Strange tactics from estate agent

fretmeister

Phil_aka_Pip said:

new house = no no (Persimmon new house = nein non niet no way not ever). All that squared for one that hasn't even been built yet! Don't be so f___ing stupid!!

Fuck me.

I’ve actually agreed with him on something.

DrJazzTap

I was told in no uncertain terms not to go for a new build.
 I believe one of the guys behind a major building firm was a significant Tory doner as well. The building regs were then changed to allow developers to downsize what is legally classed as a bedroom, in order to allow them to build more houses on a plot of land. 
If you look at the majority of the new builds upto 280k in the southwest. You will notice that if they have been lived in previously, the photos show a double bed rammed into a room with a wardrobe in and that's pretty much it for space.

Iamnobody

If your current 1930’s property is anything like our house you’ve probably got a good garden and decent size rooms.

The typical room sizes and postage stamp sized rear garden would put me off buying a house in most new build estates. Add in the small driveways and narrow roads and it gets worse.

Improve don’t move!

GuyR

shrinkwrap said:

Are you sure the new place isn't one of these Leasehold ripoff scams? You might think all houses are freeholds but some new builds are not - and they increase the ground rent and service charge every year. And then you'll find you can't sell it.

This subject deserves a whole thread of its own; the newer leasehold properties built in the last 20 years or so have, in many cases, had much higher ground rents than previously, which also increase at levels well ahead of inflation. Typically, leases tend to start at 125 years and leaseholders often consider renewing leases when there are between 80-90 years remaining. As the cost of the lease extension is calculated using a formula involving multiples of the ground rent, the above-RPI raise in an already expensive ground rent makes the cost of the extension prohibitive and it only gets worse as the lease diminishes.
With leasehold houses, as opposed to flats, leases are often 999 years, the excuse given by builders for the lack of freehold being the need for a covenant enshrining the responsibility to contribute to the cost of upkeep of communal areas, gardens, Parking spaces etc. Although the lease will never need extending, a fast-increasing and unfair ground rent could render the property unsaleable in future and, although under current legislation the leaseholder can in effect buy themselves out of the agreement, it is expensive and should not have been necessary in the first place.
Some developers use high/ fast increasing ground rents to retain a capital value stake in developments they have already rinsed every other penny from.

If you are considering buying a new home, be fully aware of the future cost/saleability implications and ALWAYS use a solicitor recommended by someone other than the developer.
Additionally, you do not have to accept the offered length of lease or ground rent arrangements. Ask for 999 years and a fixed £10 per year ground rent and you are fully insulated against being shafted in future.

57Deluxe

...seems Purple Bricks are gaining traction...

Simon_M

Of the new build estate houses I have seen, they are total garbage. I’m an independent electrician and it’s surprising how many houses less than 5 years old I’m having to fix stuff in.

FreddieVanHalen

GuyR said:

shrinkwrap said:

Are you sure the new place isn't one of these Leasehold ripoff scams? You might think all houses are freeholds but some new builds are not - and they increase the ground rent and service charge every year. And then you'll find you can't sell it.

This subject deserves a whole thread of its own; the newer leasehold properties built in the last 20 years or so have, in many cases, had much higher ground rents than previously, which also increase at levels well ahead of inflation. ,,, a fast-increasing and unfair ground rent could render the property unsaleable in future ,,,
Some developers use high/ fast increasing ground rents to retain a capital value stake in developments they have already rinsed every other penny from.

,,, ALWAYS use a solicitor recommended by someone other than the developer.
Additionally, you do not have to accept the offered length of lease or ground rent arrangements. Ask for 999 years and a fixed £10 per year ground rent and you are fully insulated against being shafted in future.

This in spades. I know the cost of moving is stressful and massive, but it is definitely worth finding a *decent* conveyancing solicitor.

Developers will often also use the trick of telling you that the work has to be done in a silly short time frame, and some of this is simply a way to try and pressure your solicitor into fucking up or not being as diligent as they should be.

Developers, especially the large ones, are ruthless motherfucking money making machines. They are cut from the same cloth as credit crisis bankers. I am not being dramatic and i have worked with both!

I wouldn't say "be afraid" I'd say "be fucking terrified"

Slightly more seriously, if you're going down this route, do it *really* carefully. 

ArchtopDave

My house is a couple of hundred years old, so I don’t mind the fact that the odd tile, or two, are cracked. The walls are two foot plus of stone. There is a little bit of woodworm in the rafters, but as the surveyor wrote in a wry comment in his report “Don’t worry, they all died of natural causes a very long time ago”.

DiscoStu

I sell and fit blinds for a living. I do a lot of new builds, and in my experience they are a huge gamble. People who bought 2 years ago are now selling up because the field that was behind their house now has a row of houses on it facing them and they have no privacy.
Snagging? Lots of snagging. Bathrooms not sealed, heating not working, exterior doors not fitted correctly, cracked plaster, broken tiles, cracked window panes etc... And upwards of £250K...
The norm is that you can't redecorate for 12 months on new builds as the constructors need that time for faults to develop, and to address them. 
My 1970 house is quite small in comparison to the new builds but there's just 2 of us and a cat. My mortgage is peanuts so why would we move?

Elwood

Other thing to consider is council tax - the new build estate might not be designated yet. You may find it is higher than what you are living in currently. You may find that the CT band goes up by 2 and that the estate is not adopted by the council, leading to more ground costs.

Others have highlighted the other potential pitfalls:

Snagging
Leasehold houses
Change of plans - i.e. no shop, cafe, pub, green space, school, doctors etc (whatever might have been 'promised') early on.
How long is the new development being built for? If years, then expect disruption and difficulty selling in the short term (why buy a second hand one if you can buy new round the corner).
Service charges with 5 years/10 year increases

Whatever you do get your own solicitor (not the recommended one from the builder or the mortgage provider). 

ToneControl

what's the difference in price between your house and the new one?

Maybe the valuers think you will be offered a low-ball px price?

ToneControl

Or maybe the new ones are overpriced?

Phil_aka_Pip

ToneControl said:

Or maybe the new ones are overpriced?

new houses are always overpriced