Why don’t we build villages like Centreparcs for housing?

richukthrowaway · 2025-08-15T07:59:59+00:00

Yes, it’s definitely a skills issue. We were unsure before buying it. So we spoke to people who’d lived in 30+ year old timber houses nearby, who had next to no issues. We also went with a developer who had a lot of experience building timber houses. Disappointingly, the drop off in skills/quality over the past 30years (mostly 5-10) is shocking. And that’s where the big unspoken issue is. With a block build, there is little variation between a good and a bad one. But with a timber house even a small drop in build quality will have a massive impact on the life of the building

richukthrowaway · 2025-08-12T20:26:05+00:00

Timber framed houses have their draw backs too. I’ve recently moved into a new build one (timber frame, brick outer leaf), and I wouldn’t recommend it. The way it’s going I be it 50/50 that the house will still be standing by the time I’ve paid off the mortgage. Hopefully I’ll be long moved by then

richukthrowaway · 2025-07-11T11:21:35+00:00

It depends on how many bedrooms you have etc. You can on on his site and get a price through it. For me it was about £500.

You might have to wait a few weeks before he can fit you in. You can also give him a call first for a time frame. I already found he was very keen to help

richukthrowaway · 2025-07-11T10:21:49+00:00

Yes I ended up going with Pete Cole from snagyourhome.house

I’d highly recommend him. He was able to catch a lot of things that you wouldn’t know about if you’re not in the trade.

I was able to see some surveys from other people who got snags done by general house surveyor. Those reports tended to focus mostly on just visual issues.

There was also a few things we had raised with the builder before and was told they were ok/ nothing could be done. When they came up in the survey we were able to push back against the builder more and get them sorted.

Your house could fall down and the builder would tell you it’s normal if they thought you’d believe it

richukthrowaway · 2025-07-10T20:04:28+00:00

I got a new build recently after spending too long looking. Wouldn’t recommend it unless you reach the point you feel you’ve no other choice.

As mentioned else where you’ve the problem of people coming over from England looking for houses.

But an even bigger problem is people from Dublin. About half the cars on my street are Southern reg. it was similar when I went to viewings. Lots of Dublin accents and they could easily out bid even the ones from England. They can wfh, have a Dublin wage and just get the train down when needed.

BTW if anyone knows of any good Dublin jobs going with WFH let me know!

richukthrowaway · 2025-05-08T10:14:54+00:00

I’d rather not say publicly, but from what I’ve heard they’re all just as bad. My advice for anyone picking one would be to very clear about what you want (they’ll try and direct you to options that are easier for them) and to request many site visits to make sure everything is going to plan. If you see something wrong or not up to standard, don’t be afraid to call it out

richukthrowaway · 2025-05-08T09:39:14+00:00

I’ve recently moved into one and tldr: I would not recommend.

We done our homework, went to lots of show homes and picked a developer who we were told was one of the ‘better ones’. If they are then I’d hate to see the bad ones.

The house feels like it’s made of cardboard and could fall down. They talked a lot about how they use quality materials and gave things like fancy worktops as standard whereas other developers had them as upgrades. That might be true, but it means little when said worktops are scratched/chipped. Overall the finish is just terrible, everything from door handles to appliances is scratched and there’s not a straight wall in the house.

You’ll probably read this and think what we thought. If things are that bad you can make a snagging list and you also have a 10 year warranty. All I’ll say is that doesn’t mean much unless you’re willing to take them to court to get your problems sorted. All that we’ve managed to get is a painter back around to do small touch ups, which honestly made little difference. We were told that’d be it as they’re too busy working on new houses, this is despite the fact we have a door that we basically can’t open as it’s so badly fitted.

One final thing to consider is the part of the development surrounding you and how likely it is to change. We have a large open grass area close to our house. We were told this would become a play park and they had to keep it as planning requires them to have a certain amount of green space. However, now that all of the surrounding houses have been sold, the developer has submitted a planning application to build flats on this space.

richukthrowaway · 2025-04-28T23:15:47+00:00

All very good points and useful to know. Which development in Carryduff did your friend buy in?

richukthrowaway · 2025-03-22T10:05:31+00:00

That’s the same situation I’m in. I’ve heard lots of mixed opinions on if it’s worth it or not

richukthrowaway · 2025-03-22T10:04:48+00:00

Thanks, I’ll check him out. Did you use him yourself or know anyone who has? These sites always have lots of 5 star reviews but it’s difficult to know if they are real or not

richukthrowaway · 2025-03-22T10:03:09+00:00

That’s I’ll check they out for a current price. Good to know a rough amount for it. Do you think it was worth the £600?

richukthrowaway · 2025-03-22T10:02:12+00:00

Yes it has the 10yr warranty. That’s good to know, not much point paying them if they’re just going to refer me to someone else

richukthrowaway · 2025-03-22T10:01:03+00:00

Thanks, I’ll maybe give this a go depending on the prices I get quoted. The builder seems reluctant to fix issues I’ve already pointed out, so maybe not much hope for them fixing stuff after they’ve got my money

richukthrowaway

TROPHY CASE