Charles Church East Sussex reviews

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Great experience

My family and I visited the Hamlet site at Llanharan and we were greeting by a lovely lady called Emma Ahearne. With 4 kids in tow, she really made the effort to engage with them, and had a very down to earth approach towards my wife and I whilst remaining professional. Thank you for your hospitality and for making us feeling welcome.

Gareth · 28 April 2024

★★★★★ 2/5

Trustpilot

Lack of urgency, dismissing our concerns, and lack of communication ruined the experience

We love the house and the sales manager was great BUT we were originally given a completion date of June which slipped back to December: causing us significant disruption and inconvenience. We have moved into a house with a section of the house unusable because of damp, mould, and cold. We have been in the house over a month and this has not been resolved. The boiler was incorrectly wired for a month (despite multiple attempts to fix it) resulting in the boiler constantly being on - wasting money. We sent over a snagging list where not all of the items are considered as part of their official list so they have no interest in fixing them.The finish on walls and skirting boards is poor and we have heard members of the build team talking about how we are so fussy, swearing and being rude while we are in another room in the house.The positive sides of the experience have been:- we love the house- the sales manager was great- the maintenance operatives that visit are very helpful and feel like they’re on your sideBut the experience has been overshadowed by the volume of things wrong, the lack of urgency for things we deem urgent (mould and damp), lack of communication.We are fairly certain there are going to be lots of things we end up needing to fix at our own cost despite the team telling us we have a 2 year warranty.

Paul · 27 January 2023

★★★★★ 4/5

Trustpilot

Love our home

Purchased 2 years ago so waited until I gave review. We bought a 5 bedroom house. There were a few snags in the first 6 months which CC came round to rectify. The on site manager was excellent. I’ve never bought a new house before but I have to say that the layout is beautiful. It still looks like a hotel. If you like character then it’s not for you but after living in Scandinavia we like the clean lines and having always lived in older houses they have more problems, some unseen and very costly. Overall, we love the house. It’s very warm and cost efficient bills. We bought it after relocating and needed a property with no chain so had the intention to move within 2 years but will end up staying much longer.

Ella · 25 June 2020

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Was a very smooth process from start to…

Was a very smooth process from start to finish, Dave and Jasmine in the sales office were excellent and very helpful. Everyone is very accommodating,we met Ryan the site agent, and he is very professional and informative on all matters. It's only been 1 week at Herons Park, and so far it looks a great place to live.

Simon · 4 July 2024

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Very pleased with everything.

We are very pleased with our new house, the finish is of very high quality and the whole buying process with Beth as the sales rep was very easy and communication was always great.Once we moved onto the site Andy the site manager has been phenomenal and no problem is too big or small and he is always on hand. We’d heavily recommend Charles Church and both Andy and Beth have been brilliant.

Oliver · 17 August 2023

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Great experience so far!

I'm in the process of buying a Persimmon house which should be ready in the summer. I've had a great experience so far. Special mention to Amy in Pocklington who has been super helpful, knowledgeable, professional, and very friendly!

J · 4 April 2022

★★★★★ 4/5

Trustpilot

The Mile, Pocklington

We have bought a house on The Mile site. There were a number of issues at the beginning and felt that some sub contractors had not done a good job. The quality control had not been addressed but now the site has a new manager and the team has worked hard to resolve problems and improve standards. The Customer care team are excellent, although interior work has been hampered by lockdown, any emergency repairs are dealt with straight away. We would recommend this site to future purchasers as the houses now have quality control in place. We love the design of our new house and look forward to when the estate is finished.

Jan · 8 June 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Would rather have waited for perfection!

Having been rushed to complete before the end of the financial year we had been assured that ‘everything will be finished before the completion day on 22nd’ and had been looking forward to the promised ‘What can be more exciting than getting the keys to your new home?’ (quote from the website)On arrival to collect the keys we found an unfinished house, the finishing of the paintwork on the walls and woodwork is atrocious (have already had agreement that everything will be repainted), a fitter was still on site trying to build wardrobes (he left at 5pm, job still unfinished as many parts were missing) and we noticed that the hob and cooker hood were not the ones from the ‘Options’ range that we had paid a lot of money for. We had specified white switches, sockets and spotlights throughout but chrome ones had been fitted, we could go on…..We’ve already found that we need a new front door, the dishwasher hadn’t been plumbed in properly (although the door is missing we had been told that we could still use it) and the kitchen would have been flooded if we had used it. Two of the bathrooms are not really useable, one is like an ice box as the extractor has a part missing and the wind is blowing insulation into the room, in the other one the shower control knob fell off on first use and there is a non-working spotlight hanging out from the ceiling (not sure if this is dangerous or not)We’d like to know how this house managed to pass a final quality inspection. When we opened the door to the guy who came to fit our blinds (he came to take measurements in mid-December) his first comment was ‘is this it finished, it looks terrible’, says a lot reallyWe had been told that the ‘team’ would be back after the New Year and would all be working on customer care so we had expected something to happen, in reality we have had one great guy who has done some work on the window surrounds so that the blinds could be fitted. The wardrobe was finished on 11th but apart from this we have had no communication from anyone so don’t know when any of the work might be startedWe do like the house but it certainly hasn’t been an enjoyable journey and we now potentially have weeks of workmen coming in to try and get things finished to the high standard that we expect. We would rather have waited another month or two and had a properly finished houseAs an afternote, we’d love to know how many cans of expanding foam the guys get through as it seems to have been used anywhere where there is a space for it!

Mrs · 15 January 2023

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

It will be nice when it is finished!!

It would have been nice to move into a house that had been completely finished. It seems that completion was rushed through at the end of the financial year at the expense of a house which has lots of unfinished jobs eg no useable showers or baths, no working extractor fan, an incomplete kitchen, incomplete guttering, incomplete rendering, doors which don’t open/close and extremely poor paintwork. Got a professional snagger who identified 201 snags and since then a further 10-20 snags have been identified. Have notified company of leaks but not had plumber yet and no luck with the construction clinic as no one turned up. Love the house but it is being marred by very poor quality control and customer service.

Julie · 11 January 2023

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Sacha has been very helpful and patient…

Sacha has been very helpful and patient with us. She has made us feel at ease buying a house with the current interest rates rising. We would definitely recommend her to friends and family.

Mr · 22 October 2022

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

CHARLES CHURCH/PERSIMMON HOMES-GERMANY BECK-FULFORD-YORK.

I purchased a Charles Church Home in Germany Beck in York and took the option of Part Exchange. After a week or two i was delighted to get a market leading price for my David Wilson Home and after a bit of bantering, i secured my new home with a few tasty extras. Previously i have heard of some great things and not so great things about charles church and persimmon fo which i chose to ignore. I can firmly state i have had a great experience from start to finish. The build stage took some 8 months due to weather and so on and i was never harrassed or pushed into anything, in fact i made a lot of the timeline decisions based on my own work and personal life of which they were more than accommodating. From Debbie and Claire in the sales team who have been terrific to the field sales manager Ben, who even met me on a sunday on site to discuss one or two things and even at that later stage of the build, they were happy with one or two additions-for free! Ben was instrumental in getting a few legal difficulties over the line also. The site Manager and deptuty site manager Andy and Sam were amazing thoroughout and could not have helped me anymore, they really made the whole experience very rewarding and effortless. This team ethos i feel rubs off on the contractors and builders who do all the graft and in all weathers and they could not be more helpful in explaining what and how everything works at differring stages of the build. Fast forward i have moved in on my own timeline of which they were happy with and the build quality and finish is extremely high. Yes i may get one or two knock s once it settles but i have had multiple visits to my door by the site team asking if they can do anythihg to help me. It has been a real pleasure dealing with Charles Church and persimmon and this flagship site in York is not only a great place to live, surrounded by beautiful countryside and a stone throw into the city centre but the team on site have been an absolute pleasure. A very commendable and rewarding 5 stars from me.

Jason · 7 April 2020

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

We have waited almost a year for this…

We have waited almost a year for this property, for it to be rushed at the end with a snagger pulling up 164 snags, and I have found more,This has taken all my happiness away for my £380,00 home,Windows missing , no utility sink all on planNo help at all regarding disability access to an on suite, my husband can’t get in the shower as it is, I asked right at the beginning could it be placed as low to the floor as possible, Charles church credits themselves disability friendly, I don’t think so,Paint work is shocking finish,Windows out of line, Rain sounds like it’s coming in all the extractor fans as no covers on them,The cooker extractor is full of bricks,All of the LVT is fit to a poor standard no sealing round the edges,On suite smells so disgusting, a whole bottle of bleach and still bad, I will say this is not my first Charles church house, but it will be the last , So disappointed.

Jean · 28 December 2022

★★★★★ 2/5

Trustpilot

Charles Church rushed the completion…

Charles Church rushed the completion date and the house was very unfinished at the point of moving in. This was also over the Christmas period so we were left with issues which couldn't be quickly resolved. We were also without basic essentials like Internet and could not get this addressed. On moving day and the day after there were workmen constantly in and out leaving us wondering why the completion wasn't just put back to a sensible date when everything was done.

Andrew · 27 December 2022

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

House interest

Thank you to Jaqui very helpful advice and professional manner dealing with our house purchase interest at Parklands, Hessle site. M and K Ansell

Mike · 22 August 2023

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

During the purchasing and moving in…

During the purchasing and moving in process our Sales people, Chloe and latterly Karla, were always on hand or at the end of the phone or text to answer questions and queries we had. I believe they worked very hard to get our house ready and from handover Chloe, Karla and Tony the site manager, have stayed in close contact. No problem has been too great or small and yes we have had some minor niggles, but the fact that they have been dealt with promptly makes a big difference. So, thank you. We love our new home.

Mark · 12 December 2022

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Heard a loud rumble and bang this…

Heard a loud rumble and bang this morning. Went out to investigate only to find a tile had fallen from middle of roof onto the drive below! Not the first time a CHARLES CHURCH house owner has experienced this! It narrowly missed our car. Hubby was out there yesterday working!! I dread to think what damage a tile could have caused to anyone let alone a vehicle! A neighbour had the same thing happen a short while ago. CHARLES CHURCH showed no concern .... apparently not their fault! We all know their house warranty is only 2 years! But surely we should expect a roof to last a lot longer. The reason for buying new, after all, is for peace of mind! NHBC, again told our neighbour the cost was not great enough so... do it yourself! We totally agree with their thoughts, tiles don't cost much.... BUT NOT WHEN IT COMES TO AN ACCIDENT WAITING TO HAPPEN! Also these are Health and Safety issues Shame on you all! So take this as a warning! CHARLES CHURCH and indeed the expensive NHBC we gladly pay out for, are the most uncaring people regarding their Health and Safety Policies! I worry how many more will fall like it did before we have to shell out for a new roof! The house is only 5 years old!

Cherryl · 19 January 2020

★★★★★ 2/5

Trustpilot

Misleading Deadlines!

I reserved a Charles Church plot on Millennium Farm, Humberston on 13 May 2022 (foundation level) at the time of reservation I was given an expected build date of 30 Nov which then changed to 31 Dec 2022; rushed me to exchange which I did by completing on my sale and moving into an AirBnB so that I didn't lose my buyer who couldn't wait until December. The build stopped for 8 weeks, due to tradesman issues and didn't resume again until October, we now have a completed roof, scaffolding is down and was excitedly waiting for my two month completion window, which given it's only the internals left I expected to be around end Jan/Feb 2023. I have received a two month completion window for five months time, pushing the completion as far out as possible just before the six month clause they allow themselves before you can pull out, how convenient! Misled along the whole journey, have lost thousands in fees, lost interest rates and penalties as I had to re apply for my mortgage. Despite complaining and drawing to CC attention that they are offering "move in for Xmas" with lots of incentives, I was told no compensation due to the six month clause on the build completion in the contract! My first home in 1990 was a Charles Church home prior to Persimmon getting hold of them and it was perfect, built in 7 months from reservation to completion and I lived in it happily for 13 yrs! I am now faced with additional storage, securing AirBnB for longer, a holiday re arranged due to Covid where I have no clothes with me as they are in storage two hours away and not a very happy Xmas! I will never buy either a Persimmon or Charles Church (or probably a new build) again, the experience has been poor, no one seems to care now that I have exchanged and if it wasn't for the fact that I stand to lose around £45,000 at this point would pull out of the purchase.I would like to say that Michael at the site office has been wonderful, I can't fault him and he is not responsible for the chain of events!I would also add that I am sure the build when it is finished will be just as exceptional as my first Charles Church purchase, when we get there!The whole process is stressful.

Ellie · 8 December 2022

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Unsafe House Builders!!

Persimmon (Charles Church) have left us with 60 snags to our 5 bed property 2 years into living in it. Unable to instruct a Contractor themselves, they have now resorted in getting myself to seek quotations for the outstanding work, only to ignore any invoices that are forwarded. The Customer Care journey we have been on has been shocking, a snapshot of which can be seen below: 1. 300+ defects, several presenting a structural or safety concern.2. Over 120 emails and/or phone calls to an incompetent Customer Care department.3. 49 tradesmen visits, some of which resulting in the reported defect being made worse. 4. 6 property visits by incorrectly assigned tradesmen. 5. 8 scheduled tradesmen visits not attended with no prior notice given.We have recently had a Chartered Surveyor in to check tolerances of walls/floors/ceilings and it is clear we have a lot of issues with the property. I would recommend anyone buying a property from this developer to instruct someone to check tolerances within each room to ascertain if they fall within NHBC parameters. The Chartered Surveyor also noted that all bar 2 of the fire doors within the house are non compliant due to the gap between the door and frame being non-existent.The fact that certain floors are sinking, we have non-compliant fire doors, a cluster fly infestation to the loft, and render, brickwork and carpentry throughout which is an absolute mess, speaks volumes about this builder and ability of their site management.They have the audacity to fly banners around the development saying they are a 5 Star builder when many home owners are dealing with serious issues.I will continue to update on here until I am satisfied Persimmon have shown real effort to resolve the issues I have had to endure, and compensated my family for an insurmountable amount of stress. As we go into our 3rd year of living here (I can not yet call it a family home), we are expecting to be made to move out whilst they rectify the many issues. Further updates to follow.

Wandering · 23 November 2022

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

5 Star Customer Experience at Mascalls Grange Paddock Wood

We have been in our new Charles Church home for 3 months today. If you'd asked me to write this review on day 1, it certainly wouldn't have been 5* however I feel it is important to share our story. On the day that we moved in there was a lot of snagging and we were pretty disappointed with the entire experience (the sales experience with Russell was excellent and a lot of fun). They do say that the mark of any company isn't whether things go wrong, but how they respond... Charles Church Customer Care were extremely fast when it can to responding and rectifying the issues. We dealt with Jolita in the Customer Care Department who was very helpful & efficient.The Site Manager, Michael Halstead visited us numerous times (sometimes 2 or 3 a day) to update us and even completed some of the work himself, demonstrating fully what customer care is all about. He was always contactable and would always respond. Michael is a credit to the organisation.If you are buying any new build property it is inevitable that you will have 'snags'. If you want these rectified quickly and efficiently, then by a property from Charles Church Homes.So here we are, 3 months in and everything on our list has been completed and we are very happy. Thank you Charles Church and Persimmon Homes.

Chris · 30 September 2019

★★★★★ 4/5

Trustpilot

Overall a good experience

Our experience was largely good, very friendly staff and lots of updates during the build. Would have been nice if we could have had access to the house earlier (as other developers allow) and basic questions about the build specification were not known (like exact dimensions of the garden exact - again other developers provide this info. The house itself is great, only criticism so far is the garage doors are too small to easily get a car through and the houses do all feel squashed together, but that’s true of most new build estates these days!

Daniel · 6 November 2022

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Harlands Park…a house becomes a home

We are still at the early stages of our house build which started when we discovered the Harlands Park development in Uckfield online and before we were in a position to buy. We selected our ideal plot and were very fortunate to be able to secure it. Work had only just begun when we reserved it so we knew we would need to be patient. On our second visit we met Steve, from the contract management team, and he immediately made us feel welcome and was able to explain the Charles Church build process to us. Over the next few weeks Darren, the contracts manager, sent us photos of the on-site progress. It’s great to see how quickly things start to change. He was also able to answer some specific questions we had. Later we met with Francesca to go through the options we have chosen. Personalising the house is quite an enjoyable experience. With the deposit now paid we are looking forward to seeing the house completed and of course moving in.

Dennis · 28 October 2022

★★★★★ 4/5

Trustpilot

So far so good…..

I haven’t moved yet. But I’ve been very happy with the service so far. Darren was updating us with the site pictures. Hopefully we can have a site visit soon.Thank you Charles Church team 😊

Nishi · 25 June 2022

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

Harlands Park move

We are about a month away from moving in to our new house on Harlands Park. So far we are very happy with Charles Church and the process has been very smooth. Darren the contracts manager has been an outstanding point of contact, really going the extra mile to make sure we are kept up to date and responding to questions very quickly. This contact has really made this a positive experience for us. Stevie on site has also been incredibly approachable and helpful even getting some extra photos of our new bathroom! The sales team has had a high turn over of staff so although doing their best sometimes questions would fall through the cracks. This was the only draw back. However, overall we are still very happy and still feel a five star rating is accurate as Darren and Stevie have been exceptional!

Laura · 22 October 2022

★★★★★ 5/5

Trustpilot

We are really happy with the house and…

We are really happy with the house and the help given by staff at Charles Church. We had a few minor snagging issues but the team here, including Sophie, Evan’s and Clem have gone above and beyond to help rectify these issues. Would definitely recommend!!

Sarah · 17 December 2024