How to decide?

Firsttimebuyer2021

Hi everyone,

I am hoping for some advice from previous home buyers or future buyers! My partner and myself are first time home buyers with a view of reserving a new build in the next few months however we are struggling with what size of house to go for (daft i know)...

The first is a Taylor Wimpey 2 bedroom semi detached that we loved, it has a large living room looking onto the rear garden, large master bedroom and felt "cosy" however it is difficult to find one with a driveway and it also doesn't have room for a dining room table (without putting one in the living room) (Approx Price £165k)

The second is a Persimmon 3 bedroom semi detached (still to view) however on the layout plans it has an ensuite, extra bedroom, open plan kitchen/diner and separate utility plus all come standard with driveways. Only downside we can see is the living room is slightly awkward in shape (Approx Price £165k) 

The third is also a Persimmon 3 bedroom but detached (still to view). Same as above but has a larger kitchen/diner area but instead of a utility room they have another reception room area looking onto the kitchen and an Integrated garage. Downside is the downstairs toilet entrance faces onto the kitchen/diner. (Approx price £185k)

I would like to know peoples opinions on either if they bought small and wished they went for a larger house or people who bought larger and then wished for a smaller house or anything else i may have missed?

Thank you!

greatcrested

I'm no expert on New Builds, but I'd be comparing build quality/reputation too. Persimmon vs TW.

I've no idea and others might, but do some searching via duckduckgo (or google if you must!).

Doozergirl

If you can afford a bigger house, buy bigger. If you can afford a detached house, buy detached.  

Unless there's an affordability issue, I don't think anyone ever regretted a bit more space and no neighbours attached to them. A bigger house will last you longer, no doubt, and moving house is expensive in itself.

MFWannabe

As greatcrested said compare builders too; Persimmon don’t have the best reputation I believe 
Apart from that it really depends what’s important to you. Do you want / need a garage, driveway etc. Then I would go by room
sizes and layout and ‘feel’ of the property 

RelievedSheff

Certainly do some research. Persimmon do not have the best reputation with regards build quality, although to be fair to them they have been working hard to improve that.

If you are happy with the build quality of the estate (have a walk around and look at the finish on the plots) then you can make an informed choice.

Of the three houses you have suggested there then I would always pick the three bed detached property. You will appreciate the extra space and not having attached neighbours is a god send. You are also more likely to stay longer term in a larger house as you are less likely to out grow it.

The two bed house will have off street parking somewhere. Almost all new builds have designated parking for the plot although it may not be a driveway next to the house, it may be in a parking court for example.

getmore4less

What are the property types  to have a look at layouts?

is the detached The Kearn?

Integral garage make houses top heavy, ok if you can part of the upstairs for say a study/WFH space so you don't have to do it downstairs.

Davesnave

Nobody regrets buying a somewhat larger and detached house if it's affordable, but just as I'd not pay a premium for a new car, I wouldn't buy a brand new house. Buying into an established community gives one a fighting chance of getting to know the ambience of the location, which is something you feel.....every day if you decide to live there. Every down-at-heel  street started out some time as a new build.

HanPop

I would always go for the 3 bedroom detached out of those 3 if you can afford it, however as some have said Persimmon have a bad reputation so go to their showhomes etc and see if the quality is ok. Other questions to ask yourself are do you want children in the future, if you do then definitely go for a three bed. Also if you have a choice of plots definitely study the site plan and pick the largest garden that is least overlooked. We are in our second new build house and our first had no one overlooking at the back it was amazing, and this house has a large garden and is around a corner so I don’t have any windows of other houses looking into our kitchen/diner, this was important to us but hard to find on a new build estate.

RelievedSheff

Davesnave said:

Nobody regrets buying a somewhat larger and detached house if it's affordable, but just as I'd not pay a premium for a new car, I wouldn't buy a brand new house. Buying into an established community gives one a fighting chance of getting to know the ambience of the location, which is something you feel.....every day if you decide to live there. Every down-at-heel  street started out some time as a new build.

I would say that is a very good point. We moved into our new build almost two years ago and it has taken a good long while for a sense of community to start to build up.

olgadapolga

When we were FTBs, we purchased the largest house we could comfortably  afford. Never regretted it. Lived there for 20 years.

I wouldn't touch a house with an integrated garage. Lived in one for seven years and it was a nightmare to keep the room above warm and free from mould (even though the garage was completely dry). The house was about 50 years old though so maybe the build wasn't the best. 

As for Persimmon themselves, never lived in one of their homes but they are building an estate nearby which I run through and the quality of the builds from the outside leaves a lot to be desired. The show homes look wonderful but the reality appears to be somewhat different. We did go to their offices when we were looking for a house but the sales staff were incredibly rude to us (they acted as if we couldn't possibly afford anything they had to offer, no idea why unless it was the fact that we took our three well-behaved children with us). So glad that we didn't buy one of their homes, now I've seen how poorly they are constructed. You learn a lot from watching houses constructed over just a few weeks!

Davesnave

olgadapolga said:

I wouldn't touch a house with an integrated garage. Lived in one for seven years and it was a nightmare to keep the room above warm and free from mould (even though the garage was completely dry). The house was about 50 years old though so maybe the build wasn't the best.

OTOH, in some circumstances, it can be a place to extend into relatively cheaply. Depends on several factors, but we did it as an alternative to putting a lump on the back.