However, before purchasing their new home, Ash had reservations about newly built properties due to people’s experiences with other developers; he had seen and read about challenges with poor-quality construction and issues remaining unresolved for lengthy periods. As a result, he was unwilling to consider a newly built house. Nevertheless, when Ruth saw an advert for an open day at This Land’s Spiregrass Square development in Cambridge, which looked like it would offer houses that met their needs, she persuaded Ash to accompany her.

“I was quite pessimistic about the visit because I was anti-new build at that point”, shares Ash. “The speed at which many newly built houses are being constructed made me question the standard of what was being built and, after reading horror stories on different Facebook pages, I believed that a newly built house would be plagued by problems.”

“When we viewed one of the houses on the estate, we were blown away by the specification and the finish”, comments Ash. The property wasn’t the right size for the couple but, when they were offered the opportunity to view one of the remaining townhouses onsite, they realised that a newly built house could be the home they were searching for. “What set it apart was the quality of the finish and we fell in love. Bearing in mind that the property had no flooring and no garden at this stage, it highlights how impressed we were by the design and the quality.”

Identifying and resolving problems

However, while they loved the house, Ash still had concerns about what would happen should the couple discover any defects in their home. While This Land offers a two-year aftercare service as a standard and a 10-year warranty on its new homes, it was the communication and transparency that Ash and Ruth found most reassuring after moving into their new home.

Even before moving in, This Land’s customer care manager arranged a tour of the house with them both. “Anything we were even slightly concerned about was noted and promptly sorted”, explains Ash, “our pre-conception was that housebuilders are only concerned with sales, but we quickly got the impression that This Land genuinely cares about the people living in its houses.”

To enable people to efficiently report any problems that arise with their new home, This Land uses an aftercare portal. Ash notes that “the reporting process is so efficient. I can log anything easily and see its status. Anything that we have reported has been resolved quickly; we have never had a situation where we have been left waiting for a repair – in fact, it is usually our availability that is the challenge.”

In addition to the house tour, a welcome booklet was provided for Ash and Ruth, which clearly outlined This Land’s responsibilities as the developer and what to expect as the house settled. This was particularly helpful for the couple who had no experience with a newly built property. Ash notes that “everything documented in the welcome book was so helpful. We knew what changes to expect to the house during our first summer and winter. With the two-year aftercare commitment, we are confident that any cosmetic damage such as cracks will be repaired by This Land promptly when we report it.”

After moving in, the couple experienced a challenge with the thermostats in the house. “The thermostats weren’t lining up with the correct rooms”, explains Ash, “but we reported on the aftercare portal and within a few days, we had been contacted to arrange for this issue to be resolved for free”.

Ash also highlights how quickly a problem with the underfloor heating was fixed by This Land. “When our underfloor heating wasn’t quite kicking in, we reported the issue using the portal and, again, it was fixed within just a few weeks. This Land never gave us the expectation that things might not go wrong, but its process to resolve anything that does go wrong has been to an exceptionally high standard, which we have appreciated”.

Care goes beyond customers

To ensure that its houses are environmentally friendly and energy efficient, This Land installs air-source heat pumps in all its houses. Ash and Ruth’s house has an EPC rating of B and a carbon-neutral design. “Ruth cares a lot about the environment, so it is important to us to live in a property with a much higher PEC rating than we had previously. We love having a heat pump as it is better for the environment.”

“One of the contractors who has visited the house confirmed it has the best insulation he has seen in a new build, which gives us peace of mind. We know our house is future-proofed and will still be high-quality in five or even 10 years”, continues Ash.

Having a heat pump is a new feature for the couple but This Land arranges an instructional presentation with its installation team for buyers to provide a clear explanation of using the heat pump, which Ash appreciated. “The heat pump is quite complex to set up but the talk was so helpful and the heat pump is automatic so we don’t need to worry about it now.”

Why This Land?

“We love our house. It feels like This Land has spent time building good-quality houses and they care about the work they produce. I have gone from being anti-new build to pro-new build because of our experience with This Land and its customer care”, concludes Ash.

They had harboured some reservations about new builds due to things they’d heard about limited storage space and delays in building, but traditional properties just didn’t meet the standards they were looking for in energy efficiency.

And with personal trainer Ash often hosting online classes from home, it was important to keep bills under control.

He said: “While we were renting our previous home, several concerns came to our attention. The property’s EPC rating was quite poor, and we noticed how inefficiently the property retained heat, especially during the winter months. We could feel the drafts and noticed that the energy bills were much higher than we’d anticipated.

“It was a wake-up call for us, making us realise how crucial an energy efficient home was to our lifestyle especially with me spending so much time working from home. That’s what led us to start exploring new build homes. We were curious to see if they offered the energy-efficient features we were looking for,” explains Ash.

Visiting Spiregrass Square dispelled the couple’s new build concerns. The homes’ impressive EPC rating of B and carbon-neutral design stood out. They also found ample storage in each room and appreciated the surrounding green spaces, reaffirming their choice to embrace new build living.

Using a LISA account with a 25% government top-up, in addition to their general savings and inheritance funds, the couple successfully saved enough money to make an 11% deposit of £41,000 for their new three-bedroom Marram townhouse at the development, which cost £x.

Ash adds, “The idea of buying a property wasn’t initially a top priority for us. However, when we laid eyes on our new home, something just clicked. Renting certainly has its limitations – not being able to put our personal stamp on a space and the transience that comes with it. The prospect of finally owning our own home, having the freedom to make it unique to us, and creating a lasting place for our future was too enticing to pass up. It was the right time to make the move, and we couldn’t be happier with our decision.”

With both Ash and Ruth working active jobs – Ruth as a Gymnastics Coach, the need for ample space became even more critical. Ash, in particular, required a dedicated area for his online coaching, given the growing demand for virtual training.

“The house perfectly suits our needs; the three bedrooms have allowed us to designate one as a home office where I can efficiently run my business from. Being a personal trainer, I have quite a bit of equipment, so having plenty of storage space has been a significant benefit. This is especially welcome as our previous home was a two-bedroom property, and the extra storage space has made a world of difference,” Ash notes.

Over, with its serene countryside surroundings, not only provides the ideal backdrop for their active lifestyle but also offers the peace and tranquillity that comes with living in a very safe area with low crime rates — a feature that was particularly important to the couple.

Ash said: “Prior to making the move to Over, we lived in Dry Drayton. While the area had its charms, we found it lacked several essential conveniences that we now appreciate. Over not only offers the countryside we love but also has local amenities including a shop and excellent accessibility to travel routes, making daily life much more convenient.

“We also love to keep active in our free time, enjoying runs and cycles, and Over is the perfect location to accommodate our passion for a healthy lifestyle with plenty of paths, parks and countryside walks on our doorstep.”

The couple reserved their home in May this year, before moving in at the beginning of August, and have loved the sense of community and feel of the development so far.

Ash commented, “The community feel here is exceptional, and the integration of green spaces with tastefully positioned homes is really well done. We love having a view of the park, and it’s lovely to gaze outside and see lush trees and open greenery.”