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I live right on the border in a new construction area and if I bought in my city/neighborhood only to find out that I was really buying in neighboring city, it would have made the deal completely untenable. My neighborhood has excellent schools and high property values but if you moved my house to the other block, the schools are poor and the value of the home would be lessened by at least 25% for the exact same house, possibly more than that. (I'll know for sure when they start the new construction that will be going in on that other block!)
But given the fact that this is almost certainly just the post office calling it one place which means absolutely nothing as to the actual location of said place, the schools and whatnot are probably not changing.
There's two addresses you are dealing with. The legal address is the one that applies to your purchase not your mailing address. As long as the builder didn't give you a different lot you are out of luck here. You can hire a lawyer but I doubt they would be of much help if the legal address didn't change.
But given the fact that this is almost certainly just the post office calling it one place which means absolutely nothing as to the actual location of said place, the schools and whatnot are probably not changing.
If the other city has lower property values, it can still make a difference even though the actual location, schools, etc. are the same. It's possible that the value won't be affected, but why should the OP be the one to bear that risk when he or she signed a contract that said something else.
We see this frequently, USPS redraws their zip map and suddenly an exclusive neighborhood carries the same zip (and name) of a far less desirable community. In rural areas, there's a greater chance of having to suck it up and deal with it.....but as you get into more populated areas and owners/soon to be owners can petition their Representatives and USPS.
If this is a big deal to the OP don't only get an attorney, get the right attorney. (Find out who handled the development for the builder). Once you close, a whole lot of leverage is gone. Up until closing, the builder and other buyers are in your corner.
Is the house actually TDwithin the municipal boundaries of a different city than you thought...or is it simply that the mailing address is different? I suspect it's the latter.
Oftentimes, when you're in a rural area or simply a Township, the mailing address will be a nearby city. That mailing address doesn't change the underlying taxing jurisdiction you are in. Neither does it change the local school district boundaries. Those are the most important factors affecting housing values, beyond the house itself.
There was a similar situation in my area. A new subdivision of million-dollar houses was built in a local Township. It was in a very good school district--and had lower Township taxes--but many of the purchasers were upset to find out that it had a mailing address of a neighboring city which was not quite so affluent. It bruised a few egos but it didn't have much of an impact on their property values. Some even got post office boxes so they could use the address of the "better" city nearby. Many just use the Township name as their address--the mail still gets delivered.
And if this is the case make sure you get a legal document signed by a lawyer stating this. I found out that a lot of people and places give you wrong information because they don't know the correct information and their information is worthless so never believe what you're told and even if it's in writing if it's incorrect they don't have to adhere to it I have been given wrong information by a bank by a real estate agent and by the water company
It IS actually the mailing address which changed, however school district, tax jurisdiction (I think!) and amenities etc haven't changed at all. In terms of reputation, both are pretty decent. We have been moved from Austin TX to Round Rock TX and while Round Rock is reputable, we felt that being in "Austin" would improve our resale value.
The builder offered to refund 100% of our deposit, which isn't what we want to do since we have invested so much time and effort into the whole process, and are already envisioning ourselves living there
They are absolutely refusing any compensation based on the fact that the school district and location was still as desirable.....and their land, labor, construction costs etc had not changed with the change of address....
I think we are just going to have to leave it at that and hope for the best. We do not want to spoil our relationship with them, and I don't know if we have the capability to plead a case against such a huge building corporation....
Thank you once again for all your helpful responses!
It IS actually the mailing address which changed, however school district, tax jurisdiction (I think!) and amenities etc haven't changed at all. In terms of reputation, both are pretty decent. We have been moved from Austin TX to Round Rock TX and while Round Rock is reputable, we felt that being in "Austin" would improve our resale value.
This isn't going to matter. People in this area search for community name and schools, not actual city name. Many of the communities that are in "county" can use whatever city in the area they want as it's the zip code that matters. Much of that Northern Austin area that has an identity crisis will still use Austin as the city, but the zip will tell people where you are.
Much of the Lakeway/Bee Cave area has the same identity crisis as much is in "Travis County" and not within the city limits. Many people just use Austin as their address instead of Bee Cave, Lakeway, or The Hills (Yes, The Hills is its own city, but most people address them as Austin or Lakeway on envelopes).
It IS actually the mailing address which changed, however school district, tax jurisdiction (I think!) and amenities etc haven't changed at all. In terms of reputation, both are pretty decent. We have been moved from Austin TX to Round Rock TX and while Round Rock is reputable, we felt that being in "Austin" would improve our resale value.
The builder offered to refund 100% of our deposit, which isn't what we want to do since we have invested so much time and effort into the whole process, and are already envisioning ourselves living there
Well, you can't really expect the builder to do better than that. I'm not familiar with the area, but "Round Rock" sounds much more interesting. Hopefully, it will work out fine for you.
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