Survey on a new build flat???

united4ever

Am a FTB and planning to buy a new build flat through shared ownership. Haven't requested a survey yet. The flat comes with a 10 year NHBC guarantee. Should I just go with a home buyers report or something more substantial? and if so how do I set this up? I've arranged a mortgage through Nationwide and I understand they do their own valuation too. Should I be arranging something extra related toa survey here?

GunJack

united - if it's new with NHBC I'd go for a basic valuation. As it's a flat I'd pay more attention to the searches and legal agreements such as rights of way, access, shared responsibility for repairs to communal areas, restrictive covenants(e.g. you may not be allowed to put, say, a balcony/veranda/etc up on your place, or fence off the grass right outside your patio doors type stuff), all the stuff your solicitor checks out for you.

HTH

cats!

Good avice from GunJack about checking out legalities of agreements.

HOWEVER - alarm bells - new build flat and shared ownership! You may well find a sting in the tail when you try to sell at a later date. There has been a previous thread posted about the problems of %'s when selling.

Get a full survey, but my advice would be to think very carefully before committing to this purchase. New builds lose value like a stone within the first 1-3 years, and you have the added burden of shared ownership.

Think carefully!

cats!

Oh! and a NHBC guarantee is a "paper" one - don't expect it to be much use if you need it! It's more about protecting the developer - please do your research!

lynzpower

the thing is with SO, IME, ( had one and sold one in london) given the fact that your share is "affordable" you may find more buyers at the bottom end of the market.

I know youve put a lot of time into this.

I cant believe you are still not moved in tho! Surely a shared ownership record?! HOw long since you reserved it - is it built properly yet or still being built!

united4ever

lynzpower wrote: »

the thing is with SO, IME, ( had one and sold one in london) given the fact that your share is "affordable" you may find more buyers at the bottom end of the market.

I know youve put a lot of time into this.

I cant believe you are still not moved in tho! Surely a shared ownership record?! HOw long since you reserved it - is it built properly yet or still being built!

Yes, It was supposed to be finished end of March but now should be September 7th. The reason given was United Utilities didn't meet the schedule promised so the builders couldn't do other work for a while. Has been frustrating. This particular block of flats only 25% of the flats (12 out of 49) are for shared ownership - i think they had to designate 25% shared ownership to get planning permission, so I hope it will have a more mixed profile of residents than 100% shared ownership development.

I will see the inside of the flat next week when the builders finish so will make a final decision then. If it looks like somewhere I could happily live for at least 5 years I will go with it, if not then I will lose my £500 deposit, write off the £1000 solicitor fees and perhaps wait to see if prices fall (maybe rent somewhere for a while - am living with parents now) and try to save some more deposit to buy without shared ownership in the future. It's a big decision.

guppy

Rather than a Homebuyer or Structural Survey you could consider employing a professional "snagger" (or just do it yourself if you're quite observant). The flat is more likely to suffer from annoyances such as bodged plumbing, kitchen units etc. than it is to be in danger of falling down.

A snagger will pick up any defects/annoyances and give you a list to get sorted out under the NHBC guarantee

Have a look at these:

http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/property/new_homes/article743278.ece

http://www.snagging.org/

Good luck with the move.

Jonbvn

guppy wrote: »

Rather than a Homebuyer or Structural Survey you could consider employing a professional "snagger" (or just do it yourself if you're quite observant). The flat is more likely to suffer from annoyances such as bodged plumbing, kitchen units etc. than it is to be in danger of falling down.

A snagger will pick up any defects/annoyances and give you a list to get sorted out under the NHBC guarantee

Have a look at these:

http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/property/new_homes/article743278.ece

http://www.snagging.org/

Good luck with the move.

Exactly!

The NHBC will step in if it falls down. However, if your plumbing is leaking then they won't do anything.

A professional snagging company will also chase up the builders to rectify defects, when they drag their feet.

Hoploz

Is the shared ownership funded through the builder or are you buying together with a housing association? I bought with a housing association some years ago and they required a Homebuyers Survey.

I would be a little wary of buying shared from the builder directly, as someone else said, new properties don't hold value (or increase) at the same rate as an older one, and you can never be sure what the others in the same block are actually worth i.e. what others are paying, due to the deals, discounts etc. So if you're planning to stay 1-3 years you could find yourself a little out of pocket, but if you're in for the long term, e.g. 10 years, then fine, you'll make money eventually anyway. But if it's the only way you can afford then I understand you want to go for it anyway (like I did, and I did rather well myself!)

united4ever

The shared ownership is through the housing association, the flat directly above mine has been sold for £209 000, exactly the same layout but, unlike mine, includes parking and some finishings like white goods and laminate flooring. I'm buying 60% fro £105 000 (so total price £175 000). It's a 700 sq foot 2 bed apartment on the 1 st floor.

Below is the link to the development both from the HA and builder:

http://www.plumlife.co.uk/development.asp

http://www.seddonhomes.co.uk/edale/

The rent is £132 a month for the remaining 40%

Do you think this looks like a fair deal or overpriced?

Hoploz

Sounds a great deal based on what you say, although it's not my area. THe picture looks nice too. How do you know the other one has gone for 209? Why is yours that much cheaper? I would expect ground and first floors to be at a premium price over a 2nd floor one, white goods and laminate flooring would cancel this out making the value about equal IMO.