Armadale development illustrates new build home problems

Permalink: Armadale development illustrates new build home problems
by Brian Turner

According to reports in the East Lothian Courier and Herald, buyers of Manorlane homes on the Armadale development have faced a catalogue of problems with their new build homes.

Problems reported include holes in walls, missing radiators, leaking waste pipes, and uneven doorways.

One resident, Mike O’Neill, says he is more than £3000 out of pocket after Manorlane changed his entry date to his new property no less than seven times.

Unfortunately, while the problems are obviously unwelcome for anyone buying a new build property, the complaints are all too common across the spread of home builders in the UK.

A big problem is that while home building companies can set up national strategies and building campaigns, they are often reliant on local tradesmen to actually supply the finishing.

And while major home builders are usually publicly-traded companies, one way to look after shareholder interests is to subcontract on the basis of price - sometimes attracting companies and individuals otherwise unqualified and too inexperienced to properly complete the work they are contracted to complete.

The result can be serious headaches for new build homebuyers, and public relations problems for the building company.

While complaints on the Armadale development focus on building issues, other common problems with other home building companies include poor wiring of electrics, not least boilers, and can even include poor fitting of double glazing - as HomeMove can testify from their own experiences of Barratts.

However, as new build houses usually come with a NHBC certification, this includes a requirement to fix problems raised by the purchaser in a reasonable time frame, adding to the building costs for the developer.

Luckily, most people who buy a new build property and experience problems will find these to be relatively minor, and relate to finishing work rather than major problems. For those who aren;t so lucky, a whole range of potential issues can be experienced.

The lesson for buyers of new build properties is to expect problems from the start, but to diligently inventory all problems so that the developer can fix them. It could even be a good idea for new build buyers to actually leave their moving in date until a few weeks after the actual moving in date, in order to identify and isolate problems for repair, to ensure that the house they move into has had all major issues addressed.

Only after then can they reasonably expect to enjoy their new home.