Homes for Scotland (HFS) has announced that buyers of new homes in Scotland will soon be able to compare builders in terms of customer satisfaction, as the ‘Five Star Builder’ initiative is extended north of the border.

The scheme was previously limited to those building across the UK, but now companies who only operate in Scotland can now also take part and publish their rating results in due course. 

Highlighting the importance of the scheme to builders, more than ten HFS members who are now eligible to participate have already signed up. 

HFS Chief Executive of Homes for Scotland, Nicola Barclay said:

“We talk a lot about the need to deliver more housing, but we also want to focus on the importance of ensuring these new homes are of a consistently high standard. Providing a clear benchmark for customers to assess builders on is a vital part of this. It is also fundamental in our drive to celebrate success, promote best practice and help raise standards across the home building industry.

“Today’s announcement provides yet another reason to consider buying a new-build home. New homes are built to suit modern lifestyle requirements and are much cheaper to run in comparison to their older counterparts. They also come with the peace of mind of a ten-year warranty and the protection of a Consumer Code.”

One of the HFS members already signed up to the scheme is Perth-based company A & J Stephen, whose Marketing Manager Tom Buchanan said:

“We are delighted to be part of this quality initiative which will focus customer attention on the performance of the new build housing sector. The customer survey will allow us, through a rigorous externally verified process, to look closely at the various aspects of the home buying process which our customers feel are important to them.  The results of the surveys will help guide and improve the way we manage not only customer relations but also product development and future design.”

Echoing these sentiments, Sandy Casey, Sales Director at Walker Group which is headquartered in Livingston, said:

“We have long been supporters of the rating system and are thrilled that it is finally available to Scottish housebuilders. A high rating not only provides reassurance to customers that they are buying a quality product but is also a great inspiration for everyone within the sector to continue to innovate and raise industry standards.”

This focus on customers and continuing improvement forms a key plank of the new five-year strategy HFS is also launching today, with Barclay adding:

“Launching our new strategy publicly demonstrates our approach to collaboration. We want everyone with an interest in increasing housing supply to unify around the primary purpose of delivering more homes for Scotland so that we can meet the needs and aspirations of our growing population.”