Ryland or Drees home? (wood floors, real estate, foreclosed)

[at home america girl]

What is your thoughts on these builders? I know they are production builders, but I want to know if they build a good home. We were in the area this weekend and toured models for both. They seem like good builders, but would like some more info. from residents who live in these homes. Any input would be great!

[ComputerConsultingLLC]

I live in a Drees home - I had them redo a lot of the work. I wasn't satisfied. By work I mean: all new wood floors, retile bathrooms, new sink, new siding, new windows, repaint much of the house inside... the list goes on and on.

They did work with me through it all, but some of the stuff was very very hard to convince them and you have to be tough and stick to your guns. Sometimes I threatened with law suits. So as you can see - I had a wonderful experience. They floor layout is great, you just have to watch yourself with these builders.

Honestly - now is not the time to be building. There are too many good deals out there. And if that subdivision isn't built out - you could be sitting with empty lots for years to come - and the builder can drop prices on you in a heart beat and your property value will go down.

Consider a real estate agent and buying an already built house - or even better yet - a foreclosed home and put some money into fixing it up. You will do much better.

[webuser]

I wonder, Can you compare Ryland with Drees? Ryland is production builder and Drees is Semi custom builder. Both are good in their levels. But I think you are comparing apples and oranges.


I heard from this post, Drees are hard to work with but their quality is semi custom standard. Ryland you get more sqft for your money. Drees, you get to choose the custom finish with price.

[ImGibby]

It depends on what price level you are comparing....the higher end homes by Ryland are comparable to Drees, but Ryland does build less expensive / cheaper homes as well. Drees is probably slight better on quality, but not much, as long as you are comparing in the same price range.

As far as the consctruction problems, keep this in mind: It's not the builder that does the tile work and flooring etc....it's the sub contractors. And it is the project managers job to make sure the sub contractors are delivering quality work. So even if you go with a "good" builder, it is possible to end up with sub standard project manager and/or sub contractors that result in a final product that is not to your liking. Sure it is ultimately the responsibility of the builder, but be careful about judging a builder on something that may have been the result of a sub contractor, if that makes any sense.

My advice is to be involved throughout the construction process...stop by and check things out periodaclly through out the construction process, and when you see things you don't like, get them fixed asap. It is usually easier for them to make repairs before the house is complete, especially if the contractors in question are still on site, and the builder is usually more receptive to this approach than waiting until your fianl walk through or after you close.

And just for the record, "More sq. ft. for less money" is actually CP Morgans motto, and I would not compare either of these builders (Ryland or Drees) to them, that is apples and oranges....but I understand where you are coming from with that remark.

[cutie1001]

My first house was a ryland price range of 200 thousand for 2000 square feet. I had some problems with them but the house was ok. Most of my problems were with paint. A few things could not get fix. Ryland is easier to deal with when you have problems.

Drees is not the best builder to deal with. They build a beautiful home and most upgrades are included in the price. But when things break they don't know how to fix it. If they don't redo it from scatch they don't know how to fix it. You have to fight for everything. With a new home you need to look at it as a money pit because unil the builders are done in your area. Your house is going to take longer to sell and will sell at a lower price unless the housing market go up and the builders can not buid them fast enough then then you have a shot.

I would look at a spec at this time as the market is and find out what the other builders are doing on thier houses.

In texas Drees is doing 100000 off of the price and paying all closing cost. on done house. Your realtor is getting extra 15 thousand on top of his 3 percent com.

One of my friends bought a house in oct and it has already gone down in price by 10 percent. They are getting a better interest rate.


With every new home that you get you are going to find a lot of things that are not right or that you missed.


Remember that all the builder use the same company for pumbling and ac ect.

I would find the house not the builder that you want. Location Location is the most important thing with the house.

When any builder build a house their are problems and things that have to be fixed so good luck.

[1BigBear]

I have built 3 homes(not with Ry or Drees) the last with CENTEX homes and they, by far are the best.! especially now, when they are not as busy as ususal. They are very good at staying on top of everything.! Quality, options...price... very good.

[minilover]

If you have some time I would suggest that you look at Estridge homes. They build a very nice home and offer a 3 year home warranty vs. the normal 1 year builder warranty. My husband and I bought one of their spec homes after looking at Drees, Ryland, M/I and Pulte. I would buy a home from them again.

[casualsurfer]

I also recommend Shoopman Homes, great service, local builder.

I live in a Ryland and they're OK though I have to say that with any builder you'll need to do a thorough walkthrough before accepting the home. Better hire someone to do it for you or with you as well.

[Rsiddiqui]

I have just moved in a home built by Drees few weeks ago. I am very satisfied with their work. We had regular meetings with builder throughout the building process. The builder was very helpful in correcting items. We love almost everything about the house. I had a very positive experience with Drees. If I have to build another home, I would not hesitate to get it build by Drees.

[jcamber]

My wife and I one walked through a finished Ryland model. We were really surprised to see the size of some of the rooms... just tiny. I don't think you could even fit a full size bed in those rooms. We were told the focus for space was in other rooms (i.e. family room, kitchen) and some bedrooms were left small on purpose. Maybe they have changed their strategy since, this was back in ~2005.