Pros and Cons of New Builds

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

Pros and Cons of New Builds

Buying a new build property is a perfect option for many. If you are anything like me, the idea of renovating a property is pretty daunting so being able to move into a brand-new property that has been built to your specifications is amazing. There are a few things to watch out for though, so we thought we’d put a list together of some of the Pros and Cons related to buying a new build.

Checkout the best mortgage advisors in Bristol!

Let’s start with the Pros.

PROS

– As briefly mentioned above so much of a New Build can be picked by you. From major design features like the kitchen and bathroom to smaller fixtures and fittings like curtains and lighting. This means you really will move into a house that is perfect for you.

– You can often buy these properties with smaller deposits as there is a range of schemes to help you, such as the Help to Buy Scheme. This way you can live in a bigger property, for less.

– All new homes come with some guarantees, typically an NHBC. This will give you 10 years of protection against major defects with the property for additional peace of mind.

– Builders/Developers often give additional incentives when you purchase. These can cover a range of things from covering your Stamp Duty and legal costs to giving you a discount off the purchase price depending on your job.

CONS

– Some Builders/Developers have a bad reputation and have been accused of poor workmanship. This could mean you move into a property that feels rushed and isn’t finished to the standard you’d like. You can go back to the Builder with a Snagging list after you’ve moved in which details everything that needs fixing but it can still leave a bad taste in your mouth and still may not be sorted to the level you’d like.

– New build properties usually come at a premium. As you are the first person to live there, it’s been built to your spec and you have the advantage of the full 10 years guarantee, often the houses are sold at a premium. This could mean that when you come to sell it, your growth is less than you’d like as you have to take into account this initial premium.

– Hidden Cost. Although it’s great that you can pick so many elements of your new home, sometimes you don’t realise quite how many features of the show home are extras. I’ve heard all sorts of horror stories of people moving in and not having any flooring down so they’ve had to buy carpet throughout. Or people that looked into the garden to realise the grass was an extra so they just have a muddy patch! It’s important to be very thorough with the developer to make sure you have considered all the costs and know what is extra.

– How far along is the development itself? Sometimes if you are buying off-plan and yours is one of the first homes to be completed means you’re living on a building site for a bit. Make sure to discuss timescales with the Builder/Developer on when they expect the rest of the homes to be finished. Often the public areas such as roads and pavements are the last things to be completed so you could be driving around a pothole, muddy building site to get home for a while.

For queries related to debt consolidation and remortgage, click here!

Developers often ask for a quick ‘exchange’ for new builds, even if the property isn’t due for completion for months and months. We can help with the mortgage to make sure it is in place as quickly as possible and that it is valid for as long as possible.

Nearly all mortgage lenders require you to complete the purchase within 6 months of your Mortgage either being applied for or your mortgage going to ‘Offer’. If your property isn’t finished within this time you may need to apply for an extension to this mortgage or may need to look at a new mortgage altogether. A good broker should be able to manage this for you and help you through the process.