The new European legislation, The Consumer Rights Directive, soon to become law in Britain, will, amongst other things, require all traders to state the time by which they will undertake to deliver the goods or provide the services.
Under these new regulations, it would be expected that all house builders would now have to state the completion date for each new home. Presumably this will be required at exchange of contracts. However, as nearly all house builders require an exchange of contracts within 28 days of reservation, it may prove difficult to state an exact date of completion, especially if the home in question is no where near completion at the time exchange of contracts is required.
To avoid problems, house builders may be forced to postpone exchanging contracts until such times as they are certain they can accurately state a completion date.
From a buyer's point of view, a fixed date may give peace of mind when planning the move.
However, it could mean that more new homes are rushed to meet stated completion dates, with the
"end of year figures" panic-rushed completions, becoming a monthly occurrence.
This could adversely affect the quality of new homes built.