It has taken the industry five years to come up with a cover all
Code of Practice. This was created by the New Homes Quality Board in conjunction with industry stakeholders.
I am delighted to see many of the points I and others raised at the first
APPG EBE Inquiry Into the Quality of New Homes such as the right to inspect (or hire a professional to inspect) a new home
BEFORE legal completion and a clear complete banning of housebuilders forcing their preferred choice of solicitors on unwary homebuyers are in the new Code.
It remains to be seen how fairly and independently, the New Homes Ombudsman Service will deal with buyer's complaints when (not if!) plc housebuilder's continue to breach their own Code. It is to be hoped that it will be more effective at bring housebuilders to account than the complete waste of paper, sticking plaster, that was the
Consumer Code for Home Builders, which has failed those very few new homebuyers that made complaints over the eleven years of its existence.
At least this time the Government (and myself) will be watching the New Homes Ombudsman decisions very closely!
All we now need to do is make sure every new homebuyer is made aware of this new Code.