In the fast-paced housing market of the last two and a half years, new home registrations reached a twenty year high, and if today’s buyer behaviour is anything to go by, the ‘show home effect’ looks set to continue well into the year ahead - even in spite of today’s somewhat more challenging market backdrop.
According to those with a finger on the pulse of the UK property market, there has, however, been one notable shift...
That is, that far from most off-plan sales being for flats and apartments, it is now detached, semi-detached, and terraced homes that are driving the momentum, as growing families (rather than buy-to-let investors) look to tap into the ever-relevant lifestyle and financial advantages of today’s energy efficient new homes.
As specialists in the field of new homes, the team at Braxton Estate Agents in Maidenhead take a look at some of the key reasons for this trend:
Low maintenance
Inevitably, older properties can be subject to wear and tear, and demand a certain degree of personalisation, upkeep and maintenance. When buying new, homebuyers can be freed from this need for often costly structural or cosmetic repairs - something that current lifestyles (and budgets) are scarcely conducive to.
Energy efficiency
Most of the new homes being built today come with energy efficient features as standard, including double (or sometimes triple) glazed windows, first class insulation and draft-proofing.
Owing to this inherent energy efficiency, a new home can offer homebuyers considerable savings on their living costs – something that the current financial crisis has made all the more invaluable.
Comfort
Modern builds have to conform to certain standards of heating and ventilation, and this lends to a much more comfortable living environment – one which is warm in winter, and cool in summer. The high level of 'comfort factor' that comes with new build can also be credited to the widespread incorporation of smart home technology and AI in heating, lighting and entertainment features.
Multi-functional space
In the majority of today's new homes, the rooms have been designed with modern lifestyles in mind. This means typically more fluid, versatile and inter-changeable floor plans, giving home-owners a level of adaptability that is crucial to their often ever-evolving needs. These homes mostly also have in place the wiring and infrastructure to accommodate our increasingly digitalised lives – something that many older properties are often ill equipped to support.
Below: The modern frontage of Maidenhead's newly built Monaco House, located on Vanwall Business Park.
Simpler buying process
When buying new build or off-plan, buyers can take advantage of the benefits of a chain-free transaction - something which can remove a considerable amount of the stress and time that typically comes with any home move.
Peace of mind
In recent years, leaps and bounds have been made in both build quality and energy efficiency, which has helped fortify homebuyer trust against some of the bad press of previous decades. In addition, many new build properties now come with warranties and guarantees, extending to both the build itself and the appliances, which does provide an extra level of assurance against the risk of issues or defects, especially when coupled with the opportunity for pre-completion 'snagging'.
Location
One of the advantages of new builds, of which the featured development at Monaco House in Maidenhead is a good example, is that they tend to have been built with locality of leisure amenities and facilities in mind. Monaco House is located within easy reach of Maidenhead's mainline railway station, and is only a short distance to the local town which is currently subject to extensive investment and re-development.
Summary
If you are considering a near-future move, and are potentially being swayed by both the cost-saving and lifestyle-enhancing advantages of a new build property, it is well worth perusing your options for local developments - even if only to gain a comparable against the same-value second hand properties in this area. Inevitably, individual tastes and lifestyle factors will always come into play, but with 'in need of modernisation' no longer the selling point it once was (a stark side effect of the rising cost of building materials), the second-hand vs new-build debate looks set to be entering new, self-explanatory territory, the likes of which the property market has scarcely seen before.
For more details on the featured home at Monaco House in Maidenhead, please contact Braxton on 01628 674234 or email property@braxtons.co.uk