New builds are an attractive proposition for many. Like with any purchase of a property they have a number of positives and negatives.
Firstly you will be the first person living in the property. The property has a certain curb appeal as it is recently finished, usually with the fixtures and fittings that you have chosen, and the neutral colour schemes used by the developers gives you a blank canvas which you can adapt to your own taste. Something you have to remember is that although the colour schemes are neutral and will likely compliment your furniture, the house with your furniture is unlikely to look anything like the show home you viewed when deciding to purchase.
The fact the property is new comes at a significant premium. The price you pay for not only the house itself but the new appliances too are at inflated prices, boosting the profit margins of the developers. If you were to buy a comparative house which is ‘2nd hand’ you would likely find the asking price to be considerably lower.
New homes typically depreciate in value initially once you move in. If you were to sell within a couple of years after purchase you may be lucky to break even with many homes selling at a discount as they are no longer new. If you do plan to stay in the house for the long term, the house will likely appreciate in value eventually but there are no guarantees of this, it is dependent on many factors like market conditions and the economy at the time.
A positive with new builds is that you will likely save money on your energy bills as they should be built with the most up to date, energy efficient materials which should lead to those savings. On the other hand there are potential additional costs that some new builds incur and some have ‘hidden costs’ which you may not expect. If the new build is sold leasehold you may have ground rent fees to pay and these could increase over time.
There are more pros and cons than I can list here in this short article, so if you are considering a new build property make sure you do your research and weigh up everything for yourself and consider all your options, don’t be rushed into a big decision by the pushy sales person at the development.
Daniel Brown BSc (Hons), Cert SMP
3rd July 2017