New or Used Homes

[thegirlinaz]

The only thing I worry about having a brand new home be built for you is the developer. Many developers are going bankrupt and if you invest money going into a home they are building for you, and they go under, there is a good chance you will not get your money back and you will also not get your new home if it isn't finished.

[potatosoup]

Originally Posted by thegirlinaz

The only thing I worry about having a brand new home be built for you is the developer. Many developers are going bankrupt and if you invest money going into a home they are building for you, and they go under, there is a good chance you will not get your money back and you will also not get your new home if it isn't finished.

Isn't the answer here pretty simple, find a developer that either is a publicly traded company and hence has open books, or a local developer that has a strong reputation and can show a positive balance sheet upon request.

Due diligence is key I agree.

[brightdoglover]

Building new doesn't always have to mean a tract home or mass builder, etc.
I bought a crumbling cottage in 1992 and it finally fell apart by 2000. I had a new custom house (1250 sq.ft.) built on the same spot. The great thing about building new is you can include only those things you want to pay for, and not things you don't want. For instance, I have a tiny kitchen. I needed a custom floor plan due to the many limits the town put on me for size, setbacks, etc. I wanted a full bath on the first floor for possible stair limitations in the future. I wanted central air, which few older homes in eastern Mass. have. I got to put in high-end touches where I wanted to, especially because the house is small compared to most tract/box houses, so Italian tile in the bathroom was still only a small number of tiles. Etc.
If you take a plan from a book, a builder can always make modifications that you prefer, within reason. And a builder might be an individual contractor, not a mass builder. I had a contractor who lived down the street for my house. He built his house, his brother's and mine, all within some 100 yards of each other. Otherwise, he builds additions, remodels, etc. No mass building. He joked that I couldn't delay payments, since he knew where I lived- and I pointed out that I know where his children sleep!
Oh a hint. Do not work from a plan designed by a mad artist. Get a basic plan off the Internet or a plan book and make modifications.

[Dizzydog]

Well I buy and sell houses for a living and I can honestly say that there is no chance of me buying a new home in this market. Especially in the SW areas like Arizona and Vegas.

Im buying AZ homes right now for about $40-50 per square foot at auction.

[M3 Mitch]

Totally depends on if existing homes are going at a discount (AZ, FL) or a premium (Seacoast, NH) to new construction, and on how close to what you want you can find existing.

Last time I bought a house it was 1991, all told I have owned 4 homes, all bought as resales, and as far as I know each one was bought for less than a similar new construction would have cost.

[Elke Mariotti]

Don't know about the rest of the country, but here on Long Island, RE taxes on new construction are definitely higher (and they're high to begin with ), so for me, resale is preferred...

[Debi18]

And there's those that prefer new, like me. Since 1983 I have built and lived in 3 houses, the only time I've ever lived in an "existing" house was the temporary rental I lived in for 4 months when my last/current house was being built. I'm one of those people that just prefer to build it my way from the beginning and love the process of doing so. Much easier to do from scratch than to buy existing and then try to remodel. Just ask Ty Pennington