Scots couple who bought £200k new-brand home still trying to fix “mess” left

A SCOTS couple are still trying to fix the “mess” their £200,000 new-build home was left in by house builders since moving in over a year ago.

Sam Rae and Natalie Jenner were horrified after visiting their newly built Persimmon Home in Livingston, West Lothian in March last year to find dozens of snags.

The first-time buyers claim the “finished” property has had so much mold around one window that they now need to get part of an external wall rebuilt.

The couple also claim there were holes left in the walls of every room – with some being the size of golf balls.

Sam, 29, said that when they inspected their brand new home, radiators were hanging off the walls.

And their newly installed shower was still needing finished and had “razor sharp” edges.

The couple said they have experienced nothing but issues and “stress” since buying the home and were originally meant to move into their home in September 2019.

The move-in date was initially delayed to December 2019 and due to repairs having to be carried out they were only given their keys in March last year.

Since then Sam and 25-year-old Natalie are still experiencing issues with the new-build home.

Speaking today, project manager Sam said: “It was a mess.

“There were holes in the walls, cracks in the ceiling/sills.

“Panels were crudely painted, marks on the walls, shower frame wasn’t finished and had razor sharp edges, brick work in the driveway and back garden was awful.

“This will be fixed but we can expect a significant portion of the external wall to be removed and reapplied correctly.

“We noticed issues immediately. Poor craftsmanship was blatantly evident.

“We’ve had incorrect panels installed that don’t match our chosen kitchen doors, holes in every room ranging, some the size of golf balls.

“The finishing touches for the painters have been awful, using a blend of satin paint and matte paint to paint the banister.

“Awful brickwork on the external walls and driveway and they didn’t fit our bathroom sink tiles.

“Leaks in the toilet, bathroom, kitchen ceiling, radiators hanging off the walls.” 

Reflecting on the experience the 29-year-old added: “Buying your first home should be an amazing, exciting moment in your relationship, however ours will forever be remembered as a horrible, stressful experience.

“We don’t feel like we’ve had the chance to settle and enjoy our home and fully furnish it to our specification as we are constantly finding more issues which delays proceedings. 

“The stress of the house has really impacted our mental health during an already difficult time.

“We both agreed that we will never purchase a persimmon home again.” 

The couple said they have worked with four separate site managers since purchasing the property.

They claim one member left his job because he was embarrassed with the way the site was being run.

Sam posted images of his home on Facebook – prompting a shocked response from dozens of social media users.

Ian Eardly said: “Persimmon have a diabolical name for shoddy workmanship in the trade , in fact their brickwork is absolutely notorious for being rough.”

Mark McVey said: “My son and partner has had similar and they’ve been in for five years. Not everything resolved.”

John Allexander added: “Mate I worked as a sub contractor on persimmons homes and done the electrical side of things, absolute farce of a company to be involved in.

“They cut corners, use the cheapest of materials and all properties rushed through to make sure deadlines are met and even over delivered.

“I wouldn’t work on any of their sites again mate.”

The developer Persimmon Homes builds 1 in 7 houses for the Help to Buy scheme and on average makes a 30% return for every house it sells.

Persimmon homes were investigated by Channel 4 Dispatches in 2019 which sent an independent snagging expert to assess a brand new house and found 295 faults. 

Around 70% of what was identified on that list was in the inspectors view below the building regulations standard.

Speaking today a spokesperson for Persimmon Homes said: “We are aware of the customer’s complaints and are sorry he is unhappy with the service received.

Persimmon Homes has been working hard to resolve issues as they have been raised and we have contacted the customer today to further discuss any outstanding concerns.”