New build or older build

PaulLynn

I think I'm slightly swaying towards a new build more each day I look at houses, one of the reasons is purely for this help to buy scheme do you have to put 5% deposit down or can you put more down is there a limit ?

kirtsypoos

You can put more than 5% down if you want PaulLynn, you have to take a minimum 25% mortgage so you could put down a 55% deposit should you so wish

Elfbert

Both times I've bought I've bought a 'nearly new' flat (I'm in London.) First one was 6 yrs old when we bought it, new one is just under 2 yrs old - so we get lots of mod cons without a particular premium (where we're moving now new 2 beds are still up for sale, one or two for over a 100k more than we're paying!!!) Now, I don't think those are realistically priced - I think property investors bought them off plan and got a bit stuck - but I think ours is good value. And it's a location which is great for us.

So worth checking out new-ish builds, if you like a modern look/feel/building methods, but don't want to be the one paying the premium.

nicholbb

You could always buy an old place in need of renovation and rip everything out and replace with new. Only recommended if you have good builders and if you do take them with you.

Personally don't rule anything out and visit both, just set some rules. How much you prepared to pay in yearly costs (ground rent, maintenance, etc), are you looking for an investment to live in or a home, what amount of time will you be prepared to commute.

wifigeek

older build. dont buy off-plan. you dont know what you will end up with. if you get a bodge its a world of pain trying to get things remediated.

Debtslayer

I think it is down to personal preference
Personally we don't like new builds as they are boxes with no character and no garden and we also wanted a garage and wouldn't have got a new build with garage in our price range
But I can see the benefits of a new build from a move in and you don't have to do anything point of view.
Whichever you decide happy house hunting!

getmore4less

ThePants999 wrote: »

I wouldn't buy a new build as your first home. You pay a premium, and you lose that premium when you sell - fine if you don't sell for ages, which I'm sure is your plan, but can be very problematic if you find things not going to plan.

well by that logic the best buy is the a second hand "new" build, a nearly new build,

not paying the premium.
not living on a building site*.
not dealing with first round snagging.
will have settled more so decorating should last.
garden should have a bit of maturity with the planting.
get to pick your first set of neighbors(they are a already living there).
if on an unadopted site might be better visibility of service charges.

downside, not blank canvas to work on.

* we bought second hand phase one(18 months old) over a new build(same design) phase 2.

Phase one has the full developments open green spaces bigger gardens and more south/SW facing so were the better buys.

the P2 building work was not that disruptive mainly traffic BUT when the factory site nearer got demolished and built on that was over a year of dusty conditions and noise during the weekdays.

[Deleted User]

I have had both, new and old and I would always go for old now.

The new build I bought was down to location and its the only place I've bought where I got the keys and cried. I hated it.

It had no character whatsoever, it was difficult furnishing it because the rooms were either smaller than we realised or the stairs were impossible to get normal furniture up. We had a massive row with the builders who told us the house would have a white bathroom suite and it turned out to be grey. They tried to tell us it was because the room was dark making the suite look grey. The garden was small and overlooked infact we got out as soon as we could. Buying purely for location was a bad choice and then of course because our box looked like every other box on the estate it took ages to sell and to get out we had to just recoup our losses rather than get a profit. And these days the press about bad Leases would be a risk I wouldnt entertain.

Old and characterful everytime for me, yes I would have repairs and maintenance as they arose but even new properties have issues, one of ours being the plumbing pipes the builders laid were as narrow as they could get away with and our bathroom waste / drains blocked needing cameras and all sorts digging up the front lawn to see what the problem was. One thing that is big for me is I would be the one deciding when and how to spend my money not have some awful money grabbing agents telling me to hand over thousands of pounds on demand or charging me £250 just for a decsion on whether I could have a van on the drive or have a conservatory built.

Old characterful and in control of your finances would win out everytime for me now.

Dutsey

We have recently brought a new build and love the fact there is no maintenance.

I think the key with new builds is to go in with an open mind and expect snagging as nothing is perfect.

SuboJvR

We are in the process of buying a new build. For us the Help to Buy scheme makes a difference. For an older property, what we can afford doesn't match our needs. I guess this is why the HTB scheme exists. But after somewhere like 5-8 years we should be in a position to remortgage to include the HTB loan.

That's the key for us - if we wanted an older property, there's nothing really we can buy in an area we want, and we can't really compromise further on this (my husband already will have a 35 mile each way commute, so going further away not only increases his time away from home, but increases his travel costs beyond a point that it would make financial sense to buy a cheaper house further out).

I am aware that the house may lose some value, but similarly there have been nearly new properties on the development that have sold recently for close to what we are paying for a new one, and they don't have some of the features we do such as a garage, two off road parking spaces, or a utility room.
I'm therefore optimistic about the property values in this specific estate, especially considering its proximity to another very popular development where people pay between £50k-£100k more to live, and both are same distance from the station (London commuting).

I'm a bit worried that as we are not splashing on some of the options our house wouldn't be as desirable as an equivalent. But it may be that we pay for these extras later with other contractors, and surely this would be cheaper.