Author Topic: Tell me about new construction homes.  (Read 4897 times)

TheStachery

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Tell me about new construction homes.
« on: May 25, 2017, 03:58:22 PM »
My first question is if a sign advertises that homes starting in the low 300's.  Does that mean the land comes with it too?  If the land comes with it, what if a property has a cul-de-sac, (or a better view) is there an up charge for that?  Looks like the builder is Pulte homes which is a national company, but their website doesn't say if the property is included, and At this time I don't want to talk with a sales agent.

Second, how like likely if the website has a model and says the price is $345,000.00 that you will get it for that price?  Is the price negotiable? 

The thing that boggles my mind is that the neighborhood has been around for 5-6 years and there are a couple of 2-6 year old houses for sale, the prices are 475,000-550,000.  Why would anyone buy a 2-6 year old house for much more than you can build a brand new one?

Please help me understand.


Thanks!

Lepetitange3

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Re: Tell me about new construction homes.
« Reply #1 on: May 25, 2017, 04:18:34 PM »
So 1) yes the land comes too

2) sometimes if the property is waterview or cup de sac than you will have to pay a lot premium (like 5-10k added to your purchase price)

3)  if you're saying the model is for sale, then they will sell the model home to you for $345k.  That price is usually on-negotiable and represents a loss for the builder because they are trying to off load that home to build a newer model.  Models typically showcase extra features and by buying he model you get these features for a really good discount over building your own home from scratch with the builder. 

If what instead you're saying is you're looking at a particular model whose base price starts at 345k than you will probably end up 50-100k higher than that if you build with the builder from scratch, or at least most people will.  This is because all the customizations add up, and in a house in that price range that's what you can expect.

4) those 2-6 year old houses are probably cheaper than you can build them with the builder new with all the same features.  Early adopters of new communities who sell while the builder is still building can easily make cash this way.  They bought their home while the holder was building for cheaper and now cash in when newcomers can no longer get homes with those features at the same price.

GizmoTX

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Re: Tell me about new construction homes.
« Reply #2 on: May 25, 2017, 04:22:59 PM »
Yes, the builder price includes the land, but since this is variable, each home can have a different price, even for the same model in the same neighborhood.

Yes, builders will sometimes negotiate the price or offer free extra features.

Those 5 year old houses won't get the premium price they are asking as long as the builder is still selling new ones in the neighborhood (unless they have substantial improvements).

Duke03

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Re: Tell me about new construction homes.
« Reply #3 on: May 26, 2017, 08:48:47 PM »
Don't be scared to negotiate like hell on a new build.  Forgot about having the realtor do this for you.  They are lazy and the more you pay the more they make so they will flop worse than a NBA super star and claim they tired their best but the builder wont budge. My last new build I got the builder to knock 31k off the price of the house.  This was a dirt sale and not a spec home either.  The builder claimed they had never discounted a dirt sale that much.  Point is they will negotiate and don't let other people tell you the price is the price.  Those people just suck at negotiating.

Larsg

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Re: Tell me about new construction homes.
« Reply #4 on: June 03, 2017, 02:52:05 AM »
I agree! Developers-Realtors live off of young suckers to fund these developments - how do I know - been there, done it once, will never ever ever do it again and do not recommend buying into a development under any circumstance. Overall, they are not the best investments. Each house sold bankrolls the next sucker build.

What to know about developments

- Never let a realtor that is representing the Developer Represent you at the same time.
- Do not buy a property that has open space beside you, across the street, or behind you - even if there is a nature preserve or wet lands where the realtor-developer swears that there is no way they will ever build on any of that land...things can change pretty fast and you can find yourself living in perpetual construction hell. It happened to us where we bought at the end of the road next to wet lands for privacy and within 4 years, they built over the wet lands. By By Blue Herons on the pond, hello ugly ecru house next to ours.
- Know that the HOA Fees to maintain the Lawn, Open Community Spaces, etc go one way, which is up.
- If anyone in the community goes into foreclosure or does not pay their HOA Fees, the rest of the community must absorb the increase in fees.
- Community Governments can be extremely inflexible.
- Developments can often have their own water and sewer districts that are split up between the lots where each lot pays the same rate no matter how many people are living in the house. For example, the sewer bill is $100 per month per house, not by usage. If the economy tanks and people default on their bills, the extra costs will result in an increase in rates.
- Developers are notorious for not honoring their warranty...so, if it is a new build, you need to live close, educate yourself fast, or dig up friends or family who are contractors so that the work can be inspected as you go. And when you find mistakes which you will, make them fix it before closing. It can take an act of god to get them to do anything post close.
- Look up on the better business bureau the name of the developer and watch how many complaints come up. They all have them but you want to read how they have resolved the problems and if there are any open lawsuits against them for unresolved issues.
- Check that your driveway is not shared with another house as this is a nightmare waiting to happen.
- Check local crime reports - redfin will have one right below the listing if you scroll down. Developments are easy targets for day time crime - even gated communities.
- You can find better investments for your money than planned communities. They do not appreciate as fast, usually are not the best quality, offer little by way of privacy, and are overly expensive once you add up all of the extras and fees that will bleed you on the monthly basis after closing.

Lepetitange3

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Re: Tell me about new construction homes.
« Reply #5 on: June 03, 2017, 08:14:19 AM »
Also YMMV, where I live in Florida, there's a housing shortage.  So even with builders building new in the same neighborhood,, the houses that are pre existing are having bidding wars because people who want to move in NOW don't have very many options.  It just all depends.  If you have any friends who are realtors, see if you can get the lay of the land from them in terms of your local market.  That will tell you how much room you have to negotiate hard.