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MOST RECENT HOME OWNERS' VERBATIM COMMENTS - All
Purchase Experience Testimonials from Real Homebuyers
Helena, on Oct 01, 2022
I am very happy with my home. I do have a list of small things to hopefully make right. [name removed] has been wonderful helping me and I am very grateful. Thank you all.
Helena, on May 02, 2022
I would like to know what some of the electric switches go to and label the turn off valves in the laundry room.
Helena, on Apr 15, 2022
Big thanks to [name removed] he is always support and help us with quality and excellent service
Helena, AL, on Apr 15, 2022
I was told no more than 8 to 9 months and it ended up being over a year to completion.
Helena, on Aug 20, 2022
The purchase transaction was handled very professionally.
Helena, AL, on Dec 30, 2021
I was supposed to close September 11, sold my house in Florida then was unable to close. Had to put my things in storage and live with a friend (thank goodness) until the house was finished.
Helena, on Apr 03, 2022
prompt acknowledgment of claim and convenient scheduling
Helena, on Jun 19, 2022
It was a great process and the home is beautiful. The only issue we had was some delays due to supply chain issues that caused us to have to wait longer than expected to get into our home and created some scheduling problems for us.
Bessemer, AL, on Dec 21, 2021
Being able to see the progress from start to finish and if I ever had any questions or concerns they were immediately answered.
Helena, on Mar 16, 2022
I have not used the warranty but [name removed] Castle has been very responsive to minor problems I had shortly after moving in.
Helena, on May 18, 2022
There was no quality put in to things like cutting base boards and crown molding to the correct length. The paint finish is inconsistent and throughout the house. The floor is not level upstairs. The stairs are crooked. The land grading is horrible.....etc
Helena, AL, on Nov 19, 2021
The process was fairly easy and the house was ready before the anticipated date. When we got close to the move-in date, it appeared that the inspection and closing process slowed and was VERY frustrating. We were almost homeless because NC wanted to move our date further than promised.
Helena, on Dec 29, 2021
I have been waiting for a couple of months now for someone to come look at the work that still needs done on my house. Things were more prompt when I first moved in and had an issue but it has taken a long time to address my recent concerns.
Helena, on Mar 29, 2022
I have enjoyed my experience with Newcastle. The only thing I would recommend is in dealing with the home warranty. I would love to be talk to someone and set up a definitive time when issues come up. But [name removed] has been very helpful in helping me out.
Helena, AL, on Oct 23, 2021
I am pleased with the purchase experience overall.
Helena, on Mar 21, 2022
Great people to work with! This is our 3rd Newcastle house and [name removed] has made it a great experience!
Helena, on Oct 05, 2021
It has been great! [name removed] has been very on top of anything we have asked him!
Helena, AL, on Oct 22, 2021
I would have liked more communication through out the process. In the beginning we were told we would get weekly updates but this did not happen. In the process we were approached with a unique situation within our adoption process but put us on a strict timeline line with the home to be completed. The last week was extremely hard lining up our final walk through and inspection. We had to reschedule the inspection 3 times. The last time the counter tops were removed after we had signed off and approved of them in the walk through. Communication of this would have been liked. We did appreciate [name removed]'s efforts in the contracting phase. She worked very hard to finalize our contract within our time window.
Helena, on Sep 24, 2021
Love the response time with "critical" items. The "non-important" items seem to be forgotten about.
Helena, AL, on Oct 19, 2021
Dislike: $3,500 lot fee was advertised after being originally listed as $0. This happened after someone dropped off this lot, and just before we reserved it. Dislike: Black stainless steel appliances were not available although being listed as such on the design website. Dislike: House (understandably) was rushed to completion before our closing date. We still had areas that were dirty when we moved in, and several things needing repair. I'm currently working on getting the higher-priority stuff fixed with the Warranty Dept. Like: Friendly and professional Sales Staff. [name removed] and [name removed] were great through the several months we waited for house construction. This included the 3 aggravating months waiting on windows. Lol. Like: Financing through the preferred lender ended up being better than our expectations. [name removed] and the others at FBC were amazing and saved us money. Like: Overall design of home. We love the house and the neighborhood. We appreciate the teamworking to overcome other delays to keep our closing date on schedule. This included the floor upgrade.
Helena, on Nov 29, 2021
There were a lot of things that we noticed after moving in. Even though we had a final walk through the house size made it difficult to notice everything.
Helena, on Aug 05, 2021
Dishwasher has been serviced 6 times and still not replaced. Our AC units drip so much condensation that our backyard is ALWAYS wet and muddy right outside the back door.
Helena, AL, on Oct 12, 2021
I liked the friendly customer service feel from realtors, inspection and contractor. I did not like the lack of detail in some of the Finish carpentry.
Helena, on Nov 19, 2021
Part of my dissatisfaction comes from various areas in my home, that showed poor quality and a lack of paying attention to details. Also, my dissatisfaction comes from the reluctance to correctly repair the items vs. just covering them up. The areas of concern are various wood/molding that have been improperly cut that shows jagged edges or inconsistent spacing/gaps. The edges either appear to be broken off or a dull blade was used that did not properly cut. There are several areas in the house where there is excessive plaster, or something was not removed from the various base boards or trim. Other areas, that we have found issues with that my wife still may have pictures of are as follows: I found snack bags stuffed behind one of the toilets that were left during the build process. On the snack bag you can clearly see dried paint, so it is evident it was there prior to the final painting of the bathroom. In the yard, we have found several issues as well. We have standing water issues after it rains which is still present 3-4 days after it has rained. Other areas in the yard, we discovered that almost ALL the plants and shrubs were not properly buried and just were sat in the holes with out being filled in. We literally were able to lift them out of the holes. We saw this when we removed the straw and replaced it with mulch. Also, during this project, we saw how there were various forms of trash buried in the flower beds. The trash ranged from pop cans, energy drink cans, fast food bags and beer bottles. The most alarming was the amount of beer bottles we found in the yard. One day in the back yard, my son was running and suddenly tripped. When I went to the area where he tripped, I saw a piece of metal about 4 inches or so sticking out of the grass. I felt relieved when my son or one of the other kids did not fall onto the metal and get seriously hurt. I proceeded to pull the metal out of the ground and soon discovered that 4-inch piece of metal was about 4 – 5 feet in length. The person who applied the sod laid it directly on top of the long piece of metal. This is a prime example of the lack of paying attention to detail and wanting to produce a quality result. I still have the piece of metal in my back yard, there is no way the person who applied the sod can say they did not see it laying there. I am truly scared to find out what else is buried in my yard. These issues have hindered a huge part of the joyful experience that comes with buying a new home.
Helena, AL, on Oct 07, 2021
it was my first time building a new home so i don’t have much to compare it with, but overall i really love the house and the only complaints about the construction process are unavoidable issues related to covid 19.
Helena, on Nov 16, 2021
Still working to get refrigerator replaced. Samsung is involved but so is Newcastle since I bought the refrigerator through them on my contract. Jury is still out on how Newcastle handles it.
Helena, on May 11, 2021
Well, recently there was a sudden change in who handles the home warranty claims. Prior to this, I was discouraged with the amount of time it took for responses and timely attention to things that needed correction and/or repair. However, since the new person, Diamond, has taken over it's been MUCH improved. Diamond is on top of things and responsive so that I at least know where things stand and regular updates. She mentioned she is training someone to take over that role, but if they're even half as efficient as Diamond then it'll be in good hands.
Helena, AL, on Sep 07, 2021
Slow to take care of issues from final walk thru!! Then allowed confusion on what was left to take care of when it was all noted at the final walk thru!!
Helena, on Oct 13, 2021
I do appreciate that everything we have reported to Warranty for repair has been taken care of in a reasonable timeframe. Still, however, the sales experience with [name removed] at the very beginning meant a lot to me. She was excellent, and has continued to be a great resource for us with the company well after closing.
Helena, on May 10, 2021
Warranty service has been extremely reliable with a great response time.
Helena, AL, on Aug 24, 2021
Hated the delays and re-schedule but given current conditions/constraints, it's understandable
Helena, on Apr 19, 2021
The warranty service has been less than stellar. The person that was supposed to come fix our shower door and back door lives 5 houses down from me, and can’t seem to find the time in his schedule to do his job.
Helena, AL, on Aug 03, 2021
One of the sales agents made us feel we bothered her when asking for updates. She even went as far as to state it in an email to our agent. I also didn't like the fact that your purchasing department couldn't override automation to accommodate a first come first serve rule. Overall we didn't feel valued as paying customer.
Helena, on Sep 20, 2021
Love the house still have issues that’s been addressed but not finished
Helena, on Jun 23, 2021
Overall a good house. The small things like paint and trim were overlooked. I could see having to repaint the entire interior of the house in the first 3 years
Helena, AL, on Jun 29, 2021
All the the paint touch ups were not done, and when touch ups were being done, the workers left dirt on the carpets.
Helena, on May 27, 2021
Some not all, of the craftsmanship was not meeting expectations. However, when I reported an issue [name removed] Castle rose to the occasion and corrected the issue.
Helena, AL, on Jun 20, 2021
The entire Newcastle team made the process a great experience!
Helena, on May 25, 2021
I didn't like how so much work had to be re-done during the build. Broken windows, lights missing, damaged floors and doors. I also didn't like how they didn't put grass to the back of the property and yet the sprinkler system was behind the grass line in the dirt. I also do not appreciate that I paid $6000 for a lot premium to have nobody behind me and it be unoccupied easement property to have my new neighbor be able to put up a cattle fence behind my ornamental aluminum fence that I now get to look at. A lot of things I was told about the property were not backed up by the builders. We closed late, things were not perfect and I paid a lot of money for the workmanship I received.
Helena, AL, on May 30, 2021
Everything went as planned only had a water leak but they are working to fix it! Very satisfied!
Helena, AL, on May 05, 2021
The HOA is extremely slow with responses. We submitted a request for a fence and the HOA took several weeks to get back to us and approve it. We are getting a pool now and the HOA is once again not responding to our request. They are terrible.
Helena, on May 20, 2021
The home we bought was already built. There are some things that could have been done better in the home. Some things just appear to have been done too quickly and in haste which led to it looking shabby in spots. We also had a warranty claim that took several months to fix, they just wouldnt show up or only did part of what needed to be done at a time until resolved. It hasnt been a nightmare, but not the best either.
Helena, on Dec 24, 2020
If I have filed a claimed, New Castle reacted and took care of what ever they we ask to do. I have been very pleased.
Helena, on Feb 12, 2021
Rushed through our walk through could have found some of the things that needed work before we moved in such as the crack in our tub that they only patched and didn't fully replace the tub or warranty the patch will most likely have to replace the tub in 5 years or less were told. Very frustrating. Just now having issues with our master shower they caulked it improperly so it doesn't drain the way it should (water stays in the weeping holes not drying out all the way and growing mold and mildew in the door and under the shower door) so now we will have to redo all the caulking around the shower door.
Helena, AL, on Feb 23, 2021
The process was extremely easy. The builder fixed most if not all of our concerns during our walk-thru. After 30 days of living in our house we noticed a few issues which was to be expected. The Builder and the warranty department worked to resolve all of our issues once again.
MOST RECENT 20 HOME OWNERS' VERBATIM COMMENTS - Purchase & Move In
Purchase Experience Testimonials from Real Homebuyers
Helena, AL, on Apr 15, 2022
I was told no more than 8 to 9 months and it ended up being over a year to completion.
Helena, AL, on Dec 30, 2021
I was supposed to close September 11, sold my house in Florida then was unable to close. Had to put my things in storage and live with a friend (thank goodness) until the house was finished.
Bessemer, AL, on Dec 21, 2021
Being able to see the progress from start to finish and if I ever had any questions or concerns they were immediately answered.
Helena, AL, on Nov 19, 2021
The process was fairly easy and the house was ready before the anticipated date. When we got close to the move-in date, it appeared that the inspection and closing process slowed and was VERY frustrating. We were almost homeless because NC wanted to move our date further than promised.
Helena, AL, on Oct 23, 2021
I am pleased with the purchase experience overall.
Helena, AL, on Oct 22, 2021
I would have liked more communication through out the process. In the beginning we were told we would get weekly updates but this did not happen. In the process we were approached with a unique situation within our adoption process but put us on a strict timeline line with the home to be completed. The last week was extremely hard lining up our final walk through and inspection. We had to reschedule the inspection 3 times. The last time the counter tops were removed after we had signed off and approved of them in the walk through. Communication of this would have been liked. We did appreciate [name removed]'s efforts in the contracting phase. She worked very hard to finalize our contract within our time window.
Helena, AL, on Oct 19, 2021
Dislike: $3,500 lot fee was advertised after being originally listed as $0. This happened after someone dropped off this lot, and just before we reserved it. Dislike: Black stainless steel appliances were not available although being listed as such on the design website. Dislike: House (understandably) was rushed to completion before our closing date. We still had areas that were dirty when we moved in, and several things needing repair. I'm currently working on getting the higher-priority stuff fixed with the Warranty Dept. Like: Friendly and professional Sales Staff. [name removed] and [name removed] were great through the several months we waited for house construction. This included the 3 aggravating months waiting on windows. Lol. Like: Financing through the preferred lender ended up being better than our expectations. [name removed] and the others at FBC were amazing and saved us money. Like: Overall design of home. We love the house and the neighborhood. We appreciate the teamworking to overcome other delays to keep our closing date on schedule. This included the floor upgrade.
Helena, AL, on Oct 12, 2021
I liked the friendly customer service feel from realtors, inspection and contractor. I did not like the lack of detail in some of the Finish carpentry.
Helena, AL, on Oct 07, 2021
it was my first time building a new home so i don’t have much to compare it with, but overall i really love the house and the only complaints about the construction process are unavoidable issues related to covid 19.
Helena, AL, on Sep 07, 2021
Slow to take care of issues from final walk thru!! Then allowed confusion on what was left to take care of when it was all noted at the final walk thru!!
Helena, AL, on Aug 24, 2021
Hated the delays and re-schedule but given current conditions/constraints, it's understandable
Helena, AL, on Aug 03, 2021
One of the sales agents made us feel we bothered her when asking for updates. She even went as far as to state it in an email to our agent. I also didn't like the fact that your purchasing department couldn't override automation to accommodate a first come first serve rule. Overall we didn't feel valued as paying customer.
Helena, AL, on Jun 29, 2021
All the the paint touch ups were not done, and when touch ups were being done, the workers left dirt on the carpets.
Helena, AL, on Jun 20, 2021
The entire Newcastle team made the process a great experience!
Helena, AL, on May 30, 2021
Everything went as planned only had a water leak but they are working to fix it! Very satisfied!
Helena, AL, on May 05, 2021
The HOA is extremely slow with responses. We submitted a request for a fence and the HOA took several weeks to get back to us and approve it. We are getting a pool now and the HOA is once again not responding to our request. They are terrible.
Helena, AL, on Feb 23, 2021
The process was extremely easy. The builder fixed most if not all of our concerns during our walk-thru. After 30 days of living in our house we noticed a few issues which was to be expected. The Builder and the warranty department worked to resolve all of our issues once again.
MOST RECENT 20 HOME OWNERS' VERBATIM COMMENTS - 5-6 Months after Move In
Purchase Experience Testimonials from Real Homebuyers
Helena, on May 02, 2022
I would like to know what some of the electric switches go to and label the turn off valves in the laundry room.
Helena, on Apr 15, 2022
Big thanks to [name removed] he is always support and help us with quality and excellent service
Helena, on Apr 03, 2022
prompt acknowledgment of claim and convenient scheduling
Helena, on Mar 16, 2022
I have not used the warranty but [name removed] Castle has been very responsive to minor problems I had shortly after moving in.
Helena, on Dec 29, 2021
I have been waiting for a couple of months now for someone to come look at the work that still needs done on my house. Things were more prompt when I first moved in and had an issue but it has taken a long time to address my recent concerns.
Helena, on Oct 05, 2021
It has been great! [name removed] has been very on top of anything we have asked him!
Helena, on Sep 24, 2021
Love the response time with "critical" items. The "non-important" items seem to be forgotten about.
Helena, on Aug 05, 2021
Dishwasher has been serviced 6 times and still not replaced. Our AC units drip so much condensation that our backyard is ALWAYS wet and muddy right outside the back door.
Helena, on May 11, 2021
Well, recently there was a sudden change in who handles the home warranty claims. Prior to this, I was discouraged with the amount of time it took for responses and timely attention to things that needed correction and/or repair. However, since the new person, Diamond, has taken over it's been MUCH improved. Diamond is on top of things and responsive so that I at least know where things stand and regular updates. She mentioned she is training someone to take over that role, but if they're even half as efficient as Diamond then it'll be in good hands.
Helena, on May 10, 2021
Warranty service has been extremely reliable with a great response time.
Helena, on Apr 19, 2021
The warranty service has been less than stellar. The person that was supposed to come fix our shower door and back door lives 5 houses down from me, and can’t seem to find the time in his schedule to do his job.
MOST RECENT 20 HOME OWNERS' VERBATIM COMMENTS - 10-12 Months after Move In
Purchase Experience Testimonials from Real Homebuyers
Helena, on Oct 01, 2022
I am very happy with my home. I do have a list of small things to hopefully make right. [name removed] has been wonderful helping me and I am very grateful. Thank you all.
Helena, on Aug 20, 2022
The purchase transaction was handled very professionally.
Helena, on Jun 19, 2022
It was a great process and the home is beautiful. The only issue we had was some delays due to supply chain issues that caused us to have to wait longer than expected to get into our home and created some scheduling problems for us.
Helena, on May 18, 2022
There was no quality put in to things like cutting base boards and crown molding to the correct length. The paint finish is inconsistent and throughout the house. The floor is not level upstairs. The stairs are crooked. The land grading is horrible.....etc
Helena, on Mar 29, 2022
I have enjoyed my experience with Newcastle. The only thing I would recommend is in dealing with the home warranty. I would love to be talk to someone and set up a definitive time when issues come up. But [name removed] has been very helpful in helping me out.
Helena, on Mar 21, 2022
Great people to work with! This is our 3rd Newcastle house and [name removed] has made it a great experience!
Helena, on Nov 29, 2021
There were a lot of things that we noticed after moving in. Even though we had a final walk through the house size made it difficult to notice everything.
Helena, on Nov 19, 2021
Part of my dissatisfaction comes from various areas in my home, that showed poor quality and a lack of paying attention to details. Also, my dissatisfaction comes from the reluctance to correctly repair the items vs. just covering them up. The areas of concern are various wood/molding that have been improperly cut that shows jagged edges or inconsistent spacing/gaps. The edges either appear to be broken off or a dull blade was used that did not properly cut. There are several areas in the house where there is excessive plaster, or something was not removed from the various base boards or trim. Other areas, that we have found issues with that my wife still may have pictures of are as follows: I found snack bags stuffed behind one of the toilets that were left during the build process. On the snack bag you can clearly see dried paint, so it is evident it was there prior to the final painting of the bathroom. In the yard, we have found several issues as well. We have standing water issues after it rains which is still present 3-4 days after it has rained. Other areas in the yard, we discovered that almost ALL the plants and shrubs were not properly buried and just were sat in the holes with out being filled in. We literally were able to lift them out of the holes. We saw this when we removed the straw and replaced it with mulch. Also, during this project, we saw how there were various forms of trash buried in the flower beds. The trash ranged from pop cans, energy drink cans, fast food bags and beer bottles. The most alarming was the amount of beer bottles we found in the yard. One day in the back yard, my son was running and suddenly tripped. When I went to the area where he tripped, I saw a piece of metal about 4 inches or so sticking out of the grass. I felt relieved when my son or one of the other kids did not fall onto the metal and get seriously hurt. I proceeded to pull the metal out of the ground and soon discovered that 4-inch piece of metal was about 4 – 5 feet in length. The person who applied the sod laid it directly on top of the long piece of metal. This is a prime example of the lack of paying attention to detail and wanting to produce a quality result. I still have the piece of metal in my back yard, there is no way the person who applied the sod can say they did not see it laying there. I am truly scared to find out what else is buried in my yard. These issues have hindered a huge part of the joyful experience that comes with buying a new home.
Helena, on Nov 16, 2021
Still working to get refrigerator replaced. Samsung is involved but so is Newcastle since I bought the refrigerator through them on my contract. Jury is still out on how Newcastle handles it.
Helena, on Oct 13, 2021
I do appreciate that everything we have reported to Warranty for repair has been taken care of in a reasonable timeframe. Still, however, the sales experience with [name removed] at the very beginning meant a lot to me. She was excellent, and has continued to be a great resource for us with the company well after closing.
Helena, on Sep 20, 2021
Love the house still have issues that’s been addressed but not finished
Helena, on Jun 23, 2021
Overall a good house. The small things like paint and trim were overlooked. I could see having to repaint the entire interior of the house in the first 3 years
Helena, on May 27, 2021
Some not all, of the craftsmanship was not meeting expectations. However, when I reported an issue [name removed] Castle rose to the occasion and corrected the issue.
Helena, on May 25, 2021
I didn't like how so much work had to be re-done during the build. Broken windows, lights missing, damaged floors and doors. I also didn't like how they didn't put grass to the back of the property and yet the sprinkler system was behind the grass line in the dirt. I also do not appreciate that I paid $6000 for a lot premium to have nobody behind me and it be unoccupied easement property to have my new neighbor be able to put up a cattle fence behind my ornamental aluminum fence that I now get to look at. A lot of things I was told about the property were not backed up by the builders. We closed late, things were not perfect and I paid a lot of money for the workmanship I received.
Helena, on May 20, 2021
The home we bought was already built. There are some things that could have been done better in the home. Some things just appear to have been done too quickly and in haste which led to it looking shabby in spots. We also had a warranty claim that took several months to fix, they just wouldnt show up or only did part of what needed to be done at a time until resolved. It hasnt been a nightmare, but not the best either.
Helena, on Feb 12, 2021
Rushed through our walk through could have found some of the things that needed work before we moved in such as the crack in our tub that they only patched and didn't fully replace the tub or warranty the patch will most likely have to replace the tub in 5 years or less were told. Very frustrating. Just now having issues with our master shower they caulked it improperly so it doesn't drain the way it should (water stays in the weeping holes not drying out all the way and growing mold and mildew in the door and under the shower door) so now we will have to redo all the caulking around the shower door.