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New build (personalised) opened as show house without our consent

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  • 19-11-2016 7:40pm
    #1
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭


    We bought a new build. We snagged last week. Due to get keys in next 2 weeks so nearly have the deal completed.

    We got a call today from a friend saying that our house was open as a show house for the next phase of the development. We drove out to the house and sure enough, open to the public.

    We got our floor tiles put down YESTERDAY and here's Joe-public walking all over them.

    The main estate agent wasn't there but his colleague was. I let rip. She was all apologies and said it was a mix up. The house that was supposed to be showing was 2 doors down and they have rented it for showing, off the owner. The house that was supposed to be open is nowhere near complete as ours and the owner is getting paid for ours being open!! I do not believe it was a mix up.

    Our house is not a fair representation of the houses on sale, we spent a lot of time and money customising and adding our ideas. Our bathroom tiles alone are a complete change from the standard. We don't like that people were in there taking photos etc.

    It's supposed to be open tomorrow but I made sure it won't be. I'm not sure what to do next but I'm livid.

    I'm going to look for the compensation the other owner was getting. I want an apology. But as we haven't drawn down I'm wondering do I have a leg to stand on.

    The fact the snag was done and people could have been causing further issues/damage is bugging me

    Any ideas?


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    #2
    kala85
    Registered Users Posts: 1,894 ✭✭✭kala85


    Don't know if this is good advice or how it stacks up legally but I would go and change the locks asap.


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    #3
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭Utah


    kala85 wrote: »
    Don't know if this is good advice or how it stacks up legally but I would go and change the locks asap.

    We don't have keys yet so can't do that


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    #4
    kala85
    Registered Users Posts: 1,894 ✭✭✭kala85


    Why are you putting in tiles then etc until you have the keys and the property is fully yours.

    Who owns it at the moment legally.


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    #5
    Pawwed Rig
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Home & Garden Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators Posts: 22,384 CMod ✭✭✭✭Pawwed Rig


    Do you have a solicitor still involved? Bounce it off him/her and see what they say. I would be livid.


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    #6
    Pinch Flat
    Registered Users Posts: 7,762 ✭✭✭Pinch Flat


    Have you exchanged contracts yet?


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    #7
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭Utah


    We are allowed tile it.

    No solicitor involved yet but I will be talking to him on Monday.

    Yes contracts are signed. Mortgage cheque has been issued, we are nearly in the door!

    I think they may be allowed use the house legally but the fact they didn't have the decency to ask us is just lousy or unethical or something like that!


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    #8
    Fiskar
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,599 ✭✭✭Fiskar


    Utah wrote: »
    We bought a new build. We snagged last week. Due to get keys in next 2 weeks.

    We got a call today from a friend saying that our house was open as a show house for the next phase of the development. We drove out to the house and sure enough, open to the public.

    We got our floor tiles put down YESTERDAY and here's Joe-public walking all over them.

    The main estate agent wasn't there but his colleague was. I let rip. She was all apologies and said it was a mix up. The house that was supposed to be showing was 2 doors down and they have rented it for showing, off the owner. The house that was supposed to be open is nowhere near complete as ours and the owner is getting paid for ours being open!! I do not believe it was a mix up.

    Our house is not a fair representation of the houses on sale, we spent a lot of time and money customising and adding our ideas. Our tiles alone are a complete change from the standard. We don't like that people were in there taking photos etc.

    It's supposed to be open tomorrow but I made sure it won't be. I'm not sure what to do next but I'm livid.

    I'm going to look for the compensation the other owner was getting. I want an apology. But as we haven't drawn down I'm wondering do I have a leg to stand on.

    The fact the snag was done and people could have been causing further issues/damage is bugging me

    Any ideas?

    Change the locks

    Even 25 years ago when we got our new build it was happening, what bothered me most was finding tea bags on my garage floor 2 years later when getting driveway work done by the same builder. We had changed the house locks but not the garage!


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    #9
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭Utah


    Fiskar wrote: »
    Change the locks

    Even 25 years ago when we got our new build it was happening, what bothered me most was finding tea bags on my garage floor 2 years later when getting driveway work done by the same builder. We had changed the house locks but not the garage!

    Haha

    I will be changing once I get the keys. Not there just yet


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    #10
    Fiskar
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,599 ✭✭✭Fiskar


    Utah wrote: »
    I'd love to! But I do want the builders to be able to finish off the snag fixes :)

    Then you have no leg to stand on, builder still has legal ownership. He is accommodating you in allowing you tile and decorate but he retains the ownership and therefore the access.

    Forget about it and move on


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    #11
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭Utah


    Fiskar wrote: »
    Then you have no leg to stand on, builder still has legal ownership. He is accommodating you in allowing you tile and decorate but he retains the ownership and therefore the access.

    Forget about it and move on

    Yeah was afraid of that. Does the builder then allow the estate agent to do what they must?


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    #12
    Fiskar
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,599 ✭✭✭Fiskar


    Utah wrote: »
    Yeah was afraid of that. Does the builder then allow the estate agent to do what they must?

    He can do what he likes I'm afraid


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    #13
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭Utah


    Fiskar wrote: »
    He can do what he likes I'm afraid

    That's a little bit heartbreaking to be honest.


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    #14
    BettePorter
    Registered Users Posts: 2,257 ✭✭✭BettePorter


    I'm assuming the extras / higher spec you've asked for is all being done by the builder and you're just paying the diff? The builder will see this as just a detail. Its still not your house yet. Whilst its annoying to think ppl are traipsing round your home it is technically still just a unit on site. I worked for builder and while we wouldn't have an open day to solely view a specific house we would allow possible buyers to have a look and if a particular house was 'further on ' the tendency would be to have that open too to show them ' how they could have it' ( of course we'd advise them this wasn't the basic spec)


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    #15
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭Utah


    BettePorter wrote: »
    I'm assuming the extras / higher spec you've asked for is all being done by the builder and you're just paying the diff?

    Correct. We could do anything we wanted using their vendors (painters, tilers, etc..) if we wanted to bring in our own, it'd have to wait until we got keys.

    And our house would be the furthest on of its house type.

    This sucks


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    #16
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭Utah


    But what about the snag? I've paid for for someone to complete that. What happens when Joe public launches the door into a wall as there's no door stops in


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    #17
    BettePorter
    Registered Users Posts: 2,257 ✭✭✭BettePorter


    Utah wrote:
    But what about the snag? I've paid for for someone to complete that. What happens when Joe public launches the door into a wall as there's no door stops in


    Some snags are done officially by professionals others are done by the homeowner themselves on the back of a fag packet. The builder is still on site. Tbh in our case as long as we were still on site we were happy to accommodate you with issues found long after the fact. Nobody will say oh well you didn't mention the busted plaster in the snag so were not fixing it. I know u feel ur space was somewhat violated but honestly its still just a shell of a house. If your personal things were being nosed over by strangers that's different . But as is its just an empty unit that they have a buyer for.


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    #18
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭Utah


    Yeah I suppose. I know that the builders are great and would fix things long after the fact.

    I've had a sleep on it. It was probably an overreaction on our part but I still feel we should have been informed.


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    #19
    Turtle_
    Closed Accounts Posts: 640 ✭✭✭Turtle_


    Actually I'd say that you do have a leg to stand on. By offering the other purchaser rent to show the house they've created a constructive obligation to provide the same for you. And today, asap, I'd be in there inspecting for any sign of damage and ensuring that it gets fixed before you close.


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    #20
    tradesman
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 390 ✭✭tradesman


    utah, it is bad what has happened to you without consulting you. You say contracts are signed but then again you say no solicitors are involved yet? You might have signed a contract but i doubt if the builder has signed so technically you are the only one committed to the sale & the house is still his property. I would definitely stop the open house until you come to an agreement with the builder. You have snagged already, lots of joe & mary public through the house potentially causing more problems. You need to get an agreement in writing that the builder will let you do another snag at his expense & if i were you i would look for a couple of extras thrown in to sweeten the deal.


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    #21
    athtrasna
    Closed Accounts Posts: 13,420 ✭✭✭✭athtrasna


    Turtle_ wrote: »
    Actually I'd say that you do have a leg to stand on. By offering the other purchaser rent to show the house they've created a constructive obligation to provide the same for you. And today, asap, I'd be in there inspecting for any sign of damage and ensuring that it gets fixed before you close.

    Precisely this. They set the precedent that permission and payment was necessary and then neither got permission nor offered payment to you.


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    #22
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭Utah


    Turtle_ wrote: »
    Actually I'd say that you do have a leg to stand on. By offering the other purchaser rent to show the house they've created a constructive obligation to provide the same for you. And today, asap, I'd be in there inspecting for any sign of damage and ensuring that it gets fixed before you close.

    I will be looking for it as they said they were paying the other house that was supposed to be in use.

    I'll be down there to discuss later


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    #23
    Utah
    Closed Accounts Posts: 426 ✭✭Utah


    tradesman wrote: »
    utah, it is bad what has happened to you without consulting you. You say contracts are signed but then again you say no solicitors are involved yet? You might have signed a contract but i doubt if the builder has signed so technically you are the only one committed to the sale & the house is still his property. I would definitely stop the open house until you come to an agreement with the builder. You have snagged already, lots of joe & mary public through the house potentially causing more problems. You need to get an agreement in writing that the builder will let you do another snag at his expense & if i were you i would look for a couple of extras thrown in to sweeten the deal.

    Great advice. I'll do just that. Thanks


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    #24
    BettePorter
    Registered Users Posts: 2,257 ✭✭✭BettePorter


    tradesman wrote:
    You need to get an agreement in writing that the builder will let you do another snag at his expense

    Do not do this. This is a complete overaction and won't do u any favours if you're going to be on site with the builder for the next however long. Whatever about asking for fees that the neighbour a few doors down is getting that's fine ( personally I think the estate agent was guessing at that, it may have been mooted as an option once the house is fully finished / furnished but certainly not at this stage)

    The house is still a unit. Albeit a unit with some tiling done that the client paid extra for. That's immaterial to the builder. The damage ppl can do wandering round is at most cosmetic unless they're swinging from the light fittings. As I said the builder will be happy to fix anything once they still on site. However, in my experience. If you go all officious with them looking for written this and new snag list that, you ll be the last on the list of homeowners to do favours for come 6 months time.


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    #25
    alexonhisown
    Registered Users Posts: 667 ✭✭✭alexonhisown


    Utah wrote: »
    Yeah I suppose. I know that the builders are great and would fix things long after the fact.

    I've had a sleep on it. It was probably an overreaction on our part but I still feel we should have been informed.


    I dont think you are over reacting, i wouldnt be happy that the public were walking all over tiles i have paid for.
    And whats the point using your house as a show house, its been customised for you, and paid by you, so as you say, its not going to be what other buyers get in their house,
    i would mention it to my solicitor, see what they say


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    #26
    Boater123
    Closed Accounts Posts: 312 ✭✭Boater123


    If you ever come to sell, you can legitimately say that your house was used as the show house, ie the best house in the estate and therefore worth a few pound more.


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    #27
    BettePorter
    Registered Users Posts: 2,257 ✭✭✭BettePorter


    alexonhisown wrote:
    i wouldnt be happy that the public were walking all over tiles i have paid for

    Seriously? Trust me when I tell you that a few couples with brochures in their hands is the least invasive thing that happened in her unit this week. On Monday morning someone goes around and unlocks every unit. Throughout the day builders are in and out for various reasons, they don't take their boots off at the door either and let me tell you if u saw the bathroom of every unit before the final builders cleaning was done, you wouldn't buy a new build. It's all very well people saying oh I wouldn't put up with that go down to your soliciter and unleash hell but seriously its not being used as a showhouse .... its being used as a unit on site that nearer completion than the others.


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    #28
    tradesman
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 390 ✭✭tradesman


    BettePorter wrote: »
    Do not do this. This is a complete overaction and won't do u any favours if you're going to be on site with the builder for the next however long. Whatever about asking for fees that the neighbour a few doors down is getting that's fine ( personally I think the estate agent was guessing at that, it may have been mooted as an option once the house is fully finished / furnished but certainly not at this stage)

    The house is still a unit. Albeit a unit with some tiling done that the client paid extra for. That's immaterial to the builder. The damage ppl can do wandering round is at most cosmetic unless they're swinging from the light fittings. As I said the builder will be happy to fix anything once they still on site. However, in my experience. If you go all officious with them looking for written this and new snag list that, you ll be the last on the list of homeowners to do favours for come 6 months time.

    When buying a house there are no such things as favours! Your paying your money you will only get what your paying for. A resnag paid for by the builder is the least they could expect. You say damage people can do is minimal can i ask you that when you go to buy your brand new car from the showroom in 2017 will you ring me so I can borrow it for a coupe of weeks just to see if i would like one? You also say builders will be happy to fix anything on the list well I have carried out snaglists for clients & have had to fight for things to be rectified and once nearly literally fight!


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    #29
    alexonhisown
    Registered Users Posts: 667 ✭✭✭alexonhisown


    BettePorter wrote: »
    Seriously? Trust me when I tell you that a few couples with brochures in their hands is the least invasive thing that happened in her unit this week. On Monday morning someone goes around and unlocks every unit. Throughout the day builders are in and out for various reasons, they don't take their boots off at the door either and let me tell you if u saw the bathroom of every unit before the final builders cleaning was done, you wouldn't buy a new build. It's all very well people saying oh I wouldn't put up with that go down to your soliciter and unleash hell but seriously its not being used as a showhouse .... its being used as a unit on site that nearer completion than the others.


    Lol, thats very true, builders with muddy boots would do more Damage


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    #30
    Eric Cartman
    Registered Users Posts: 26,280 ✭✭✭✭Eric Cartman


    athtrasna wrote: »
    Precisely this. They set the precedent that permission and payment was necessary and then neither got permission nor offered payment to you.

    +1 I'd be looking for the rent , a complete professional clean and the locks all changed.


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    #31
    Eric Cartman
    Registered Users Posts: 26,280 ✭✭✭✭Eric Cartman


    Boater123 wrote: »
    If you ever come to sell, you can legitimately say that your house was used as the show house, ie the best house in the estate and therefore worth a few pound more.

    conversly , I have been told by many builders to never ever buy a show house. They are thrown up as quick as possible so sometimes if things need time to set (adhesives , concrete etc…) this time isn't necessarily given, also things like design issues with routing of pipework / cables etc… are all discovered when building the show house and the tradies learn how to avoid that in the following houses.


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