Anyone here ever bought a BRAND new house? (feedback, 2014, settlement)

[RosemaryT]

I'm an architectural historian and I've written a bunch of books on old houses. Between that, and my background in rehab (early 20th Century construction), I'm an expert in my niche field.

However, I don't know anything about new construction!

I know new houses are more energy efficient and quieter, and have some other positive features, but that's about all I know.

My husband and I are *contemplating* buying a new house (after his retirement), built by Lennar Homes. There's a development in a nearby town that has caught our eye.

Right now, it's just an option on the table, but before we leave our stunningly beautiful, custom-built Mid-Century Modern brick ranch on the water, I'd like to know a little something more about new houses.

Are they fraught with hidden problems? Are the framing members any good? Does the sheetrock pop and split? How is the workmanship? How about the materials?

Are you glad you bought a new house? Do you wish you'd done something different?

Thanks for any insights.

PS. I know that sometimes these threads "drift," so let's not get into the whys and wherefores of our potential move, but stick with the quality of NEW houses!

THANKS!!!

BTW, I will miss the 1950s! My current house has style!

[ocngypz]

All my homes have been brand new, with the exception of my current home which was gutted and rebuilt.

However, all homes were either spec or custom and not by production line builders. All were local, well-respected builders.

[RosemaryT]

This *is* a "production-line builder," (Lennar Homes) which makes me a little nervous.

All of my houses have been at least 50 years old, and some more than 100 years old. This is new territory for me.

So, were you pleased with your "new house"? :/

[MikeJaquish]

Walk through some of Lennar's product during construction, before insulation and sheetrock are up.
That is a great time to assess construction quality.

Is the framing neat and tight, with few gaps? Or, are there gaps between multiple studs, between headers and jack studs, between wall panels (if it is panelized construction) where they meet? I have been in production homes recently, not Lennar, where gaps between wall panels were as much as 1", and were not closed in with lumber, just two studs hammered to meet.
I think you will see a fair amount of 24" O.C. framing, particularly in floors and non-load-bearing partitions.
It will "meet or exceed" minimum code.

Durability will be different from what you are accustomed. Not implying that the house will spontaneously collapse or anything.
But, it will move a bit more. So you will see more nail pops in sheetrock, more deflection in floors as you walk through, than you will in a typical custom home. And your current home has probably stabilized and settled all it is going to, unless you have some serious ground issues.
You won't have the solid wood cabinetry you appear to have in your current home. Even if you upgrade to wood doors, most tract builders will just have wood fronts on the same 3/8" particle board boxes.

But, yes, energy efficiency will almost certainly be much better. Air infiltration is addressed through out construction with caulking and foam. Insulation levels are much higher than in mid-century construction, sometimes even with 6" exterior walls. Insulated windows are the rule.

[bbronston]

It is tough to generalize about Lennar since they are so big and in so many different places. Your experience will have less to do with it being Lennar and more to do with having an exceptional building supervisor. If you get a good one, he will be very detail oriented and will keep his subs in line and on time. I'd want to see what his job site looks like. Is it clean and is all the trash in a dumpster or is it all scattered around the site? What is the quality of the lumber used for framing? Are they careful with insulation or do they leave lots of gaps? If the development is largely finished and you are looking at completed houses, drive around and ask the current owners about their experience with the quality and the warranty repair people. All new construction will go through a settling process so you might see some evidence of that but it is normal.

[twingles]

My parents bought a new home 5 years ago when they moved here to NC. Their builder is not known for ... ahem.... quality work (it's not Lennar) but they were very happy with the supervisor assigned to oversee the build of their specific house. My parents (particularly my mom) are pretty astute as far as workmanship and terminology as well. They have had a few problems, mostly due to the fact that the builder offers no options for upgrades (i.e., they've already replaced the cheap-o garbage disposal and bathroom faucets). They also had a small leak in their roof that was fixed under the one year warranty. I know some of their neighbors have dealt with some similar stuff.

Other than that the house was built fine. They were here when it was being built, as was my BIL (a former builder himself) and were able to monitor the framing, etc. I haven't seen any nail pops or things that don't look plumb. Honestly the strangest things about their house is that they have - no exaggeration - about 15 light switches on the wall between the kitchen and DR (it's an open floor plan) and I don't think they know, to this day, what controls what, LOL.

My parents never had a new house before, in fact the house I grew up in was built in 1933 and then they downsized to a really poorly built townhouse in NY before they moved here. They have loved living in new construction, even with the hiccups.

[linnemj]

Probably one thing we would change if we bought a new house again would be to specifiy what components were used. Our current home has a low end HVCA unit which has need repeated repairs. Our toilets are lower end and the gaskets need replacement about once a year. The only other advice I have if you proceed is not to be afraid to be a pain in the ass in a nice way to ensure things are done correctly. We were so excited about our new home, we did not make them make several changes (larger kitchen pantry, floor tile tranisitons, gaps in some door molding, ect) that we should have.

Like everything else in life - older construction vs. new construction has tradeoffs.

Good luck!

[LCTMadison]

I've bought two brand new houses....had both thoroughly inspected and have had no issues.

There is something to be said about older homes, however. They have stood the test of time. Most settlement issues have revealed themselves. New homes are going to have some settlement and things like nail pops, slight hairline tile cracking, etc can be normal (at least in my area).

Like someone else said, each have their trade offs.

I would start by picking the brains of 2-3 reputable home inspectors in your area who have inspected the homes built by this builder and see what their feedback has been on the construction quality and any issues they may have noticed. Walk thru the neighborhood one day after work or a weekend and see what kind of feedback you can get from current homeowners. The quality of those homes built in your specific area is going to be determined by the construction managers and subcontractors used.

New construction is going to vary in quality from builder to builder and area to area so it is going to be really hard for you to get solid information on this particular builder/neighborhood from someone who has not dealt with them firsthand.

[Bungalove]

Oh hey, Rosemary! I've followed your posts through several forums (I was DowntownDahlgren on oldhouseweb) - you certainly have done a lot of house restoration in the past few years. Now, for my experience in new house construction. My late H and I bought a brand new house when we got married, back in 1991, from Pulte Construction.It was part of a new, "high end" subdivision for DC commuters. There were things that I didn't notice, like the wavy walls (being an old house person) that he did. We both noticed the leak that sprang out of the basement wall during the first heavy rain (turned out there was an underground stream that came through the poured concrete foundation wall.) There were a fair number of nail pops, a poor quality roof (we replaced it after 5 years), and polybutylene plumbing throughout which, thankfully, never sprung a leak before we sold it 10 years later. We also had a large punch list at closing which was never adequately addressed, because the builder pulled out of the subdivision soon after finishing our section. The entire experience just reinforced my love for old houses, and I was at least able to convince my hubs to buy a solid older 70's brick rancher for our last house.

[Nor'Eastah]

We bought 33 acres in northern Maine 2 years ago, right after I retired. In the summer of 2013, I and two relatives built a small (1120 sq ft) ranch house on it. So it is brand-new construction.

Having a hand in building your home yourself has many benefits (besides the obvious one, of cost). I know where all the studs are, how thick the insulation is (8" in exterior walls) and what grade of materials I used. But the real test is living in it. We moved in during June of 2014, and are still in our first year. We couldn't be happier. It is warm, tight, quiet and as stylish as we cared to have it. The interior is tongue-in-groove pine, for a 'cabin' look, although it's not a cabin. If you haven't tried a new house before, I recommend it!