A COUPLE say that they feel “cheated” after spending their life savings on their dream newbuild, which they claim turned out to be a nightmare.
Alex and Dorina Marcu saved up for seven years to put down the £40,000 deposit on the home, only to find it riddled with faults when they moved in last August, they allege.
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The loved-up pair eagerly snapped up the £350,000 property, one of 50 on a development in Herne Bay, Kent, with plans to start a family there.
They were horrified to discover alleged issues including a leaking ceiling, peeling floor and crooked doors throughout the three-bedroom house.
Dorina, 30, who works as a professional photographer, slammed developers Guildmore Limited, accusing them of failing to fix the issues after they bought the house directly from the company.
She fumed: “We had been so excited to move here together. We were looking to start a family and live here long-term, but this is a disaster.
“I feel so angry with the developer. We’ve been telling them for months about the issues with the house but they’re just messing us around.”
Estate manager Alex, 33, agreed, saying: “I don’t remember the last time I had a smile on my face at home. I feel like I’ve been cheated.
“Herne Bay itself is a beautiful, amazing place to live but the quality of the house is extremely poor.”
Guildmore dispute these claims and say that they have addressed the “vast majority” of the reported problems.
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Running through the list of grievances, Alex claimed that laminate is peeling off the floors in several parts of the house, the landing is riddle with squeaky floorboards and the water supply is unreliable.
He said: “The pressure is so low it’s almost impossible to take a shower, and if someone flushes the toilet it stops completely.
“When the wind blows, water drips from the ceiling in the kitchen and the floor below has now bulged because of water damage.”
The couple have apparently placed a bucket in the kitchen to collect the water dripping through.
He added: “This really isn’t what you expect from a brand new, £350,000 property.
“I just hope my story can open the eyes of other people who are thinking of buying a house here.”
The couple alleged that Guildmore repeatedly failed to fix the issues despite the property still being under warranty.
A spokesperson for the firm denied this, saying: “As a builder of new homes we take comments such as these incredibly seriously.
“We are well aware of our obligation as a developer to quickly respond to any unforeseen issues with the homes we build and have an in-house maintenance team who deal with any problems.
“We have addressed the vast majority of issues raised by Mr Marcu and are currently liaising with the manufacturers in order to rectify the outstanding issues.
“Guildmore have a long and proud reputation as a builder of quality homes and aim to maintain that reputation.”
What are your rights in this case?
All newbuild homes come with some form of warranty.
Most often, this is a builder warranty of around 10 years, against structural issues, and a shorter developer warranty against issues with fixtures and fittings.
Registered builders are bound by a Consumer Code, which sets out quality standards.
Complaints can be resolved privately with builders/developers in the first instance.
However, if you are not satisfied, there is an independent dispute scheme that can be used within the first three months of receiving the final response to the complaint from the builders.
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