Choosing a development and the right new build plot

Start with the area, not the show home

A new development can look finished and polished on the day you visit, but you are buying into a place for years. Before you fall for a house type, be sure about the area around it.

• Travel: walk or drive the commute at the times you would make it, not on a quiet Saturday.
• Schools, GP surgeries, shops and parks: check what exists now, and treat anything "planned" as a promise until it is built.
• Noise: main roads, railways, flight paths, pubs, industrial units and sports grounds all matter more once you live there.
• Flood risk: in England you can check the long-term flood risk for an area on GOV.UK. It shows risk for an area, not an individual home, so ask your conveyancer about the plot itself.
• Council tax: a builder registered with the New Homes Quality Board must tell you which band the home is expected to be placed in.

Our area guides bring together local facts by town and council, and you can search every new home by place or new homes near you to see what is being built where.

What to look for in a development

Once you have a shortlist of areas, compare the developments in them. These are the questions that separate one site from another.

How far through the build is it?

A development that is mostly complete will have finished roads, landscaping and neighbours already in place. An early phase can offer more choice of plot and the chance to pick finishes, but you may live beside construction traffic, noise and dust for a long time. The New Homes Quality Board's guide to settling in explains that roads, pavements, street lighting and landscaping are often finished later in the build programme, once heavy construction traffic has reduced.

Who looks after the shared spaces?

On many new estates, roads, open space, play areas and drainage are not taken on by the council, at least not straight away. Instead a management company maintains them and homeowners pay an estate or service charge. Before you reserve, a builder registered with the New Homes Quality Board must tell you how shared spaces, roads and amenities will be managed, the estimated yearly cost of any management services, and the tenure of the home with all the costs linked to it. Read our guide to leasehold, freehold and estate charges before you compare two sites on price alone.

Is the builder covered by a consumer code?

Check whether the builder is on the New Homes Quality Board's register of developers. If it is, homes reserved on or after its registration start date are covered by the New Homes Quality Code and you can take an unresolved complaint to the New Homes Ombudsman Service. Our guide to the New Homes Quality Code and the Ombudsman explains what that protection gives you. You can also browse builders and see each one's developments in one place.

What mix of homes is planned?

Part of the planning consent is often a legal agreement (known as a Section 106 agreement) that requires the builder to provide some homes for social rent, shared ownership or sale at a discount. The New Homes Quality Board's buying guide says site plans should show which homes these are. The mix can change as the development goes on, so ask the sales team what is planned for each phase.

How to read the site plan

The site plan is the most useful document in the sales office. It shows every plot, the roads, footpaths, parking, open space and the symbols for things you will live next to.

If the home is not yet finished, a builder registered with the New Homes Quality Board must give you a brochure or plan showing:

• the size, specification and general layout of the home
• the plot position and the direction it faces
• any steep slopes in the garden and grounds
• how surfaces, fences and boundary walls will be finished
• garages and outbuildings, clearly marked, with their finishes and construction if different from the house

Ask the sales adviser to explain any symbol you do not recognise. Typical symbols include street lights, telecoms cabinets, electricity substations, bin stores, visitor parking, footpaths, play areas, attenuation ponds and areas of different tenure. If you cannot take a copy of the plan, photograph the area around your plot so you can check distances later. The Code also asks builders to try to keep you informed about utility boxes, lamp posts, bins and bike shelters that will be installed after completion and could significantly affect your home.

Choosing your plot

Plots of the same house type often carry different prices. Some of the difference reflects what the plot gives you, and some reflects what the builder needs to sell next. Use this table to compare the plots you are considering.

Orientation and light

In the UK, a south-facing garden gets the most direct sun through the day, a west-facing garden gets the afternoon and evening sun, and an east-facing garden gets the morning. A north-facing garden can be shaded for much of the year, especially if a neighbouring home is close. Think about which rooms you use most and when. The builder's plan must show the direction the home faces, so you can work this out before you see the plot built.

Privacy and overlooking

Stand where your garden will be and look at the windows around it. Ask for the house types planned on the plots behind and beside yours, including whether any are three storeys or flats. A plot that backs onto open space can feel very private, but check whether that space is protected, part of a later phase, or land the builder still owns.

Parking

Count how many cars you have now and might have later. Check whether spaces are on your own driveway, in front of a garage, or in a shared parking court, and whether visitor parking is close. Many estates have covenants that limit parking of caravans, motorhomes or commercial vehicles on driveways, so check the rules if that affects you. In England, new homes with parking generally need an electric vehicle charge point, with some exceptions; our guide to the energy efficiency of new builds explains more.

Phases, planning and what comes next

Large developments are built in phases, sometimes over many years. Before you reserve, find out:

• which phase your plot is in, and what is planned for the next phases
• when the roads, landscaping and any promised facilities are expected to be finished
• whether the builder has planning consent for the land around you, or only plans to apply

A builder registered with the New Homes Quality Board must give your solicitor the reference number of the planning consent for the home, and details of future phases it has consent for. Use that reference to look up the approved plans on the council's planning website yourself. They show the layout, house types, landscaping and any conditions attached to the consent.

At completion, the builder must also give you a Schedule of Incomplete Work for the development, with the best information it has on future phases and when the work is expected to finish.

Checks to make before you reserve

Reserving a plot usually means paying a reservation fee and starting a timetable to exchange contracts. Make these checks first.

1. Get the site plan and the plan for your plot, showing the direction it faces and any slopes.
2. Ask for the specification, and which items are not included (flooring, turf and appliances are common ones).
3. Ask for the estimated yearly management or estate charge and who sets it.
4. Confirm the tenure: freehold or leasehold, and the length of any lease.
5. Ask for the expected council tax band.
6. Ask about any restrictions on services such as gas, electricity, broadband, water and sewerage, and who the providers will be. The Code requires registered builders to keep you informed about these.
7. Ask about covenants: what you can and cannot do with the home, garden and driveway, and for how long.
8. Check the expected completion date and how firm it is.
9. Visit the actual plot, not just the show home, and walk the site at a different time of day.

Our guide to viewing a new build and the questions to ask has a fuller list for the sales office.

Price, plot premiums and incentives

Builders price each plot individually. Corner plots, larger gardens, better views and garages often cost more. Plots that have been on sale longer, or that the builder wants to sell before a period end, may carry an incentive instead.

Compare like with like. The new-build premium tool sets a new home's price against similar local resales, and the cash you need calculator works out the deposit, stamp duty and fees on a real home, less the builder's stated incentive. Both are an illustration, not advice. Our page on new build incentives shows where builders are cutting prices and the offers they state. Incentives are offered by the builder, and the terms are theirs: always get them in writing in the reservation agreement.

A plot-choosing checklist

Take this with you on the day you choose:

• Which way does the garden face, and what will shade it?
• Which windows will overlook my garden and rooms?
• What is planned on the plots behind, beside and opposite?
• Where will I park, and where will visitors park?
• How far is the nearest play area, substation, bin store or footpath?
• Is the plot level with its neighbours, or higher or lower?
• What will the boundary be: fence, wall or hedge?
• Which phase is this, and when will the roads and landscaping be finished?
• What is the planning consent reference, and does the approved layout match what I have been shown?
• What does this plot cost compared with the same house type on other plots, and why?