When it happened
A chronological account of our experience from purchasing our new build home to the present day. This timeline shows the key events, issues we faced, and how they were handled.
Last updated: May 2025
Use these links to move through the main stages of the story.
We made a full asking price offer on a partially completed new build home. The offer was accepted.
At this stage, we understood that the property was nearing completion and expected the remaining works to be finished before we moved in.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership contacted us and advised that the builder had finished work on the house.
This was important because it moved the process from purchase into checking whether the property was actually ready to be handed over.
With Willow Tree Housing Partnership’s permission, we instructed a professional snagging company to inspect the property.
The snagging company reported that they had found the usual types of defects expected in a new build home, but were surprised by the number of defects found.
The report was provided to Willow Tree Housing Partnership, who forwarded it to EG Carter & Co.
This report gave all parties a clear opportunity to identify and resolve issues before completion.
We were invited to a site visit to review the defects listed in the professional snagging report.
At that meeting, it was agreed that the reported defects would be repaired, with the exception of some minor issues relating to external walls.
This gave us confidence that the main issues had been accepted and would be resolved before we moved in.
We completed the sale of our previous home, but the purchase of the new property was delayed while Willow Tree Housing Partnership dealt with issues relating to an overage agreement.
As a result, we had to move in with family and place our belongings into storage. We asked whether we could rent the new property while the issue was being resolved, but Willow Tree Housing Partnership refused.
An overage agreement can affect whether a mortgage lender is willing to lend on a property if the title issue is unresolved.
Before moving in, we had been told that approximately 95% of the defects we had reported had been fixed.
When we arrived, that was not our experience. The house had not been cleaned to an acceptable standard, several previously reported defects remained unresolved, and further issues were immediately apparent.
The property was not in the condition we reasonably expected for handover, especially given the earlier assurances that most defects had already been resolved.
After identifying several issues with the windows and doors, and being concerned that some repairs had not been completed correctly, we arranged a RISA inspection.
The inspection found issues with almost every window and door. Some of those issues were serious.
This provided specialist evidence that the window and door problems were not isolated or minor.
EG Carter & Co attempted to repair the Velux windows by installing new handles.
However, we were left with a window that was still extremely difficult to open and close.
Following repairs to windows and doors based on the RISA report, we reported further issues.
At around this time, Willow Tree Housing Partnership contacted us to arrange what they described as an “End of Defects” inspection.
We were told that the property was in defects for one year, and that at the end of the first 12 months the home would be inspected, any issues raised, and the property signed off.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership’s inspection team arrived approximately 40 minutes late for the “End of Defects” inspection.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership later advised us that, as of 11 November 2022, the property was out of the 12-month defect period and that, as private owners, we were now responsible for maintenance and repairs.
We did not believe this reflected the NHBC warranty position.
We understood the initial builder warranty period under the NHBC policy to be 24 months, not 12 months. This became a significant point of dispute and confusion.
We informed Willow Tree Housing Partnership that the NHBC warranty stated the initial warranty period was 24 months, not 12 months. This was confirmed by NHBC.
In the same month, EG Carter & Co attended with a replacement front door frame. However, the frame was the wrong size, and the door was the wrong style and colour.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership also acknowledged that the defect list was taking a long time to review. They stated that they were taking advice regarding the NHBC warranty and that the matter had become “a litigation issue” and was more complicated than first thought.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership accepted that the initial warranty period was 24 months.
They also accepted that the NHBC policy should have been activated in November 2021 when they took possession of the property.
During this period, we also reported large cracks to the eaves in bedroom one and a leaking toilet cistern.
We reported problems with the kitchen cabinets, including cabinets not being square, irregular door gaps, and damage to one of the worktops.
These issues later became part of a wider kitchen remediation process.
The front door and new frame were finally fitted, approximately 14 months after the issue was first reported.
However, further problems remained. The door was still difficult to lock and unlock, was marked on the front, and was a different shade of white on the inside.
We also reported that the family bathroom floor tiles were loose again. We were told that the bathroom suite would need to be removed so the floor could be levelled and the tiles re-laid before the bathroom could be reinstated. This would leave the family bathroom out of action for six days.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership responded to our complaint with the phrase: “My frustration is noted.”
EG Carter & Co added additional insulation to the garage ceiling to improve the thermal performance of bedroom one.
They also repaired squeaky bedroom and landing floors.
We reported issues with the garden areas, including builder rubble and uneven ground.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership refused to help with preparation of the kitchen before EG Carter & Co could begin remedial work.
EG Carter & Co then carried out work intended to bring the kitchen up to the correct standard. This involved removing the kitchen cabinets, reinstating them, and replacing the worktop.
We were left without a fully working kitchen for three days.
We wrote a formal letter of complaint to the Willow Tree Housing Partnership board.
We also raised problems with the kitchen remediation work, including a damaged worktop, a poorly joined mitred worktop joint, and the fridge/freezer door still being badly aligned.
At this stage, problems with the cold bedroom, kitchen, windows and garden all remained unresolved.
We arranged a second RISA inspection to check previous window and door repairs.
The inspection found that some issues remained. In some cases, the remedial work appeared to have made the situation worse because repairs had not been completed properly.
A thermal survey also indicated that the roof above bedroom one required additional insulation.
Although EG Carter & Co had initially verbally agreed to provide the full results of the thermal survey, they later refused to provide the full results.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership responded to our initial complaint.
EG Carter & Co added blown insulation to the roof space above bedroom one.
This did not resolve the issue. Bedroom one remained colder than the rest of the house.
We also responded to Willow Tree Housing Partnership’s complaint response.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership provided a further response to our complaint, approximately four months later.
We issued Subject Access Requests to Willow Tree Housing Partnership and EG Carter & Co.
A Subject Access Request, often called a SAR, is a formal request for information that an organisation holds about you.
We made these requests to better understand how our case had been handled and why the remaining repairs were still not complete.
EG Carter & Co provided information in response to our Subject Access Request.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership asked for additional time to respond to their Subject Access Request.
We invited the Willow Tree Housing Partnership board to visit the property and see the unresolved issues for themselves.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership’s CEO and Executive Assistant attended the property.
During the visit, we showed them the remaining issues with the property. They acknowledged that bedroom one was significantly colder than the rest of the house. The CEO also indicated that they believed the poorly mitred kitchen worktop joint could be repaired.
We followed up the visit with an email to Willow Tree Housing Partnership.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership responded and set out proposed next steps, including arranging for their agent to attend and review some of the issues.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership missed several response deadlines.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership provided a final response. However, we found parts of the response confusing and unclear.
We replied with questions seeking clarification of their offer.
Willow Tree Housing Partnership responded approximately four months later.
In our view, their response did not answer the questions we had asked. They stated that we had until the end of March 2025 to accept their offer.
We did not believe their offer resolved all of the issues we had reported.
Following legal advice, we responded with a counter-offer.
The timeline explains when things happened. The issues page explains what went wrong and what remains unresolved.
Our Story
We created this website after trying, over an extended period, to resolve these issues directly with Willow Tree Housing Partnership.
Our aim is to help others avoid similar problems and to raise awareness of the issues we’ve experienced.
Ultimately, we are seeking accountability, transparency, and meaningful change.
Read Our StoryThe information on this website is based on our personal experience and is provided for general information purposes only.
We are not lawyers, and nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice.
Every situation is different, and the information here may not apply to you specific circumstances. If you require legal advice, you should speak to a qualified professional.