{"id":493725,"date":"2026-03-25T03:08:22","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T03:08:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/493725\/"},"modified":"2026-03-25T03:08:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T03:08:22","slug":"im-stuck-in-a-damp-leaky-new-build","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/493725\/","title":{"rendered":"I’m stuck in a damp, leaky new-build"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was 2am on a cold January night when Christina Green woke up to an unusual sound. There was a loud rumbling coming from within the house. But where? <\/p>\n

She immediately looked out her window and saw water at her doorway. Her neighbours were already outside, trying to move their cars onto higher ground. Her bathroom pipes were screaming from the strain of dirty flood water<\/a> rising through the plumbing<\/a>. It was too late to stop it \u2013 the pipes were now contaminated. Water was rising up through their shower.<\/p>\n

Green, 39, and her husband\u2019s attention went to their doorway \u2013 what could they do to stop the water from entering the house? But as they rushed downstairs and set foot on their living room carpet, they saw it was too late \u2013 the water had already seeped up through the very foundation of their new-build property<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It was immediately obvious that this six-bed new-build in Devon had been built for dry weather and dry weather only. \u201cWe were told there was a one-in-a-thousand chance of us experiencing flooding<\/a> when we bought the property in 2017,\u201d says Green. She has since discovered that the housing developer cut corners and installed cheaper airbricks instead of water-tight ones. The flood-defence airbricks would have cost just an extra \u00a3500. The damage to the house was now in the thousands, which has been covered by insurance. Green is yet to find out how much her home insurance<\/a> is set to rise by as a result.<\/p>\n

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Green\u2019s garage was submerged in 20cm of water. \u201cWe are now looking to get flood defence bricks installed for \u00a31500. But it would\u2019ve been much cheaper to install them from the start. We paid \u00a3435,000 for the house. Why did the developers cut back on such an essential thing?\u201d<\/p>\n

Green and her husband are still dealing with the fallout from the severe water damage<\/a> back in January. Their downstairs is unliveable, but their kitchen is still functioning, which means their insurance company haven\u2019t relocated them. \u201cI haven\u2019t been sleeping properly. Every time it rains heavily, I think: what\u2019s going to happen?\u201d she says wearily. \u201cWe\u2019re going to go to bed and wake up and find something else has happened. It\u2019s just been really horrible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Across the road from Green, in a field that was submerged in water just four weeks ago, more new-build houses are in the early stages of development. \u201cWho\u2019s responsible for giving planning permission for this?\u201d she says, exasperated. \u201cWho is responsible for this happening in the first place? Obviously, we can\u2019t control the weather, but who is going to protect those houses from being flooded, too? I don\u2019t know who to go to.\u201d<\/p>\n

In December 2025, the government pledged that 1.5 million new homes would be built by 2029. Applications for 335,000 homes outside London were lodged in 2025, a rise of 60 per cent on the previous year, according to Planning Portal. This is great news for a nation plagued by a housing crisis<\/a> \u2013 with property and rent prices currently way above real wage inflation as more people fight for fewer homes.<\/p>\n

But achieving these targets is already coming at a cost for those living in the new estates. In the past 20 years, overall customer satisfaction with new-build homes has fallen from 90 per cent in 2011 to 84 per cent. Just this year, Barratt Redrow, one of the UK\u2019s largest property developers, recently reported \u00a3248m of defects across its portfolio, including \u00a380m to fix fire safety issues.<\/p>\n

Even when new housing standards are introduced, many new-builds are not meeting them. According to Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) data, only 40 per cent of new homes completed in England during December 2024 were built to the 2021 energy regulations. In a new report, the National House Building Council (NHBC) says this is beginning to change. \u201cIt is predicted that a sudden rise in the percentage of new homes built to the 2021 regulations will be seen towards the end of 2025, continuing to rise in 2026,\u201d the report states. They predict that this year, we will finally see more homes built with air source heat pumps and solar photovoltaic panels.<\/p>\n

But it might be too late for some homes. New data from Aviva has found that 11 per cent of new homes constructed in England between 2022 and 2024 have been built in areas of medium or high risk of flooding. The Guardian reports that 100,000 more homes will be built in flood risk areas in the next five years as a direct result of the new housing quotas.<\/p>\n

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) recently warned ministers that thousands of new homes could soon be uninsurable if the government presses on with new planning rules. The new legislation will prevent building on coastal or river flood plains, but not on those affected by flash flooding or surface flooding (usually caused by overwhelmed drains). The ABI warn that buyers would struggle to get mortgages on such properties ignored in this loophole.<\/p>\n

And yet, development in flood-prone locations continues to rise. \u201cThe impacts of climate change are bringing more intense and prolonged rainfall, significantly increasing flood risk from all sources, particularly surface water flooding, \u201c says Tracey Garrett, chief executive of The National Flood Forum. \u201cIt is already affecting communities that may never previously have considered themselves at risk. Without robust standards, proper oversight, and long-term maintenance arrangements, families risk being trapped in properties that flood once, twice, or repeatedly. They will be facing emotional trauma, financial loss, rising insurance costs, and homes that become difficult or impossible to sell.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

\u201cDamaged doors, damaged work tops, scratched glass doors that don\u2019t lock, cookers that don\u2019t work\u201d. John Cooper, the managing director of New Homes Quality Control, lists the common problems he sees when inspecting new-build homes, a job he has been doing since 2018.<\/p>\n

\"LouiseIt\u2019s been ten years since Louise O\u2019Riordan bought her new-build. Issues \u2013 including damp and water ingress \u2013 are ongoing (Photo: Damien McFadden)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re also seeing a lot of brickwork and carpentry issues with poor quality workmanship. Bricklayers are quite often left to their own devices in building sites, and nothing gets checked by anybody of managerial status,\u201d he says. \u201cThe management of building projects is often not great. It\u2019s just about getting it done.\u201d<\/p>\n

Every day, Cooper reads reports about the wrong airbricks being installed. \u201cThis is a huge issue,\u201d he says. \u201cWe do inspections seven days a week, and out of the 15 reports or 20 reports coming daily, probably 15 of them will have a problem with the airbricks.\u201d<\/p>\n

In some houses, the airbricks are not the correct height, with driveways built slightly higher, so they\u2019re not at the same level. This means the water runs under the house and seeps through the floor. \u201cThe developers we come across just seem to want to brush that off,\u201d says Cooper. <\/p>\n

Maya Singer Hobbs, a senior research fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Research, blames government pressure for these simple mistakes. \u201cSuccessive governments have placed a priority on the number of homes built at the expense of other considerations,\u201d she says. \u201cThis is usually done through cutting regulations in an attempt to boost planning permissions and housing numbers. And in order to maintain profit margins, housebuilders will be looking for ways to reduce costs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even the super-rich are not protected from poorly built housing. One Hyde Park is home to some of the most expensive flats in the UK. Its leaseholders won a court case in February against Laing O\u2019Rourke, the contractor that built their homes with defective pipework in 2011. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter how much money goes into a development; the same tradesmen are used everywhere,\u201d says Cooper.<\/p>\n

Cooper believes this is a quality supply issue. \u201cWe don\u2019t have enough quality tradesmen out there to achieve our targets,\u201d he says. In their latest report, the NHBC predicted England would need 30 per cent more tradesmen to reach the 2029 target. <\/p>\n

Part of the problem, he says, is that managers do not spend enough time training apprentices, resulting in sloppy work and basic errors. \u201cBecause everybody gets paid per item completed, there is no time spared to actually teach apprentices or check work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"LouiseWater is getting in at every angle of new-builds on their estate, Louise explains (Photo: Damien McFadden)<\/p>\n

Louise O\u2019Riordan, 49, saw this firsthand. In 2016, she was thrilled to be moving into a new three-bed in Bedfordshire with her husband and daughter \u2013 a development by Linden Homes. As first-time buyers, they were excited to live somewhere stable. \u201cWe both come from difficult pasts, and this was our first secure home,\u201d she explains. \u201cBut I regret it. I wish we hadn\u2019t bought this house.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even before O\u2019Riordan moved in, there were issues. \u201cThe flooring we paid \u00a34,500 for was not fitted properly. It was mismatched. I had to take them to court just to get that solved, and they settled right just before the hearing,\u201d she says. \u201cOur heating system keeps losing pressure. There are leaks in it. And that\u2019s been like that from day one. There have been leaks in the bathroom because the plumbing is terrible. The staircase was wobbly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ten years later, the problems have worsened. O\u2019Riordan has since taken on the unpaid role of property manager, working with residents to try to fix the many issues that plague the housing development. \u201cThe biggest issue that we have at the moment is that all of the buildings have water ingress,\u201d she says. \u201cSo whether that\u2019s from a lack of damp proof, or water coming down from the top of the building, it\u2019s getting in at every angle.\u201d<\/p>\n

She fears that any fireproofing in her house must also now be compromised. \u201cWe have got balconies on the blocks of flats that have not been built with any drainage, so water\u2019s running into the building. There\u2019s black and green mould inside these buildings.\u201d It has taken a severe toll. \u201cWe were trying to have children when we got this house. It\u2019s the whole reason we bought a three-bed. I had miscarriage after miscarriage. I don\u2019t know the stress caused it, but I imagine it didn\u2019t help.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then there is the basic issue of poor foresight. \u201cThe housing estate doesn\u2019t even have enough space for the number of cars, and we don\u2019t have any nearby roads to park on,\u201d she says. This lack of space is causing tension amongst residents. \u201cWe\u2019re all arguing over problems we never created, we never wanted, and we are not able to resolve.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spokesperson from Vistry, on behalf of Linden Homes, has said they are working to tackle the issues at the development: \u201cWe have been in contact with this customer to rectify the issues raised and have worked to resolve the reported snags which have now been completed in line with the home\u2019s NHBC warranty\u201d.<\/p>\n

Back in Devon, Christina Green watches the new development being built near her flood-damaged house in despair. But as the demand for housing increases and our weather continues to change, her ordeal is set to be repeated across the country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It was 2am on a cold January night when Christina Green woke up to an unusual sound. There…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":493726,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[1397,242,1048,4658,20005,174129,174130,90,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-493725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-environment","tag-features","tag-flooding","tag-housing","tag-housing-crisis","tag-housing-in-the-united-kingdom","tag-housing-nightmares","tag-science","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493725","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=493725"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493725\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/493726"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=493725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=493725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=493725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}