Taylor Wimpey homes?

SHJW

My husband and I are looking to buy for the first time, and we're quite tempted by a new build we've found from Taylor Wimpey. It is on a development in Glastonbury. We've been looking around and have found a lot of horror stories about them, but nothing for a few years - does anyone know the sort of quality they are?? Has anything changed since there were all these problems?? Anything anyone can advise me about from the last year or so would be very helpful thanks.

Pincher

Do they still do timber frame houses?


Easy to keep in touch with your neighbours: through the wall.


There's a big development nearby, from 30 years ago, and the houses haven't fallen down.

Davesnave

You are assuming that all sites within the company will be achieving the same standards. While this is probably what most companies would like to happen, the reality on the ground is very likely to be different.

So, even if all the materials are similar, being bought nationally, the staff on-site will vary. Site managers will be key to quality control, and some will be better than others at motivating the workforce, at least some of which will be sub-contracted. Some will also make their own c0ck-ups.

Many on the site will have one objective in mind; to get as many units finished in the shortest time possible and hide the short cuts they take.

It isn't a recipe for great workmanship, but some sites will still achieve much better results than others when it comes to snagging, because the right management is on the case.

Whether the same management is on a site from one year to the next is a separate matter!

marksoton

Davesnave wrote: »

You are assuming that all sites within the company will be achieving the same standards. While this is probably what most companies would like to happen, the reality on the ground is very likely to be different.

Whether the same management is on a site from one year to the next is a separate matter!

This ^^^^^^

On one national builders site we're providing services for the site manager has changed three times in four months.

They're also penny pinching and working dangerously ( e.g 6 metre deep excavations with no shoring ) The net result is the residents will suffer years of sewerage problems. They just don't know it yet because we're currently mitigating the problem.

Hou

I've just bought a TW house and the quality isn't bad. Somethings are poor and will be being rectified but thats due to poor kitchen subcontractors. It is going to be interesting to see how the snagging gets done, but they seem eager to sort things

I do know that it varies between areas, Yorkshire has a far higher satisfaction than down south as builders down there are stealing managers and contracters half way through builds etc

Pincher

Who doesn't pinch corners? The subcontractors don't get paid enough to do a decent job. These Scottish Schools with no wall ties is just another example.


Even at the higher price range, it's no guarantee of quality.
Eighteen years later, a kitchen drain pipework came apart, because it was held together by tape! And that's Berkeley Homes!

They imposed a blackout period, so I couldn't inspect the work while it was going on. If I could, I would pay to have a surveyor going on site to inspect during build, but the builder will block it any way they can.

Furts

SHJW wrote: »

My husband and I are looking to buy for the first time, and we're quite tempted by a new build we've found from Taylor Wimpey. It is on a development in Glastonbury. We've been looking around and have found a lot of horror stories about them, but nothing for a few years - does anyone know the sort of quality they are?? Has anything changed since there were all these problems?? Anything anyone can advise me about from the last year or so would be very helpful thanks.

Nothing will have changed because there is no reason for things to change. Equally nothing will have changed because there is no will to enact any change.

However one then has to factor in some uncomfortable truths. There are cost pressures on both labour and materials. There is also an acute shortage of new homes being built. This means standards have tended to fall, and builders like Taylor Wimpey know they can produce a poor quality, and over priced product yet still find a buyer for it.

Buying a brand new home is a highly risky scenario - go forward with your eyes wide open and your senses 100% attuned to everything you see on site.

marksoton

Pincher wrote: »

Who doesn't pinch corners?

I consider countless men's lives in a 6 metre deep excavation beyond the pale. Few people unless they have been down that far appreciate the danger.

And any competent contractor would be absolutely appalled at such practices.

Furts

marksoton wrote: »

I consider countless men's lives in a 6 metre deep excavation beyond the pale. Few people unless they have been down that far appreciate the danger.

And any competent contractor would be absolutely appalled at such practices.

The operatives should not be down there so they are guilty, the contractor should not allow them down there so it is guilty, the Site Manger and the Contracts Manager should not be allowing it so they are guilty.

The inspection regime should be picking up the bad practice so there is an issue here.

But you too appear to be guilty - it is not a defence to turn a blind eye, so what have you done about the situation?

marksoton

Furts wrote: »

But you too appear to be guilty - it is not a defence to turn a blind eye, so what have you done about the situation?

Escalated it to senior management. I cannot change another companies policy. Especially a building company. I've sat in various seminars saying otherwise. They're wrong, i'm sadly right.

Furts

Maldives_lover wrote: »

I know a number of people in new build houses are having problems with cracking ceiling noises. I've just had 7 ceilings replaced and had to move out for 9 days. The whole process has been very stressful and certainly not helped by Taylor Wimpey who have been awful to deal with. They wanted to work around my furniture and when I said that wasn't acceptable they then wanted to move it to a stock plot or as I later found out an empty garage! Anyway, the work was carried out and I came home on Wednesday night, on Thursday morning we contacted TW to advise them of the problems we'd come home to (dirty house, damaged furniture, 4 of the new ceilings where you could see all the joints, damaged woodwork, and paint on 4 carpets oh and they damaged the bath presumably by standing on it and then denied damaging it but repaired it and offered to put a new bath in if we weren't happy with the repair. We're still waiting for an official response from them but they have said they they don't know how the house is dirty as it's been cleaned.
I'm sure they'll try and wriggle out of their responsibility and as they clearly don't believe me, I've uploaded a short video to YouTube to show the state of the house, they might think it's acceptable I don't, I've added a link to it below.
For those of you who are due to have ceilings replaced, I would advise you to get everything in writing, they are not good at confirming anything. If any of you are due to have your ceilings replaced I'm happy to share my experience with you to try and make it easier I wouldn't want anyone to go through what we have.

This is a short video we took when we returned home, although TW seem to think there wasn't a problem :-( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vE9QvaNQTk

This may sound harsh but you are a fool to yourself. You have spent perhaps £200000+ on a home that by your own admission is defective. You do not know how defective, nor what the defects are. You appear not to have identified the defects. To compound this you have allowed unknown people into your home without issuing clear instructions and a specification of what should be rectified. You have further compounded this by not being present in your own home to protect your interests whilst your defects are rectified.

It is almost a certainty that there is nothing wrong with your ceilings. The problem is likely to be structural and serious - think defective floor joists, be this the bearings, the support, the bracing, the strutting and so on. Ultimately it appears Taylor Wimpey have bodged some form of fix. This will probably be short term to get them out of the two year guarantee period.

Basically, you have given a blank card to Taylor Wimpey to walk all over your weakness. Taylor Wimpey have complied with this requirement. To then complain about what has happened prompts me to ask "be realistic - what did you expect?"