New build-buying off plan

swizzle_2

Hi

Went to look at a building site at the weekend and found a plot that looked good.

Rang back today that plot has been sold, but next door with smaller garden still avaliable.

The site has 32 houses on and asked how many sold- 6.

Lady said that when the other houses are released later in the year, they will cost more. But if not selling quickly- lots of new houses going up nearby- so lots of choice- although i like this site best.Will that be the case? How can they go up if house prices remain the same or even fall?

Never bought a new build and like the idea of it- still lots needing doing on our house- re wire, new kitchen and new fireplace. So part of me thinks if we move now and spend the xtra on mortgage, we will get money back when we come to sell?

Jorgan_2

Crystal ball time. The developer has no idea what the market will be doing towards the end of the year so this may well be a ploy to encourage sales on their released plots. Will you get the money back when you come to sell? Who knows. Personally I wouldn't buy a new build, buy one a couple of years old when generally the snagging has been sorted, gardens established etc, and you can use the incentives the builder is offering on the new builds to try and get the second hand one at a better price.

[Deleted User]

I have bought 'off plan' with no problem whatsoever. The advantage is, you can usually choose the decor for the kitchen/bathrooms etc... I also liked the idea of being the first to live there.

Just a word of warning though - check and recheck and recheck again, the situation over intended parking. Be very clear in your head about how much there will be - not just on your land, but also on the road outside and nearby. Imagine that all your prospective neighbours will have at least 2 cars per household. Where could they all be parked?

New estates tend to have parking for the individual properties - and then a couple of spaces for guest parking -but which can be used by the guests of ... who exactly?

This is one of the main bones of contention in new estates - 'cos people park their second car there and leave it there all week etc... or their caravan.

Also, find out who pays to maintain those spaces - if they were to need maintenance or repair in the future could you get an unexpected bill?

MissMotivation

In the area that I work in there are so many new builds that the people who bought off plan with a view to making money on them are struggling to sell.

If you plan on staying there for a few years then you might have more luck. IMHO new builds are very difficult to sell on if you are looking at moving within 1/2 years, after that.....possibly because the estate is more established they seem to sell easier.

I would never buy new build and certainly never off plan, I've seen too many houses that look great on the plan but when built are seriously overlooked, have a lack of parking etc.

The fact that the site agent is pushing for you to reserve now and predicting that prices are going to rise would suggest they are struggling to sell them.

Sorry if this is not what you wanted to hear

Lil_Dee_2

Swizzle, there are no absolutes in this world. All the above suggestions (from prices staying put, through to the parking issues raised) are all valid, and very real possibilities.

We reserved our new build in Jan 2005, and completion was put back, and back, and back. It was six months late in the end, we eventually moved in back in May this year. The houses released in the first phase (ours included) were sold very quickly - six on the first two days apparently - however, I do know of at least one plot that was eventually purchased by the 13th person to reserve, which again goes to prove nothing is ever set in stone !!!

We do have some issues with parking (thankfully, not for us directly!) and there are issues regarding a couple of the houses being BTL (the tenants being not-so-good), but in the main things are good. The house is just as we'd imagined, and the neighbours are great. There is a definate feeling of comeradery (? how to spell that) between us all, having had to live through the delays before completing, which has proved to be something of a conversation starting point for us all !!!

One of the biggest surprises was the recent prices of the phase that was released two weeks ago. We reserved in Jan 2005 - at a fixed price of £174,950.00. The same house style as ours has just been released further down on the estate, at a cost of £194,950. It sold within a matter of hours, much to our surprise !

Hopefully there's a few more bits to throw into the melting pot to ponder on !! What I don't want to do is frighten you off with horror stories, but at the same time, you do need to be realistic about it - a new-build house can be just as stressful as buying in a chain.