# New home - Persimmon?



## lovemyTT (Mar 28, 2009)

Hi all
I'm after some advice, we currently live in a new build house, built by Crest Nicholson which is about 5 years old and we are considering moving up the road to a new development where the builder is Persimmon.. Our Crest house has been fantastic, no faults or snagging list at all, but I've heard a lot of horror stories about Persimmon with quality issues/workmanship and not rectifying these. Has anybody had any dealings with this company, good or bad?? The house they are selling is a great buy for the price, but if we have loads of problems/snagging and they won't sort them out, I'll stay where we are thanks.
Oh this new house is much bigger, more land which is why we want to move ( well the wife does really, I'm just going along for the easy ride)
thanks folks
who are the good builders and who are the bad builders? NHBC, is it really that good?


----------



## ratty (May 18, 2004)

A friend of mine has an expensive Persimmons built and the quality of the build is very poor with lots of issue. Most of the problems seem to stem form the fact that Persimmons use a lot of sub contractors who no not seem to work well together or are poor project managed. The end result in this particular £750k is quite shocking when you look closely at the finish and overall quality of work.

I personally would steer clear of Persimmons!


----------



## skiwhiz (Feb 17, 2008)

imo NHBC not worth the paper try claiming, also as said above, most builders use sub contractors check out other houses on the site it will give you an idea and see what other people who may have just moved in think.
Always remember when we were looking 8yrs ago looked at charles church the premium end of persimmons and the finish on the show house was the pits.


----------



## jutty (Aug 28, 2006)

ratty said:


> Most of the problems seem to stem form the fact that Persimmons use a lot of sub contractors who no not seem to work well together or are poor project managed.
> I personally would steer clear of Persimmons!


all builders use sub-contractors :? im a sparks and work on many different new build sites for lots of different builders :?


----------



## ResB (Apr 17, 2005)

Persimmon have unfortunately got a bad name for themselves over the years (I have owned a Persimmon House) and I would never buy another. Unfortunately, it's down to the Site Manager to get the quality one expects and it's a test of his/her character when you look at the work that is being produced. If the site manager lets the subcontractors get away with poor workmanship, unfortunately you are on to a loser. Not all site managers are bad, but the good ones have IMO over the years got sick of the powers that be chasing numbers and not quality, so it's fair to say that "company" pressures can turn any development bad.

Persimmon bought Charles Church some time ago, which was a big disappointment in the industry as they were highly regarded and now they just seem like another builder.

The builders I admired many years ago were, Charles Church, Berkeley and Octagon. Bother Berkeley and Octagon still have a good name I think, but the Northern part of Berkeley (Crosby Homes) didn't live up to expectations.

I've worked in the past for a number of builders both large and small and have my own view as to which were the better. However, with all the mergers, buy outs such as with main players like Maclean, Wimpey, Bryants, McAlpine, Barratts, David Wilson (Owned by Barratts),Taylor Woodrow which are now Taylor Wimpey I think, it's hard to say with any conviction who are perceived as the better builder.

In my day before all the merger and excluding the first 3 I mentioned I would have said the following builders were my preferred builder/developer.

Bryant Homes
McAlpine Homes
Wimpey
David Wilson (Before Barratts bought them)
Maclean
Barratts
and Persimmon were last.

They all have strong and weak points so it's a little bit of the luck of the draw!

Of course there were many smaller builders which produced a better product and you shouldn't discount them and as to who they are is anyone's guess nowadays as a number have gone to the wall because of the financial situation.

You just have to get "EVERYTHING" in writing and a date by when any defects have to be completed. Persimmon will ignore all threats of legal action right upto the point you're on the court steps before they will acknowledge you, I've seen it so many times before.

As for the NHBC, they are an Insurance Company pure and simple. In my experience they couldn't care less about snagging as their technical requirements are not that good. I have had very good experience with both Zurich and Premier Guarantee who offer the same service it's just that most people are aware of the NHBC.

If the house is located where you want it, in a good area and gives you what you need then all other issues are just a function of money and ultimately if you're prepared to spend it you'll get what you want....eventually. Persuading someone else to buy your Persimmon Home in the future might be an issue though....

Good luck.


----------



## roddy (Dec 25, 2008)

i know nothing about their build quality but i do know that their share value has gone from 500 down to 430 and is now 460 !!!!


----------



## Hilly10 (Feb 4, 2004)

A lot of the reasons for poor quality is the low prices given to the subbies for their works which at the moment is getting worse as the builders do not want their margins cut. I have been in the trade 38 years its gonna get worse believe me. There is always somebody who will do it cheaper then quality suffers.


----------



## pas_55 (May 9, 2002)

roddy said:


> i know nothing about their build quality but i do know that their share value has gone from 500 down to 430 and is now 460 !!!!


Thats pretty good if you consider the market


----------



## Wallsendmag (Feb 12, 2004)

We don't have a share price anymore [smiley=mexicanwave.gif]


----------



## pas_55 (May 9, 2002)

Ah but your grounds got a new name.


----------



## Wallsendmag (Feb 12, 2004)

pas_55 said:


> Ah but your grounds got a new name.


no I was talking about work , I'm working for a government owned Railway again.


----------



## Dash (Oct 5, 2008)

As you live in the area, why not knock on a few doors and enquire how people view the quality of their homes?


----------



## TT-Newbie (Sep 18, 2009)

Depends somewhat on the development, but as a rule you will find more problems with Persimmon than most other builders. It's been particularly bad over the last couple of years as they were trying to integrate Westbury into their organisation and there were a lot of people made redundant, etc - plus the credit crunch meant they were very reluctant to finish roads, etc off once the remaining houses had been sold.

I would recommend you use a professional snagging inspector - the cost is about £400 but they also chase Persimmon to get the faults fixed. I had nearly 400 items on my list ranging from nail pops to a gas leak (yes really ...)

Persimmon cover you for two years, after that the NHBC gives a further eight, but it's for claims of about £1,000 and above (might be higher these days).


----------



## mde-tt (Aug 7, 2007)

wallsendmag said:


> pas_55 said:
> 
> 
> > Ah but your grounds got a new name.
> ...


Off topic I know, but congratulations on becoming BR again!
I worked for the last government run ex TOC and it was a great time in my life. It was liberating to spend time righting the wrongs of the french who had IMO taken all the value from the company. It was clear that things, as in NXEC,had gone seroously financially wrong and culturally the co. was a mess.
That said, NXEC has been well run, IMO, and is regarded by commuters as a good TOC. The issue as I see it was one of overbidding for the franchise.
It wouldn't have mattered if you had offered the best service - the fact is that at the price offered (actually it was the lack of subsidy requested) you were sure to be screwed. Shame really.
Still it'll give Bob Crow something to harp on about "Keep it in government ownership" he will cry constantly from now on as he ignores the days of underinvestment and lash poor service.....


----------



## Hallyfella (Mar 5, 2007)

I know someone who subs for Persimmon , he does the design and fitting of all the bedroom furniture and bathroom cabinets etc. What a load of sh*te ,i wouldnt let them build an MFI cabinet. The amount of complaints they get are un true.
As already said go and knock on a few doors and ask plenty of questions . Nothing worse than spending your hard earned cash to have it wasted by some jokers.


----------



## kmpowell (May 6, 2002)

Interesting thread! Has anybody got any knowledge of Redrow homes and their quality these days?


----------



## lovemyTT (Mar 28, 2009)

wow, thanks guys for these replys - some really great advice there. We are going back up to this new site to have a second look around. I will defiantly take the advice of knocking on some peoples door's and asking the questions - better to hear it from the horses mouth.
Charles Church were also building, but the homes are the same and so are the builder/site managers etc, so not too fussed really about them....or should I?
I've already met some of the builders, and they're English. It was 10 o clock and they all downed tools, ate sandwiches and read the redtop rags. I can't decide if that's a good thing or a bad thing. I know the Poles are cheaper, but where I live they have a good reputation for quality. Don't get me wrong, I'd love my house to be built by good old English craftsmanship but some here are so right, it's all down to the site manager and 'his' standards.
Also, NHBC errrmmm so many people have told me that it's not worth the paper its written on. This really disappoints me, I thought us Joe Public had a great organisation behind us to helps us out in the biggest asset I'll/we'll ever purchase if we have any issues to sort out.
I will investigate an independant 'snagger' aswell - got to be worth £400. Although I know a little about builders/regs & standards, I'm also very handy so I could rectify many problems myself but not of course the biggies, roof leaks or damp etc.
Regarding Redrow Kam, I have a pal who lives in the centre of town and every time I go and visit his apartment, there is always someone or another with an old blanket hanging out of their window saying 'Never buy a Redrow home, ring bell 42a and I'll tell you all about it'....I never did. Not looking too good for them I'm afraid.


----------



## ResB (Apr 17, 2005)

kmpowell said:


> Interesting thread! Has anybody got any knowledge of Redrow homes and their quality these days?


I forgot about Redrow. They did indeed have the same reputation as Bryant at one stage and Bryant, felt that they were the only real competitor in terms of Spec and quality and to be fair I would have bought one, but again this was a while ago.

The thing is, "locally" they all use the same subcontractors and site managers jump from company to company when it has been uncovered that they have not got a clue. So unfortunately you get the same scenario. Good company gets ridiculed because of site quality. It all comes down to the supervision and the management of the site managers themselves. If you have a contracts manager who couldn't give a toss, the site is sure to fail, or should I say more likely to fail.

There is always one purchaser on every site which is not happy, even on the very best of run sites so it's difficult to gauge. Those properties which seem to have the problems are the hospital jobs, the one that never gets built by a single set of subcontractors turn out to be the real dogs. By that I mean it's has 2 plumber, 3 electrical, 10 joiners and a couple of plastering subcontractors.

A tip I would give you is -When buying a house, do not buy one that has sat through the winter and isn't water tight or has not been fully dried out before 1st fixing takes place. By that I mean the roof isn't on, windows in and doors are not fitted and I'll tell you why. Although the NHBC warranty covers you for "structural" issues they are not obliged to force the builder to put right, things like, movement, through the drying out process. Cracking joints where plaster meets timber (stairs particularly and these crack you can climb through), nail popping in ceilings and the like are not covered by the NHBC. It's all down to how conscientious the builder is. I remember buying my house and saying to the builder there was more movement in my house than there was in Iraq, which he did find amusing. Also the last house always seems to get all the crap buried in the garden and sandwiches left under the kitchen base units, only to be found when the smell is awful and the plinths are removed. I always sneak on site at a weekend and watch the build process and crib areas which are not correct, it winds them off the clock but at least its right.

Everyone is getting squeezed on their margins and some are doing the work at a loss just to keep busy during these tough times, the only winners are lawyers, cos they get paid whatever, never mind how good their performance is and the land owner. You don't see the land owners cutting their prices to get a sale!!


----------

