Customizing a new build house

onthewayout

Are there any housing developers that let you customize the interior layout and fittings of their new builds - I suppose after a down payment? I don't mean buying an empty shell and doing it yourself, but picking options that the developer offers, like you would on a new computer.

If you can choose high ceilings and normal sized windows, even better

Foxy-Stoat_3

Buying off plan you can choose wall colours, kitchen styles etc etc.

As for high ceilings....no....the ceiling heights will be down to the height of the property and normal sized windows....what size windows are there at the moment??? Planning and regulations state the size of the windows.

dimbo61

There are dozens of builders and lots of housing types so by checking online and studying house plans you may find the design you want or close to it.
Open plan for kitchen/dinner is very popular

ging84

you can pick options, and add extras, but they won't let you redesign the house. My new build it was a hassle to get them to move the basic socket layout around, and they refused my request to swap one of the internal door over so it opened the other way

kingstreet

The property will only be built to your spec once you've exchanged contracts.

HTB_newbie

Hi

I'm buying a new house through a small local builder and could change room sizes, had budgets for kitchen etc.. and was free to choose layout, make of units for the kitchen.

However, understandably, they delayed until after exchange our choices which they felt were client specific and may affect the saleability of the house.

All you can do is ask around and see how flexible each builder is. The earlier in the build that you exchange will help if you want to make lots of changes.

We hope to move into our new build mid November and first saw the house back in April when it was just a shell.

martinsurrey

the smaller the developer the more input you might get, but the smaller the developer the more risk in terms of quality (how many have they done in the past), timing (if they only have 1 build team who get delayed) and finance (how likely are they to go bust).

once you get down to a really small developer that might give you freedom, you might as well self build with a project manager.

sirmosh

They usually have quite a lot of options if you buy early enough, but there's usually a limited number of options and beyond the interior you're usually only talking things like turf. If you really want to have a say in your house then self build.

scottishblondie

I bought a property from Springfield last year, and they allow as much customisation as you want. They only operate in Scotland and I think their approach isn't favoured by the major developers. They build the shell, but won't start any internal work until the property has been purchased.

I could move around the doors/walls/sockets/radiators as much as I liked for no extra cost. There were choices of finishes in the bathrooms, kitchen, paint colours etc. Things like turf, full height tiling and showers over the bath were included as standard.

I also added a number of extras (for a price of course!) such as more sockets and TV points, network cabling, and significant kitchen upgrades. The ability to customise the house was what sold me on buying a new build when I had originally been sure I was going to buy a renovation project!

onthewayout

Sounds excellent. Did the options on offer extend to ceiling height and window size? The pokiness of new builds really puts me off. If the plot is small I'll make do with less rooms, but that doesn't explain low ceilings or tiny windows.

scottishblondie wrote: »

I bought a property from Springfield last year, and they allow as much customisation as you want. They only operate in Scotland and I think their approach isn't favoured by the major developers. They build the shell, but won't start any internal work until the property has been purchased.

I_have_spoken

tiny windows

Building regulations dictate that. New builds have to achieve an average Q value for thermal transmission, which is much easier to do with block wall than bargain bucket UPVC double-glazing. Hence the ever shrinking window sizes.