In the rush to build more homes, there is concern that new homes standards are slipping…
According to the 2015 Homeowner Survey by HomeOwners Alliance and BLP Insurance, the British public are shunning new build homes because they are seen by some as being poorly built, characterless, and with rooms that are far too small.
The survey’s findings throw down the gauntlet to both the house building industry and the new government as it looks at how it will meet their promise of building 200,000 new homes. The survey, conducted by YouGov, said that new homes have such a poor reputation that twice as many people would prefer to buy an old home than a new home. Only one in five (21%) would prefer to buy a newly built home, whereas nearly a half (47%) would prefer an old home (built ten or more years ago). New homes may be less popular because they are seen to be poorly built, with 38% citing low build quality as a disadvantage of new homes.
However, new homes are expected to have lower ongoing maintenance and energy costs (51% see this as an advantage of new homes). These are high on the wish list of potential buyers as 72% of UK adults say they would be interested in having information at the point of sale about the estimated annual cost of their energy bills and more than half would be interested in having the estimated annual cost of maintaining the property (56%).
New homes are thought by some to offer the best chance of getting on the housing ladder as schemes like Help to Buy are seen to be more widely available on new homes.
Paula Higgins, chief executive of HomeOwners Alliance, said: “We need more new homes, but they have to be homes that people want to live in, not homes that are quick, easy and cheap for house builders to throw up. What we need to solve the housing crisis are quality homes of character and space, and challenge the housing industry to deliver. After the war, they built homes fit for heroes. All we want is homes fit for homeowners. Homes shouldn’t be built just for a quick profit, but to last for generations to come.”
Kim Vernau, Chief Executive Officer, BLP insurance said: “With house prices in the UK on the rise, consumers are becoming much more aware as to the type of home they want to invest their hard earned cash in. New built homes must be high quality builds with the requisite space and light desired along with low maintenance costs and energy efficiency requirements.
“With activity in the construction industry on the increase as local authorities and developers attempt to meet the housing shortfall, there is a real risk that building standards will slip. Consumers want peace of mind and reassurance that the home they are purchasing is fit for purpose and built to last rather than simply chasing a house-building statistic. Purchasing a home with warranty insurance protection in place reassures the buyer that their new home has been built to the highest of standards and designed to stand the test of time.”
