5 top tips for a new build home

I have received and shared so many hints and tips about moving into a new build home from my lovely Instagram followers. Instagram (as much as people take the piss about my involvement with it) has been a great network of like-minded people who have been so supportive. It has given me so much home inspiration and helpful hints of life in a new build home, I’ve dwindled it down to the top 5:

1. There’s no such thing as a stupid question

Buying a house is a scary thing. A really scary thing. It is the biggest purchase of your life and the biggest commitment you can make with someone if you’re buying a home together (I was told its more difficult to get out of a house than it is a divorce!) So of course you’re going to have a million and one questions in your head. I had so many questions which seemed ridiculous to me but I promise you, the sales representative will have heard it all before. Put your mind at ease and ASK. If there’s anything at all that you need a chat about just message my Instagram and I’ll help you as best I can. I’ve had people ask me how big the radiators are – will they dry towels or just knickers? So really, no questions is too daft if it makes you that little bit calmer in the whirlwind process!

2. Befriend the sales person on site

They will be your go to time and time and time again. They will bend so many rules for you if you’re nice to them! We got to walk round our house at various stages of the development, something (from what I’ve read form the ladies on Instagram) some people aren’t allowed to do! They’ll chase up contractors and give the site manager a kick up the arse when they need one.

3. Snag list snag list snag list

You will get given a ‘snag list’ to complete and return to the site manager within the first month. This is a list of issues you come across in the house for example, they’ve put the wrong style door handle on. One of ours was that the paint they’d use to do the touch ups across the house was a slightly different shade so every wall looked patchy. Now when you walk around your house a few weeks in looking for problems I can guarantee you won’t find half of them. My advice is to write yours snag list each week for the first month, don’t add to it each time, write a fresh one each week. This way you’re looking with fresh eyes every week and you’d be surprised with how much you spot as the weeks go on. My other tip is to have a snag list up on the fridge which you can add too. So when you bend down to pick up a dropped sock and find a chip missing from the banister you can add it to your list there and then. This should give you the fullest and most up to date snag list you can submit and get sorted!

4. Don’t buy wallpaper or paint before you move in

Unlike older houses you can’t come into your new home paint brush in hand. You need to allow 6-12 months for the house to ‘settle’ before you can decorate. You also need time to really settle into your home and get a feel for what you’d like. The fun is in the inspiration and planning too right?

5. Do your homework

When we bought our house Persimmon had an amazing deal on and all our flooring and turf was included as well as £1000 towards legal fees. However, when my parents bought their new build home they had to pay separately for flooring and the turf in their garden. So when having a look around bear in mind that you might need to keep some money to the side for carpets and grass in your garden! We also had to put a TV aerial in which we hadn’t planned for we just assumed those sorts of things we all included. While I’m talking about what’s included – additional extras. Now the additional extras catalogue could send you into bankruptcy. Some features you can upgrade are worth it, others are not. For example:

• If you don’t like any of the ‘standard’ kitchen finishes, it would be worth spending £800 on a nicer one from the premium range. Because to scrimp on your kitchen at first will only result in you refitting your entire kitchen in the future, and that’s going to cost a lot more than £800. This is also true of flooring and bathroom options.

• You can have all of your features of the kitchen built in. This is worth it is you can afford to do so and that’s your style. Personally I knew I wanted a bush fridge so we weren’t going to have built in appliances. Side note-the built in appliances are brilliant quality but are definitely more expensive than have free standing. Again, its what your preference is.

• Some items in the catalogue are ridiculously priced and you can buy yourself for about 10x cheaper. If you make friends with your sales person (see tip 2) they’ll highlight these for you and will tell you where to get a cheaper alternative and even give you the number of someone who can install!

• Go in with a budget for upgrades and STICK TO IT. Also, if you’re with persimmon and know someone who recommended you they’ll have a £500 refer a friend voucher which will give you £500 off your upgrades and will give them £500 cash! (this was the case on our estate, not sure if its country wide but it should be!)

So there they are – my top 5 tips for buying a new build home.

Have you got any tips I can share in my next post? Message me on Instagram and let me know!

Jess x

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