means they are already in when you complete, unless you really do want to get them done yourself.
My folks have had a number of new builds over the years, their current one I don't think they are too impressed with few bits that have been done badly. One of their toilets hadn't been connected up and was just flushing into the ground, luckily was one they didn't use so could have been a lot worse.
We moved into a new build a year ago now and luckily the issues we've had have all been minor, we know what some of the neighbours have had wrong and we've not had anything as bad. A lot of it is stupid things though, I know the people over the road had an issue where a light switch for one of the bedrooms had been put in the hallway outside of the room.
As for the buying process, there was some BS from the developer and they generally made things very difficult for us. We had all but walked away at one stage and only after I'd mailed the chief exec did things get back on track but even then we were never treated very well.
The big plus side to it all was the house was great value and ticked a lot of boxes, oddly the only 'haggling' we did lasted about 5 minutes when we said what we'd pay and what extras we wanted thrown in, they said ok to it all pretty damn quick. We were first to reserve on the development which maybe had something to do with it, upshot is we paid a fair chunk less than other 3 people who bought the same house type.
I'd always get them to throw in carpets, means they are already in when you complete, unless you really do want to get them done yourself.
Thanks for the advice all.
Got it down to three property styles, two from Taylor Wimpey and one from Barrett Homes. TW seemed keen on the idea of discussing discounts, Barrett dismissed it immediately. But the Barrett homes did seem a little bit better put together, have longer warranties (this could have been the sales talk though) and the Barrett development plot is only 49 house versus running into the hundreds at the TW one. There physically isn't enough room to build more at the Barrett site.
I did ask about broadband, both areas are in Infinity and/or Virgin areas, but none of the sales people had any idea how the houses would be cabled up. While I could live with going to sub 20, it's something that would grate on me over time as I've been used to 40-160Mbit for quite some time.
If anyone wants to look then the Barrett development is the Hardwicke one in Gloucester, TW is Kingsmead which sits off Kingsway
Got it down to three property styles, two from Taylor Wimpey and one from Barrett Homes. TW seemed keen on the idea of discussing discounts, Barrett dismissed it immediately. But the Barrett homes did seem a little bit better put together, have longer warranties (this could have been the sales talk though) and the Barrett development plot is only 49 house versus running into the hundreds at the TW one. There physically isn't enough room to build more at the Barrett site.
I did ask about broadband, both areas are in Infinity and/or Virgin areas, but none of the sales people had any idea how the houses would be cabled up. While I could live with going to sub 20, it's something that would grate on me over time as I've been used to 40-160Mbit for quite some time.
If anyone wants to look then the Barrett development is the Hardwicke one in Gloucester, TW is Kingsmead which sits off Kingsway
All marketing BS to try and make you pay top price. Other than in very high demand or small/exclusive developments you should never be paying the asking price. The asking price is designed to try and squeeze as much money as possible from people, and is not their bottom price.
As an example I got 10% off the asking price, the garden was landscaped, carpet to the whole house, and 20% loan from the developer for 5 years interest free to make getting a mortgage easier. At no point did I negotiate, I put on the table what I was prepared to pay and stuck to it.
I'd check if that's actually true, or if its a Government backed Help to Buy Equity Loan, which I expect it is.
If so, make sure you are up to speed on what that means with regards to selling your house.
I am told by people who know much more than me that in cambridge it's a third for the land, third for build cost, third for profit. I bought a new build in cambridge nearly 8 years ago, a one off house on a single road of houses.
I wouldn't buy new again if they knocked the complete third off they got in profit. The only way I would buy new again is if they let me on site every day to inspect the work for myself. Each to their own though, my mrs adores our house and so do my neighbours.
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Yep it's a 1/3 for the land, 1/3 for the build and 1/3 for profit and tax on profit which is broadly how land prices work, value of property / 3 = land value
The sales patter tends to be quite haughty and designed to make you feel you can't request a significant discount. To be honest at this time of year I would guess they have targets to hit plus typically less people looking to move so don't be scared to leave a sensible offer on the table even if it is lower than asking price. That said, some developments will genuinely be in demand so if you are really keen then make a sensible bid.
This is good advice. Both Barratt and TW have half tear reports in December and June. Go lower than the asking price as it will likely be accepted.
These 2 builders are insanely busy at this time if year.
This is good advice. Both Barratt and TW have half tear reports in December and June. Go lower than the asking price as it will likely be accepted.
These 2 builders are insanely busy at this time if year.