What is the Consumer Code for New Homes?

The Consumer Code for New Homes ensures that best practice is followed in respect to the marketing, selling, and purchasing of new homes, and sets expected standards for after sales services. The Code aims to provide a genuine commitment to consumers to improving standards of construction and customer service in the new homes market. This demonstrates our desire to provide a consistently high-quality service and end product to our customers which is in line with industry standards.

Benefits

The Consumer Code for New Homes holds benefits for customers and builders alike. The Code protects both parties by ensuring that properties are regularly inspected during construction, protecting deposits and pre-payments, ensuring sound advice according to trading standards, and providing an independent dispute resolution scheme, in addition to a range of other useful tools and information. The Consumer Code is also approved by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) and is Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) compliant. This all ensures that when you buy with Clarendon, you can buy with the confidence that we provide our outstanding quality and service with every home.

What does the Consumer Code for New Homes cover?

The Code covers pre-purchase, contract exchange, handover and aftersales, complaints and disputes.

Pre-purchase

In the lead up to the purchase of your new home, the code ensures you get a fair and quality service. This includes the advertising and marketing of new homes, standards of customer service, training of customer-facing staff, dealing with vulnerable consumers, health & safety onsite for visitors, and detailing the level of information customers should be provided with about a new home, including the structural warranty, and details of any T&C’s or part-exchange schemes. This is all to ensure consumers are able to make an informed decision about buying a new home.

Contract exchange

The Code sets out minimum standards for the contract of sale, to ensure customers are provided with fair and transparent contract documentation. This includes information about timings of construction, completion and handover, termination rates, changes to properties after contracts exchange, and information upon completion of the sale. The Code also sets out requirements for informing buyers how their deposit and any pre-payments will be protected until the sale has been completed.

Handover and aftersales

The Code details minimum standards for the handover of the new homes and the minimum levels of after service which buyers should expect to receive within the 2 years after completion. Requirements for health and safety procedures are also set out in The Code, along with details of the level of information which the builder is required to provide buyers with about living in and maintaining their property.

Complaints and disputes

The Code sets out minimum requirements for complaint procedures and cooperating with professional advisors. It also details information about accessing the Code’s independent dispute resolution scheme, run by the centre for effective dispute resolution, which can be utilised for any disputes which may not be covered by The Code.

Summary

Clarendon Homes is a Consumer Code member, meaning we adhere to The Consumer Code for New Homes. This ensures that we treat our buyers fairly and in line with the industry expectations.

This is through confidence in our legal and professional status, the reassurance that we are meeting and exceeding industry standards of construction and service levels, and the peace of mind that you are provided with clear and reliable information which includes guidance on how to maintain your new home. The Code also helps us to provide a consistent service throughout the the whole journey of purchasing a new home with Clarendon.

If you are interested in new build homes in Kent, contact us today!