Should you buy a brand-new home?

Over the last 10 years, 2,864 new homes have been built in the South Kesteven area.  Historically, there were 2 distinct camps of property buyers; those who would only contemplate living in characterful period properties, and those people who preferred the low maintenance of a new home.
 
Now, in an attempt at appealing to a wider audience, developers are changing those uniform rows of identical homes into developments that are as individual as the families that live in them.  Whatever home you buy, be it old or new build, there can be hidden or supplementary costs that are often not taken into account by potential homeowners or buy-to-let landlords.

Unsurprisingly, over the last 10 years, a greater proportion of detached homes have been built locally (39.4% when compared to the national average of 29.2%) and fewer flats (11.4% locally vs 22.3% nationally). This is because of the nature of the Stamford area, its position in the country, the availability of building land, local government planning restrictions and the price of building land.

If you are considering new, look out for items such as curtain rails, TV aerials, kitchen appliances, carpets and curtains, gardens and patios being excluded from the sale.  With older properties, consider energy efficiency and look into the insulation, heating type and windows etc., Do your research, ask questions and get a surveyor to make a detailed inspection of the property so you are fully informed.

 

My research further revealed there was a pattern to when people bought a new home locally.  I discovered there was a drop in new homes buying in the credit crunch years (2008 - 2010) and since then the general trend has been better!  Looking at the much larger second hand housing market in Stamford over the same 10 years, the correlation between the new homes market and used market has been quite strong, which shows the new home builders don’t make (or break) the Stamford housing market, they just follow it (although with the planned building locally in the next 10/20 years – who knows if that will continue to be the case?).



If price is your sole motivator, then new homes are always CHEAPER when the economy is bad.  However, in normal and good housing market conditions, you will pay a ‘new build premium’. The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors admits that this can be as high as 10% extra, when compared to a similar second hand property. 

One final thought, at least with new homes there is no gazumping or no upward chain to ruin any sale completion dates!