Pros and Cons of Buying New Builds

What are the advantages of buying a brand new home?

You get to customize it. Its exciting and fun to choose the lot, inside and outside colors, some materials, lighting, special amenities and much more. Sometimes its moving a wall or having the basement finished to suit your needs or wants.

You have the comfort of knowing that you are the only ones that have ever lived in the home.

There is normally a one-year warranty program provided by most builders that states that they will return and fix most material defects within the home for the first year, and then a ten-year warranty program on the foundation of the home.

You have the piece of mind that your home has gone through a rigorous building inspection confirming that it meets all of the state and local city safety and building codes.

You know that all of the components and appliances of your home are of the latest technological advances.

You can have any special wiring or cables put in your home with ease. Maybe you were dreaming about full house surround sound, or a DSL line for your Internet connection, or an intercom system. Most builders are really good about installing these for you, or with some builders, they will let you run your own cables to save you money as long as you can prove to them that you know what you are doing.

It is quite an education to better see and understand all of the different components to a house and how it all gets pieced together.

What are the disadvantages of buying a brand new home?

After you move in the landscaping, sprinkler system, sod, fence, and window coverings still have to be installed. This takes a lot of both time and money. Please take all of this into consideration when considering purchasing a new instead of pre-owned home. I can get you discounts with some vendors that help cut the costs and you may consider hiring someone to do the work for you to better manage your time.

New areas have usually had much of their trees and vegetation removed to get the large equipment on site to build your home. Understand that trees can take ten to twenty years of growing before they look even a little mature.

It normally takes eight months to a year and a half to complete a home from the raw land stage. It can take over one month just to get the plans to pass the local building department requirements. The alternative is to purchase a spec home that is closer to completion, but it is often to late to customize some of the home.

The stress level is often times much higher with a new house because all the things to think about and make decisions on, added problems that occur, and how you envision the completed product can often times turn out different in reality when it has been completed.

Pro: Spec Homes

You don't have to wait to get into a new home. Spec Homes are home that a builder constructs speculating that a buyer will purchase the home before he has completely finished it. It is usually easier to negotiate price on spec homes and you can sometimes close within 30 days.

Con: Limited Negotiation

On property that is started from "scratch", most builders won't budge an inch on price, but often times we can negotiate some other concession that they do not offer to the general public. Builders are, at times, quite generous with realtors. They want to keep an active agent bringing more purchasers to them.

With "Spec" homes, builders are much more willing to negotiate, depending on how close the home is to completion. The closer to completion, the more willing they are to give. Coldwell Banker - 1st Choice Realty has successfully negotiated tens of thousands of dollars on some spec homes.

Pro: The 1st Choice Team's Knowledge and Expertise

We are very willing to take you to any new construction site. We know the sites that will fit what you are looking for. New homes are available in most price ranges. For buyers of $100,000+ we can arrange a meeting with different builders to explore having a custom or semi-custom home built.

Con: Harder to Look on Your Own

Recently, some new construction companies have insisted that the realtor accompany the buyer if they will be representing them. Many buyers looking for new construction explore the model homes on their own, which you are more than welcome to do. Some builders will try to cut the agent out of your transaction, leaving you with no representation. For this reason, you should never register when looking at new builds. If the builder representative insists, tell them you are working with Coldwell Banker - 1st Choice Realty and give them one of your agent's cards. Let them know you will not purchase without having someone on your side of the transaction.

Pro: It doesn't cost any money to have a realtor represent you

It often times costs more if you do not have a realtor power negotiating for you or letting you know what options and upgrades are cost effective. Helping you determine what loan program is best for your needs and double-checking the lenders excessive "junk fees" is also a great asset. With Coldwell Banker - 1st Choice Realty you get experience, expertise, guidance, and someone on your side every step of the way. The builder has already allocated funds for realtors in the overall price. If a buyer does not have a realtor representing their interests, the full amount is paid to the builders representative. You have everything to gain and nothing to lose by using our services.

Pro: Using a realtor when purchasing a new construction home.

The realtor is hired to represent you and look out for your best interest. The New Build Representative at model homes represents the builder and their interests. Because we have helped many people purchase a new construction home and know the building process well, we have much experience to avoid or overcome obstacles as they arrive.

Pro: Using Coldwell Banker 1st Choice Realty when purchasing a new construction home.

In town buyers - We provide you with a disposable camera to take the pictures of the construction process whenever you want, a nice picture album at closing, and a nice closing gift.

Out of town buyers - We take frequent pictures of the construction process from raw ground to the closing of the property, provide a nice picture album at closing, and a nice closing gift.

All buyers - We will bring our experience and expertise to the foundation, frame, electrical, drywall, and final walk through inspections. This is when the majority of the problems are discovered and logged for the builder to resolve.

Coldwell Banker - 1st Choice Realty has met with most of the well known builders in Citrus County, we have familiarized ourselves with their products and services, and we know how to represent you with each specific builder.

Con: Problems occur during the building process

Know that each new construction is different to suit the desires of the buyer, and is built on a new location with a possible variation of soil conditions. These items alone can cause great problems, not to mention along with the thousands of different pieces that are assembled to create your new home and the many different sub-contractors involved in the construction. EVERY NEW CONSTRUCTION HOUSE WILL HAVE SOME PROBLEMS OR OBSTACLES TO OVERCOME. It is essential to discover any problem as soon as possible and disclose the problem and a possible solution to the builder. How the builder handles the problem and how timely he does it is significant. When we prepare to make an offer to the builder, we provide a report that lists some mistakes that may occur and some that have occurred on past transactions. We also provide a list of recommendations on what options to purchase or not to purchase and helpful things to do during the construction process.

Simply the best decision is to choose Coldwell Banker - 1st Choice Realty as the broker to represent you when purchasing your new home.

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