FAQ
Find quick answers to common questions below.
We have produced a guide to help potential buyers of new build homes understand the process and what to expect from your developer. Download here: Your guide to buying a new build home here.
Yes. Please download the NHQB homeowner guide to snagging here, which should help in your understanding of snagging and how they can be sorted.
If you reserve a new home from a developer that is registered with NHQB on or after their ‘activation date’, you can contact the independent New Homes Ombudsman Service (NHOS) if you have any issues with your home or developer. You can easily check whether your developer is registered by visiting our Register of Developers page here.
If your developer is not ‘activated’ with NHQB on or before you reserved your new home, you will not be covered by the New Homes Quality Code and therefore will not be eligible to use the New Homes Ombudsman Service. You will, however, still be protected through another consumer code. Your developer should let you know which consumer code covers your home and how to contact them for support.
NHQB manages the New Homes Quality Code (which is the framework developers commit to). We do not handle individual customer enquiries.
The easiest way to get help is to contact your developer.
If you are not happy with their response, you may be able to take things further:
- If the issue is about snagging, defects, or poor build quality and your home is still under warranty, you can contact your warranty provider for help.
- If your developer is registered with the NHQB*, you can raise your complaint with the New Homes Ombudsman Service.
- If your developer is not registered with the NHQB*, you can complain through the relevant consumer code provider. Your builder can tell you who this is.
*You can check if your developer is registered on our website. If they are, and you reserved your home after their activation date, you may be protected by the Code and can contact the New Homes Ombudsman Service here: www.nhos.org.uk.
First, contact your developer and follow their after-sales complaints process to raise your concern. This should have been given to you when you moved in and is usually available on the developer’s website.
If you are not happy with their response, you may be able to take things further:
- If the issue is about snagging, defects, or poor build quality and your home is still under warranty, you can contact your warranty provider for help.
- If your developer is registered with the NHQB*, you can raise your complaint with the New Homes Ombudsman Service.
- If your developer is not registered with the NHQB*, you can complain through the relevant consumer code provider. Your builder can tell you who this is.
*You can check if your developer is registered on our website. If they are, and you reserved your home after their activation date, you may be protected by the Code and can contact the New Homes Ombudsman Service here: www.nhos.org.uk.
The Building Safety Bill became law in April 2022. This legislation gives the Government the power to introduce a statutory (legally required) consumer code and ombudsman.
The government has confirmed its intention to introduce this, but there is currently no set timeframe for when these powers will be used.
In the meantime, all developers are encouraged to register with NHQB. This helps show that the New Homes Quality Code is already providing stronger protections for customers buying new homes, while also giving developers a way to demonstrate their commitment to quality and customer care through the independent New Homes Ombudsman Service.
Yes. The NHQB is an independent, not-for-profit organisation. It has an independent chair, and board members have a wide range of experience across sectors and backgrounds.
Constitutional safeguards have been put in place to ensure the board has a majority of non-industry representatives, meaning developers cannot control it or secure a majority vote on decision-making.
In 2025, the New Homes Quality Board was appointed to operate the Shared Ownership Code. This Code is separate from the New Homes Quality Code.
The Shared Ownership Code is a code of practice for registered shared ownership housing providers. The Code seeks to:
- Raise standards to improve protections for current and future shared owners.
- Improve customer experience of shared ownership through a clear and fair understanding prior to purchase and support during ownership and at sale.
- Ensure best practice and drive consistency in the information available to customers, including ensuring transparency, fairness and awareness of what service levels to expect.
Visit www.sharedownershipcode.org.uk for more information.
The New Homes Quality Code protects homes sold privately to people who will live in them or pass them on to someone else.
It does not cover:
- Homes sold under a shared ownership scheme.
- Affordable homes.
- Homes bought as a rental or investment.
If your home falls into one of these categories, you may still have protection through another scheme, such as the Housing Ombudsman or the Property Ombudsman.
Yes, completing the attestation confirms that your organisation is ready to implement and meet the Code requirements. Compliance audits will be scheduled to take place three months after activation. These audits will assess the organisation’s level of compliance against the Code.
Yes. Email the Industry Engagement Team with this request: developers@nhqb.org.uk.
We have a dedicated team to support developers through the application process. Click here to apply. Email our industry engagement team at developers@nhqb.org.uk for any support you may need.
Yes, you can apply at any time. Ideally, if your organisation is likely to sell private homes in the next 6-12 months, applying now will allow you adequate time to implement the Code requirements and activate. We encourage developers to apply with the aim of activating within 6 months.
By registering with the New Homes Quality Code, your organisation will:
- Be protected as well as your customers through a clear, independent framework.
- Increase trust with buyers by ensuring transparent, fair communications throughout the sales and aftercare journey.
- Demonstrate a strong commitment to building quality homes and delivering an excellent customer experience, enhancing reputation, and customer satisfaction.
- Benefit from a clear complaints procedure that supports faster, more effective resolution, saving time and money so you can focus on delivering homes.
Click here to read more about why you should register.
To commit to the New Homes Quality Code (NHQC), your organisation needs to apply to become a registered developer with the New Homes Quality Board (NHQB).
The process is structured and supported, and broadly works as follows:
- Submit your application here.
- Pay your registration fee.
- Prepare your organisation for compliance.
- Activate as a registered developer.
- Undertake ongoing compliance checks and training.
Click here to make your application.
To confirm that all Code requirements are being met. Attestation must take place before developers can activate. Customers receive protection through the New Homes Ombudsman Service once the developer becomes active.
You can reset your password here.
No, although only one primary contact should be provided.
A primary or secondary contact can add or remove users via the ‘manage users’ page on the developer portal. If a user changes role or leaves your organisation, it is important that their details are updated promptly to ensure contact records remain accurate.
We require contact details for individuals within your organisation who will be responsible for implementing the Code requirements and other responsibilities.
The different types of contact roles are explained below:
- Primary contact: The individual responsible for the relationship with the NHQB.
- Secondary contact: The individual who would deputise if the primary contact were unavailable.
- Complaints contact: The individual responsible for the processing and management of complaints and the key contact for the New Homes Ombudsman Service.
- Finance contact: The individual responsible for the processing of invoices and payments.
- Training contact: The individual responsible for the roll-out of training relating to the New Homes Quality Code.
- Compliance contact: The individual who will be responsible for compliance audit submission and receipt of on-site audit results. (Audits take place 3 months after activation.)
If a contact changes role internally or leaves your organisation, their details must be updated promptly to ensure contact records remain accurate and up to date.
No. Developers will not have to pay for other existing codes once they have registered and activated under the new arrangements.
The new Code and Ombudsman service do not apply retrospectively. Any complaints from customers who reserved their new home before a developer is registered and active under the New Homes Quality Code should be pursued through the previous process and the appropriate Code.
Operating the Code, including providing developers with a dedicated team, resources, training and support to help achieve and maintain code compliance. It also covers the provision of the New Homes Ombudsman Service.
Developers renew annually. Renewal invoices need to be paid within 30 days.
Annually. As a not-for-profit organisation, we are dedicated to regularly reviewing our fees to ensure fairness for developers of all sizes.
Yes, any financial compensation determined by NHOS must be paid by the set deadline.
56 calendar days.
Yes, NHOS decisions are final.
NHQB (New Homes Quality Board)
- Set the standards for developers through the New Homes Quality Code.
- Developers commit to follow these standards.
- Important: They do not handle complaints themselves.
NHOS (New Homes Ombudsman Service)
- Independently handles complaints from customers about new homes.
- Customers can go to NHOS if they have issues that the developer has not resolved.
Using templates and resources provided by the NHQB should help achieve and maintain compliance.
Resources are available on the developer portal. You will receive access to resources once payment of the application invoice is received.
If a developer fails to comply with an adjudication or persistently fails to comply with the Code, they can be referred to the NHQB Discipline & Sanctions Committee. This committee will review examples of non-compliance and has a range of sanctions it can apply, depending on the nature of the breach. This starts with re-training employees and can go as far as removing the developer from the Register.
Full details regarding the consequences of non-compliance with the Code requirements are set out within the Scheme Rules.
If you fail your audit, you will have the opportunity to be reaudited. Our team will also provide you with support.
There are two types of compliance audits:
- Self-assessment audit
This annual audit is online and performed by the developer. It requires the developer to answer several evidence-based questions.
- On-site audit
This audit is performed in person at developers’ sales centres. Developers are selected at random and will be notified when the audit is taking place. An auditor will conduct the audit by asking the developer a series of questions.
The New Homes Quality Code is reviewed periodically by the New Homes Quality Board Code Council.
Yes, all developers of private new homes within the UK can commit to the New Homes Quality Code.
Yes, we can provide face-to-face training in addition to teams undertaking the e-learning course; however, our e-learning training course should ensure teams fully understand the Code requirements.
Our team are happy to arrange a visit to meet with your teams and provide face-to-face training. The intention, depending on the size of your organisation, would be to ‘train the trainer’ rather than the whole organisation. Please contact us at developers@nhqb.org.uk to discuss in more detail.
An e-learning training course is provided to developers upon completing their application for registration. It must be completed for all customer-facing employees before the developer can attest and activate.
For online security reasons, all training accounts are automatically deleted after three months, regardless of usage. We suggest that once the course has been completed, training certificates be saved/printed for your records, as we are unable to retrieve deleted accounts. You will also receive an emailed copy of the certificate.
If you have not passed the training assessment within three months and your account has been deleted, you will need to reregister and complete the module again.
Training comprises of four individual e-learning modules. It will take around two hours in total.
It is possible to pause a module and resume it later if learners are unable to complete it in one go. The assessment at the end of each module must be completed before moving on to the next module.
All customer-facing employees must undertake the training annually. It is also recommended for all staff within the organisation to complete the training to understand how they can support the Code requirements.
Yes. An online training course is made available to developers once they have completed their application to register and have paid the invoice.