We have a 2 bed semi detached bungalow and I love it so much! We have downsized and it’s great, very well made, good quality fixtures and fittings, the windows are lovely, really good quality, really good size rooms and we can’t hear anything from the neighbour next door, all our neighbours are great, the position of the house is great, nice and secluded. We have a driveway for 2 cars which fit easily, its not at the front door and there are 2 steps which is quite difficult for me due to my mobility issues but I manage ok……now, thats the good stuff! Oh my, the management company Tilia are not great, as you all probably know you have 12 months to report defects and ‘snags’. We have had a list of defects since we moved in on 24th April 21, its now Jan 22 and we still have a list of defects, some of them have been repaired but there’s still at least 10 defects outstanding, the Tilia development manager on the site is horrendous, he avoids you if he sees you, he doesn’t answer calls, he doesn’t respond to messages, its so frustrating! We have also had a few problems with together homes (TH) management, firstly the buying process was absolutely horrendous! I have never been through anything like it, it was so stressful, the rep from TH was very difficult to deal with, just be warned, also you have to know that anything you want to change in the house you have to ask permission from TH e.g. we wanted a walk-in shower instead of the shower over the bath due to my mobility issues, so we had to ask permission first, we also wanted to board the attic for extra storage but they said no until the 12 month period was over, we will ask again in Feb. With regards to the defects, I must have sent 50+ emails to TH and its hard to get a response plus we can’t go straight to Tilia, we have to report the defects to TH then they contact Tilia and Tilia then arrange the job/repair with us. Its been really tough but you have to stay strong and be a nuisance or nothing would get done, I’m sure they hate me but I don’t mind because we spent a lot of money and it has to be right. We have also had a few issues with the grounds outside our house, the biggest problem is that they don’t tell us what is happening, again its so frustrating, if they just communicated with us it would be much easier, I have to say it isn’t the workmen on site, they are all great, so nice and polite, it’s the site manager, I think he literally doesn’t care about the people who live in the houses. Overall we’re happy we bought the bungalow via shared ownership. We just need these last few defects sorting out and then it’ll be ok. The kind of defects I am talking about are; the front door is twisted and there’s a 10mm gap letting all the cold air in, the bt internet box is hanging off the wall and has been since the day we moved in, there are little things like scratches on doors which were repainted by “the snagging man” yes that is actually someone’s job! So it’s not over yet but we’ll get there, we love the house and that’s the main thing
Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:
We didn’t move too far from where we have lived for over 20 yrs so we know the area well. There are some lovely restaurants and pubs in the immediate area. We are literally on the doorstep to the countryside either by walking or a short drive away. Longridge is the local shopping area and there are some really nice boutique shops and hairdressers, barbers etc everything you need really, it’s a really nice area, transport links to Preston Town centre are great too.
Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:
Just be strong with the reporting of the defects, you have paid for it so make sure its right…..look at and inspect everything! Make sure you take the time to validate all the appliances in the house to ensure the warranties are activated. Always report things via email, its evidence!
How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:
Very slow process, you have to be patient and persistent. Some issues have been sorted but there’s still a lot outstanding.
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