Getting a home is a huge step for lots of people, especially when things are pricier. Yet this big moment turned bad quickly for Steph and Chris Oliver.
They ended up stuck in their new house because of a building mistake that wasn't found by people checking the property. They bought a three-bedroomed house for £130,000, using a government scheme called 'Help to Buy' which has now stopped.
But in 2015, when they needed a new mortgage, they were shocked to learn their house was worthless because of problems with how the house was built - and they're not the only ones. The pair learned they couldn't get a new mortgage as the building did not meet the right building rules.
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It turns out all 13 houses on the new estate in Bradford have the same problem where their value has dropped, as shown on BBC One's Rip Off Britain show in 2020. Talking on the show, Chris, who designs graphics, said: "It's a mess. We feel let down by the systems in this country. There's been so many people who we should have been able to trust and rely on and no one wants to help.", reports the Mirror.
In February 2020, Sherwood Homes - the company behind the development - went bust, leaving families with unfinished work costing thousands of pounds. "We tried to contact Sherwood Homes. There was no reply. They stopped answering phone lines and emails. We were in a state of panic," said Chris.
Adeel Azfal, 27, who lives with his partner and their two-year-old daughter Anya, bought their house for £175,000 in June 2016. "We've got a young family. My partner doesn't work so we are tied into what we thought would be our forever home," he said.
"When we realised it was worth nothing it was a shock. I'm in £150,000 worth of debt to my mortgage provider and I'm paying for a house that's worth nothing at all."
One big problem is that the estate is next to an old landfill site. Even though it hasn't been used for over 40 years, the council says it still gives off deadly methane gas when mixed with other gases. The builders were meant to put a protective layer under the floors of each house, but the residents don't know if it was done right or even finished. Hamid Khan bought one of the properties for £180,000 in 2016.
He thinks the protective layer was put in right before, but without papers, they can't be sure unless they tear up the floors. "You can only verify it if you break the whole floor. It doesn't make sense," he explained. "You're so close to a landfill site and to not install a gas membrane and not install correctly. It's just unheard of."
Gary Rycroft, an expert on buying new houses, says the people living there should complain about their property lawyers. "The conveyancing solicitor on the face of it hasn't spotted various issues you would expect them to spot," he said.
Problems with the environment, the new road, and the drains are important and the property lawyer should have checked these things, he claimed. The Olivers and Mr Azfal mentioned their property lawyers didn't say sorry for mistakes but did agree to help pay for finishing the building. Khan has taken his problem to the Legal Ombudsman.
A person from Bradford Council said: "Clearly residents have been let down by the developer and the agencies that worked for the developer, and that is why the Council have supported residents through guidance and advice."
"We understand that a number of the residents have successfully taken legal action against the developer's agencies in order to rectify some of the problems on site, which the Council considers to be the correct route for residents to be following."
A spokesperson from Homes England added: "We have been in regular contact with Mr and Mrs Oliver over this matter and recognise the distress it has caused them."
They also agreed to stop interest payments on Help to Buy loans for those affected.
