New Development Royal Canal Park D15

Nhol78 · 09-01-2017 9:40pm

Cronos,

The small gardens in some of the houses is to do with drainage and insuring that we do not get lots of water build up. I believe it was also part of the planning requirements.

Manion · 09-01-2017 10:41pm

RandomAccess wrote: »

Can you send me the contact details, otherwise I will check back through the thread to see if I can find them previously mentioned.

I was hoping this would not be the case, but it does help my decision. Thanks.

http://www.rcpcaonline.com/contact

Kingfisher is the company.

The parking spaces are not leased. However there is some strange legal setup meaning you can neither sell nor rent the space out legally. Its exclusively for your use.

noriordan78 · 09-01-2017 10:59pm

For what it's worth, I got an unexpected text from eir today confirming an initial installation appointment for this Friday. Will post an update after they've come.

cronos · 09-01-2017 11:33pm

noriordan78 wrote: »

For what it's worth, I got an unexpected text from eir today confirming an initial installation appointment for this Friday. Will post an update after they've come.

I'm should be snagging my house on Jan 20th. I'd love to hear if they are available to connect up my house. I'm in one of the Heron's on Bridge avenue, the one's that are just completing.

Could you please ask about those if you can?

amit8feb · 10-01-2017 1:58am

I am moving to Phelan drive east, the detached house. The builder has advised that the house is ready for snagging. I am just wondering any suggestion/recommendation for snagging? I have contacted a few, but not sure which one is better.

Thanks,

cronos · 10-01-2017 4:43am

amit8feb wrote: »

I am moving to Phelan drive east, the detached house. The builder has advised that the house is ready for snagging. I am just wondering any suggestion/recommendation for snagging? I have contacted a few, but not sure which one is better.

Thanks,

I'm interested in same. Can you please send any suggestions on to me also. Pricing as many options as I can.

athtrasna · 10-01-2017 10:09am

As I've said before, Fingal Co Co have a minimum parking standard of 1.5 spaces per unit to get planning. That's one space and a share in visitor parking. It's woefully inadequate for modern living but what developer is going to sacrifice houses for additional parking?

noriordan78 · 10-01-2017 10:50am

Will ask re Bridge Avenue

noriordan78 · 10-01-2017 10:53am

Although the five spaces on Phelan Avenue are occupied more often than not, there are spaces on Pelletstown Avenue which run parallel to what I assume is an old river bed and do not appear to be assigned to an apartment/house. Additionally, there are others in front of Compass Court Apartment block in and around the bus stop which do not appear allocated either. Obviously, they're not as convenient as the Phelan Avenue spaces but they are an alternative.

athtrasna wrote: »

As I've said before, Fingal Co Co have a minimum parking standard of 1.5 spaces per unit to get planning. That's one space and a share in visitor parking. It's woefully inadequate for modern living but what developer is going to sacrifice houses for additional parking?

Manion · 10-01-2017 10:57am

athtrasna wrote: »

As I've said before, Fingal Co Co have a minimum parking standard of 1.5 spaces per unit to get planning. That's one space and a share in visitor parking. It's woefully inadequate for modern living but what developer is going to sacrifice houses for additional parking?

OK phrased that way, then yes ballymore have definitely provided 6 new shared parking spaces at the roundabout for the 12 properties in royal canal avenue.

However, they are being used by everyone and anyone. Some cars there haven't moved since before Christmas. One lad from the apartments has a banger parked there permanently and he just parks behind it when he comes home from work.

I think there will be more spaces at the end of bridge avenue.

noriordan78 · 10-01-2017 10:58am

I used this crowd <mod snip> It was the dearer of the two I priced up (€200) but seemed more reputable. Found the guy to be good, definitely spotted things I wouldn't have although one or two things have cropped up since which he hadn't noticed (fairly minor).

P.S. He did point out that the drainage in our garden was awful but didn't include it as part of the snag list as I assume it must not be something that is generally covered. He suggested digging a trench at the bottom of the garden and covering it with rocks. The trench has been dug, I didn't buy enough rocks at the time and haven't gotten around to getting more but it hasn't worked thus far as it is, the garden is still sodden even if it hasn't rained for a few days so worth looking out for.

cronos wrote: »

I'm interested in same. Can you please send any suggestions on to me also. Pricing as many options as I can.

PhoenixParker · 10-01-2017 11:14am

Rcp is Dublin City council not fingal.
The council actually reduced the number of spaces provided during the planning process. The developer had it higher then 1.5 per unit.

I think whether you experience a problem depends on your own situation and where you are in the development. We have two spaces and are on a side road. Guests park in our space if one of us isn't home. If that's not the case blocking us in or parking on the footpath has been fine if not exactly a perfect solution. Obviously that's not an option if you're on the main roads.

Maybe I'm overly optimistic but no one I know who lives close to the better public transport lines (Luas & dart) has two cars, it's all only one, often little used. Long term I think the problem will ease when the Luas opens in a year and ease further if they ever build the new train station. Similarly if ALDI opens in the development, a big reason for needing a car for apartment owners is gone.

I also know the management committee are looking at ways of controlling visitor parking better. No decisions yet as far as I know though.

Finally there are spaces to be put in at the end of bridge avenue, which were there but removed during construction. That's probably exacerbating the current situation.

janeybaby · 10-01-2017 2:24pm

Bruncvik wrote: »

We are going to call the builders about the ceiling fan tomorrow. It hasn't leaked for a long time, but we got so much water pouring (not dripping) down the tube between the holidays that the fan may have gotten damaged (it was making a nasty grinding noise before we turned it off). So now that the builders are back, we'll be requesting a fix asap.

Is the issue with the Heron, Ash or both types? Have people had trouble trying to get the builders back to fix the problem at all?

Also for the people who had problems with the kitchen fixtures - were they replaced/fixed in a speedy timeframe?

Bruncvik · 10-01-2017 3:58pm

janeybaby wrote: »

Is the issue with the Heron, Ash or both types? Have people had trouble trying to get the builders back to fix the problem at all?

With a single exception (extractor fans, when the entire street was scheduled), we never managed to get the builders to come back to fix anything. There isn't all that much to fix - snagging caught nearly everything - but unless you take a vacation, go into the build site and drag the foreman to your door, they wouldn't even come look at the problem. I did exactly that once, the foreman took notes of the issues, promised a fix, and I've never seen anyone again. Tom, in the office, had promised a fix on a certain day, and when we called the next day, he didn't even know whether the builders came to our place. In our most extreme case, we gave the builders a set of our keys (when they were fixing the extractor fan along the entire street), and those then got lost for nearly three weeks. Tom kept promising the keys the next day, whenever I called, and they never materialized. I ended up sending an e-mail to Ballymore's legal department telling them that we'd notify our insurance company of their responsibility for any theft or damage in the house, and only then the keys were returned to us.

All that said, those aggravation are absolutely tiny compared to what we would have had if we purchased an older house or apartment. Overall, we're very happy we have the house, so far extremely pleased with its convenience and modern technology, that almost puts it into the 21st century. I don't regret our purchasing decision, but I wish I took into account (and budget) that I'd be completely on my own once I get they keys to the property.

janeybaby wrote: »

Also for the people who had problems with the kitchen fixtures - were they replaced/fixed in a speedy timeframe?

Not for us. I attached handles to all drawers and underside cabinets, which made them optically straighter, and with a single exception, we fixed the rails on the drawers, so that they don't fall off them anymore.

nordstrom · 10-01-2017 9:39pm

minkey wrote: »

Hi

Just two Questions.
1. I noticed some houses have Satellite Dishes at the front. Is this OK according to the Management Company? For some reason I thought there was something about this not being allowed. Id be interested in just getting a dish or the Free to Air and broadband only rather than having to sign up for a TV contract, just wondering if anyone else has gone down that route or has any tips

2. Has anyone decided to put a shed in the in back garden. Again I remember reading something in the Management Company guide about the height of the shed not being higher than the fence (dont have the doc to hand to confirm). Again just checking it anyone had issues with this

Thanks

This may be too late to help you but...

1. This is what I did. For about 280 euros you can have someone install a dish (mine is at the rear and not visible) and a saorview aerial. Either they can run the cables directly in to your TV, or if you want more than one tv you can run the cables to the utility room and distribute from there using the cables already installed. I installed a multiswitch in the utility room, this means I can distribute both satellite and terrestrial signals to up to 4 rooms, and have the ability to watch and record at the same time. I did this for future-proofing and it may be overkill for you. Total cost of my installation including one set top box was about 450. I then got Vodafone broadband which I think has 100mb speed, enough to easily stream Netflix or YouTube in hd or 4K even.

2. You'll be grand with a shed poking up a little bit over the wall

Manion · 10-01-2017 9:59pm

janeybaby wrote: »

Is the issue with the Heron, Ash or both types? Have people had trouble trying to get the builders back to fix the problem at all?

Also for the people who had problems with the kitchen fixtures - were they replaced/fixed in a speedy timeframe?

The kitchen people are extremely hard to get in contact with and out to fix things. We had multiple broken drawers and missing shelves plus wrong taps.

janeybaby · 11-01-2017 4:26pm

Bruncvik wrote: »

With a single exception (extractor fans, when the entire street was scheduled), we never managed to get the builders to come back to fix anything. There isn't all that much to fix - snagging caught nearly everything - but unless you take a vacation, go into the build site and drag the foreman to your door, they wouldn't even come look at the problem. I did exactly that once, the foreman took notes of the issues, promised a fix, and I've never seen anyone again. Tom, in the office, had promised a fix on a certain day, and when we called the next day, he didn't even know whether the builders came to our place. In our most extreme case, we gave the builders a set of our keys (when they were fixing the extractor fan along the entire street), and those then got lost for nearly three weeks. Tom kept promising the keys the next day, whenever I called, and they never materialized. I ended up sending an e-mail to Ballymore's legal department telling them that we'd notify our insurance company of their responsibility for any theft or damage in the house, and only then the keys were returned to us.

All that said, those aggravation are absolutely tiny compared to what we would have had if we purchased an older house or apartment. Overall, we're very happy we have the house, so far extremely pleased with its convenience and modern technology, that almost puts it into the 21st century. I don't regret our purchasing decision, but I wish I took into account (and budget) that I'd be completely on my own once I get they keys to the property.

Not for us. I attached handles to all drawers and underside cabinets, which made them optically straighter, and with a single exception, we fixed the rails on the drawers, so that they don't fall off them anymore.

Thanks for getting back to me Bruncvik and sorry to be pedantic but do you think it was the quality of the fixtures used being poor or would you say that they were just not installed properly?

While I take your point on the above being small aggravations, at the same time it doesn't reflect well that there is a serious lack of communication between the builders, Sherry Fitz and Ballymore. Especially considering the substantial amount of money you are handing over for what they are selling as top rated houses. In my view, if that's what is being sold then everything counts, even the small details like how things are installed in a new home.
I have to say the fact that you had to fix the kitchen up yourself when the house is brand, makes me think the kitchen installs are a bit shoddy despite how they look.

tradesman · 11-01-2017 4:41pm

Manion, Why did you have to contact the kitchen company to fix things? Surely the builders should have got onto them to sort it out for you as you are their customer!
All house purchasers please take note - YOU ARE PAYING A LOT OF MONEY for a product that is not up to scratch! Get back onto the person you bought the house from or have been dealing with onsite & get any issues sorted out ASAP. Do not let it drag on. Kick up a fuss. The louder you shout the sooner you will be heard

fret_wimp2 · 11-01-2017 11:22pm

Take a short video of the snags.
Post it on facebook, tagging sherry fitz & the builders. Same on Twitter.
Post it on the property pin. Put it up here.

Send an email to Sherry Fitz with links to everywhere. Nothing works at getting attention like bad publicity.

social media has turned "thats out of warranty" into "no problem, we'l sort that for you right away, apologies for any hassle" for me more than a few times.

Its very little effort and could make a big difference.

RandomAccess · 12-01-2017 1:06am

Those quality issues are a bit of a concern.. But more concerning is the lack of progress in remedying the issues.

I tried to pm some posters who had positive experiences with solicitors when purchasing in RCP but I didn't get a response, can anyone who fits the bill send me the details of the solicitor they used and the approx amount that was paid for the service.

Many thanks.

Beans_On · 12-01-2017 10:17am

Does anybody have any info on the new phase and availability for 3 beds/4beds?

emailed for info last week but no reply yet.

Bruncvik · 12-01-2017 1:47pm

janeybaby wrote: »

Thanks for getting back to me Bruncvik and sorry to be pedantic but do you think it was the quality of the fixtures used being poor or would you say that they were just not installed properly?

I believe they weren't installed well. Now take that with a grain of salt (or a boulder, if you wish) - my previous experience is from assembling IKE furniture. But to me, it appears that the rails for drawers are not installed at the same height on both sides (hence the crooked drawers), or the dividers where the rails are installed are a tad too far apart. Same with the hinges - they may not be precisely attached.

Out of personal preference, I wish they used a slightly different design for the doors and drawers - I find their edges very sharp and uncomfortable to use, which is why I installed handles. And while we're at it, I'm not overly excited about the materials used in the bathrooms. In fact, if I had the chance to do it again and had extra time before moving in, I'd try to request the house without the kitchen and bathroom furnishings, and had someone else do those for me. As it stands, I estimate we'd be replacing them in 10-15 years' time, instead of the originally expected 20-25 years.

fret_wimp2 wrote:

social media has turned "thats out of warranty" into "no problem, we'l sort that for you right away, apologies for any hassle" for me more than a few times.

I think this thread fulfills some of that function already. I remember seeing suggestions that people don't close on the houses until every last item on their snag list is completed (Ballymore tends to promise fixes after closing on the house). If people follow this suggestion, it may strain the builder financially a little, with a few days' delays in the final payment. If they feel this is hurting them, they'll improve. However, with the current housing situation in Dublin, I still think that these houses are such a good deal that they'll have no problems finding buyers for everything they build.

janeybaby · 12-01-2017 2:46pm

Well my husband called last week to find out about the new phase going on sale and Sherry Fitz said that there was still 4 remaining units unsold from phase 3, so doesn't look like they are finding buyers pronto for these, seen as they went on sale in September. People are wise enough - probably googling and finding this thread seeing the crap people have had to put up with.

I know we definitely won't be purchasing one of those new houses for that amount unless all of those small things such as kitchen install, requesting keys back from builders, leaks, exact prices for things etc were 100% done properly. It is so bad for Ballymore and Sherry Fitz to think it's acceptable as well so I hope other potential buyers for next phase proceed with caution after reading all of previous buyers experiences.

Bandana boy · 12-01-2017 3:08pm

janeybaby wrote: »

Well my husband called last week to find out about the new phase going on sale and Sherry Fitz said that there was still 4 remaining units unsold from phase 3, so doesn't look like they are finding buyers pronto for these, seen as they went on sale in September. People are wise enough - probably googling and finding this thread seeing the crap people have had to put up with.

I know we definitely won't be purchasing one of those new houses for that amount unless all of those small things such as kitchen install, requesting keys back from builders, leaks, exact prices for things etc were 100% done properly. It is so bad for Ballymore and Sherry Fitz to think it's acceptable as well so I hope other potential buyers for next phase proceed with caution after reading all of previous buyers experiences.

I suspect alot of people though are holding out for the next phase as you get a view of the canal and not situated on the main road in and out of RCP rather than those remaining 3 are not desirable.
That is certainly the boat I am in

Has anybody any thoughts predictions on what price Herons will be in next phase ?

fret_wimp2 · 12-01-2017 4:16pm

Bandana boy wrote: »

I suspect alot of people though are holding out for the next phase as you get a view of the canal and not situated on the main road in and out of RCP rather than those remaining 3 are not desirable.
That is certainly the boat I am in

Has anybody any thoughts predictions on what price Herons will be in next phase ?

Phase 2 were 20k up on phase 1. Expect at least that, and probably more, considering the ftb new house scheme and other factors pushing people away from renting.

cronos · 12-01-2017 4:48pm

Bandana boy wrote: »

I suspect alot of people though are holding out for the next phase as you get a view of the canal and not situated on the main road in and out of RCP rather than those remaining 3 are not desirable.
That is certainly the boat I am in

Has anybody any thoughts predictions on what price Herons will be in next phase ?

Which are the 3 remaining? What numbers?

janeybaby · 12-01-2017 5:17pm

Bandana boy wrote: »

I suspect alot of people though are holding out for the next phase as you get a view of the canal and not situated on the main road in and out of RCP rather than those remaining 3 are not desirable.
That is certainly the boat I am in

Has anybody any thoughts predictions on what price Herons will be in next phase ?

I take your point Bandana boy but there are people who wouldn't be in a position but want a new build, therefore left with ones that are 'not desirable'. That, combined with the new ftb incentive, they still haven't sold - you'd have to wonder why given the housing shortage and rent crisis.

PhoenixParker · 12-01-2017 5:32pm

Exactly the same thing happened this time last year, 4 or 5 of the first wave (October) Herons were still available when the 2nd phase launched in January. They sold quickly with the 2nd phase of houses. I'd venture that like last years houses they did sell, and then returned to the market because people changed their minds, couldn't secure mortgages etc. December and January being quiet for house sales, difficult to sell aspects, possible buyers being unaware that the houses are available and as Bandana boy says a very enticing next wave about to launch means they haven't resold.

As for the idea that our buyer experience has been terrible. I can't speak for everyone, only ourselves, but our buyer experience has been wonderful. We haven't had to contend with a leaking vent but any niggling problem we've had has been fixed right away. The problems are smaller then 99% of people buying non-newbuilds will find in their first six months in a house. Yes, everything should be perfect but drawer runners in the kitchen are tiny in the grand scheme of house maintenance. If changing a lock puts you off buying a house, then I'd venture to suggest you don't buy a house. One should always change the locks on any house you buy, no matter the circumstances. You never know who else might have a key even with a thousand reassurances from the seller.

The house itself is brilliant. No drafts, constant comfortable temperature, always on hot water, bright and sunny, good sized rooms, never hear the neighbours. All around great to live in. The area is great too. All the amenities I could ask for within easy reach. We lived nearby anyway and chose to stay in the area and I can think of at least four sets of neighbours I know who did the same thing. That to me speaks for itself.

In short, if anyone is reading this thread and taking our minor quibbles as a reason not to buy, don't.
This is a great development to live in.

janeybaby · 12-01-2017 6:31pm

With the greatest of respect, I don't think anybody is using those reasons not to buy these builds. The point being made is more that for a new house, the majority of buyers would expect a lot more polish on the smaller details such as what was mentioned. It seems you bought some time ago though so, potentially the developers/decorators were paying more attention to detail, with another two phases of building & sales to go. I'm not suggesting that is the case but it is possible.

We also live in the area currently ourselves and are very happy here. In my view however, if we were to buy in the last phase we will be extremely cautious after reading the experiences some buyers have had. First time buyers are new to the whole process and my feeling is that it is unfair to screw them by providing shoddy fixtures/lack of communication etc after handing over their hard earned cash.

googlewhack · 12-01-2017 8:52pm

Hi! My girlfriend and I are buying a house on bridge avenue and are due to move in next month. Looking forward to it and find comments on this thread very useful!

I'm a little worried about traffic noise as my ears can be quite sensitive to it! Can any residents on bridge Avenue or royal canal Avenue please let me know your opinions on the level of traffic noise that you can hear from within the houses?

New Development Royal Canal Park D15

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