Lancashire homebuyers can celebrate New Homes Week (w/c March 21) by taking advantage of lower energy costs thanks to a range of properties with a host of sustainable features.

Prospect Homes are offering solar panels, combi boilers and low energy lighting as standard at their development, The Ridings, in Longridge.

The superior energy specification comes as the housing market looks set to boom in 2022 following on from last year, which was the busiest in 14 years.

And as the industry marks New Homes Week, there are many advantages of buying ‘new over old’.

“People looking to move house really can save energy, time and money by purchasing a new build property,”

said Sam Williams, head of sales at North-West house builder Prospect Homes.

“We’ve all read the warnings from consumer expert Martin Lewis who has predicted an increase of 50% in energy bills in April this year.”

New homes are, on average, six times more energy efficient than second-hand homes, with energy bills halved*.

In fact, those living in new build homes could find that even when the increases take effect their energy costs are less than they would have paid in an older equivalent property before the prices increased.

Brand new, energy sufficient properties at developments including The Ridings, come with sustainable features such as solar panels, Combi boilers and low energy lighting as standard.

“Homes at The Ridings not only look great, but they do their bit to help homeowners and the environment because they are more energy efficient, in turn this can save buyers hundreds of pounds a year in heating costs,”

said Sam.

“There’s nothing quite like moving into a new build home, you can be sure of quality specification in every room and outstanding attention to detail.

“And for added reassurance all our homes are covered a two-year house builder warranty and 10-year NHBC insurance policy.”

New homes also offer buyers a blank canvas and can style the interior to their own tastes and budgets.

“All our homes are tastefully decorated with neutral colours, so you can be sure you won’t be stuck trying to cover over purple paint from the 1970s in the spare bedroom!”

said Sam.

“As soon as a buyer agrees on one of our plots, they are involved in making decisions from the start, even before its built.

“Choosing fixtures and fittings, flooring, kitchen cupboard doors and bathroom tiles.”

The new build sector has also seen an increase in buyers moving away from second properties due to being involved in ‘bidding wars’, with many house prices going well above the original asking price.

“That is something that will never happen with a new build, our price is our price, a new build buyer will never be involved in a bidding war,”

added Sam.

Homes currently available at The Ridings include the three-bedroom Medlock, priced from £210,000 and the four-bedroom detached Cavendish, priced from £300,000.

The Cavendish has a spacious lounge, downstairs cloakroom and a large open plan kitchen and dining area. A separate utility room links to the integral garage. Upstairs, the main bedroom has its own en-suite, while the remaining three bedrooms share a family bathroom.

According to homeowners living at The Ridings, the location of a property is also a very important factor when searching for a new build home.

The double award winning** development will eventually deliver 113 two, three and four-bedroom homes, offers a much sought-after location, close to Longridge town centre and less than 10 miles from Preston city centre making it ideal for commuters.

“We always knew The Ridings’ location would be a big hit with buyers as it is surrounded by gorgeous countryside however buyers are also moving here due to it being so easily located to get to major hubs across the region,”

said Sam.

“Buyers have moved from relatively close by too, within circa 15 miles, so again, it’s great to know that our homes are ticking many buyers’ boxes when searching for new build homes.”

Unlike second properties, new builds can also offer buyers a number of schemes to help with the purchase, and Prospect Homes is no different, offering an array of schemes including the Help to Buy Scheme, The Prospect Start Scheme, Easy move and Part Exchange.

To find out more about these schemes, or the homes available to buy visit www.prospecthomes.co.uk

*Figures from The New Homes Marketing Board.

** The Ridings was named as Large Housing Development of the Year at the Insider NW Residential Property Awards and at the UK Property Awards, it was a winner in the Residential Development for Lancashire category in 2021.