Would you buy and live in a new build? Or should I go with old houses?

We bought and live in a new build. We're happy now we're here, but the place took years to build. It was so slow!

We bought and live in a new build. Love it and so much space

We live in an old house which I love and wouldn’t change, BUT we always have a constant list of jobs and maintenance and it is a bit of a money pit.

I think it depends on where you’re buying. When we were shopping around in the UK we found the new builds to be small and expensive, and a lot of the architecture didn’t make any sense (barely space for a bed and a wardrobe in the master bedroom due to door placements and size). We heard many horror stories advising they were often cobbled together with shoddy workmanship and require lots of fixes in the first 5 years of living there. We decided to buy an old build due to that. We got more space for less money, but of course the house needs a bit of fixing and maintenance. We are happy though.

We bought an old house. It's more space for less money in our experience.

We have just bought a 35yo house but recently renovated with an orangery extension and it is immaculate. Definitely wouldn’t say it was less money. But it’s a 4 bed detached with a huge corner plot garden. I was looking at new builds incase we didn’t get this one but I just didn’t love them in my heart x

@Teri I’ve heard these stories as well and it makes me hesitant to go for a new build but I do love them. If you have to do fixes on a new build then what’s the point!

Only thing to hold me back on buying a new build is most of the time they are HOA and they are evil lol

@Rema what is HOA?

Home Owners Association. Basically it's a group of people who get to tell you what you can and can't do on your own property. They're terrible. I would NEVER live in a HOA.

@Ashley yep that about sums it up. My old boss lived in an HOA and she had so many problems with her employees parking at her home business.

I think new builds are cheap and rushed but a bigger price tag. I have a new build and in my closet I can see daylight through a crack. So that’s cool.

@Siera wow! Okay. Do you have guarantee of a couple of years? Also when people say new build, how many years is it? Like if I get a 5 year old house, is that a new build?

I think an older property is a much better investment and will retain its value in a way a new build just won’t. There is always going to be a ‘newer’ build and these developments, as someone who currently lives in an apartment in one look very tired very quickly and they are simply not built to last in the same way. You can also, I think add more value and make more on older properties when it comes to reselling. That said they are much more energy efficient and easy, no faffing around having to replace windows and roofs etc. Guess it’s down to what is priority for you now.

I only want a new build. Fresh energy

Every single person I know who has got a new build has regretted it pretty quick. They are mostly rushed to get built and have loads of things come up wrong with then. My friend got a new build and has only now, 5 years since buying it, stopped having problems with it 🤞 Older properties were built to last I think where as new builds seem to just be very costly to first buy then to keep fully functional. Both my sisters have just brought houses, one sister has brought a new build (nearly a year old) and the other has brought a older property. The new build is already cracked in several places so needs replastering, the heating has already needed to be fixed, the garden was like a bog, doesn't seem to have proper drainage so the kids have only just been able to play in the garden months after they moved in and they used to have chickens but been told they can't have them at the new house for another 5 years or something so had to rehomethem. The other sister moved in and has had no problems with the house

Hated my new build. It was bland and bizarrely dark all the time. We have a 1920s house now. Yes, we’ve had to do work, but we love it.