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You could expand your horizons and look at existing housing stock and not new builds. If you can't find exactly what you want, you can certainly renovate.
Otherwise you are at the mercy of the builder.
Exactly...
Of the 5 homes we've owned, the first 2 were new builds. In addition to some of what the OP describes, you are also the first to have to add "stuff" to the house. Drapery rods, mailbox, water softener, sod, storm doors/windows, garage workbench and shelves, trees, shrubs, fencing, sandbox, swing set, etc etc.
So the next 3 had most or all of that already, plus previous owner upgrades like vanity sinks, Jenn-Air range, garage door opener, redwood patio deck, etc.
How do I get a final firm price before signing? What are the best ways to handle this?
For those who say ‘just play hardball, and don’t buy,’ we are looking in cities with very hot RE sellers markets.
This is one of the reasons I don't want to buy a new home. I remember seeing some Toll Brothers model homes and it has every possible upgrade in them. So there are two prices, the basic price which includes almost nothing such as no deck, cheap kitchen cabinets. And then the price with all the upgrades you see.
The thing is, wait a couple of years when those higher priced homes come on the market and you can buy them for much closer to the basic price. This is because those upgrades don't really have a general market value. It isn't like a 3 vs 4 bedroom home for an area. No one thinks about the more expensive options when they look at a house, but they cost the new home builder a premium price.
This is one of the reasons I don't want to buy a new home. I remember seeing some Toll Brothers model homes and it has every possible upgrade in them. So there are two prices, the basic price which includes almost nothing such as no deck, cheap kitchen cabinets. And then the price with all the upgrades you see.
The thing is, wait a couple of years when those higher priced homes come on the market and you can buy them for much closer to the basic price. This is because those upgrades don't really have a general market value. It isn't like a 3 vs 4 bedroom home for an area. No one thinks about the more expensive options when they look at a house, but they cost the new home builder a premium price.
Not in my market! My house has appreciated in value by almost 35% - based on recent closed sales including one two doors down from me with comparable upgrades.
And as far as new construction? My model is still being built in my area (a large planned urban community). The base price is now 100K more than it was when I signed my contract exactly 4 years ago.
OF course, the $0 premium lot was already sold. There was only one or two. Dog lots.
Keep it simple. The stress is too much for some people.
Buy a resale. Fix the price in the contract. What you see, and what you don't see, is what you get.
We want an energy efficient open concept single story home, the resale market for that is very slim to begin with - everyone builds and buys two stories where we’re looking. And we really don’t want a 55+ community, which limits resale even more drastically. The cost to renovate an old home to match what were after is cost prohibitive, it would almost have to be a teardown.
We want an energy efficient open concept single story home, the resale market for that is very slim to begin with - everyone builds and buys two stories where we’re looking. And we really don’t want a 55+ community, which limits resale even more drastically. The cost to renovate an old home to match what were after is cost prohibitive, it would almost have to be a teardown.
Just ask for a builder option price sheet for that model. I’ve never had an issue getting one in any of the 5 new builds I’ve purchased.
They won’t be super detailed, but you can get very dang close.
We want an energy efficient open concept single story home, the resale market for that is very slim to begin with - everyone builds and buys two stories where we’re looking. And we really don’t want a 55+ community, which limits resale even more drastically. The cost to renovate an old home to match what were after is cost prohibitive, it would almost have to be a teardown.
Sure. I get it.
But your wants and needs and market realities need to find alignment and reasonable mutual accommodation.
In a red hot market, you may get decent service from the builder, within their model, but you are not going to bend a national production builder to your will.
If you like the product you see and know a general final price range, you will HAVE to go to contract and through the design center to pin down a final price.
How much deposit do you need to tie up a lot, make your structural decisions to go to contract and then get to the design center to arrive at a final price?
I have seen as low as $2000, and see many folks hit their budgets in the end without terrible compromises.
And, they have the ability to walk away only down $2000 if their expectations are unrealistic and they blow the budget on upgrades.
Yes, it can be inconvenient how the sales process is structured,. Having been through it many times, I can see how for the builder it is very efficient. They close more deals with less work than if they are freely spec'ing out a lot of homes in detail just to have dabblers, tire-kickers, and lookie-loos walk away without buying.
And the model allows them to offer a great many options and combinations of options. If they were playing the free estimate game, they would probably limit options severely.
Perhaps you should look at communities that are modeled on 55+ but don't go through the formalities to get HUD approval for 55+. We have several in my area.
Thank you very much Mike! Earnest money would be $4300, hard for me to just walk away from.
Quote:
Originally Posted by RoamingTX
Just ask for a builder option price sheet for that model. I’ve never had an issue getting one in any of the 5 new builds I’ve purchased.
They won’t be super detailed, but you can get very dang close.
I must be asking wrong, because I have asked each builder we were serious about and gotten nothing but verbal bits and pieces. They just tell me there are ’so many options it would be XX pages’ (OK by me), though I know they could give me one. Chicken and the egg...
Thank you very much Mike! Earnest money would be $4300, hard for me to just walk away from.
I must be asking wrong, because I have asked each builder we were serious about and gotten nothing but verbal bits and pieces. They just tell me there are ’so many options it would be XX pages’ (OK by me), though I know they could give me one. Chicken and the egg...
Part of the builder's issues is the spreadsheet nature of options.
"If you select "A," you must select "B," but you cannot select "C," "D," or "E," unless you add "F," and with "F" chosen you can then also choose either "D," or "E."
But you cannot select "A," if you have chosen "Elevation B," and have not chosen structural upgrade "1" and "2."
I'm not kidding. There is a lot of give and take when you are working with a host of options, even in many cookie cutter neighborhoods.
Honestly, the print out can be as confusing as it may be helpful.
Part of the builder's issues is the spreadsheet nature of options.
"If you select "A," you must select "B," but you cannot select "C," "D," or "E," unless you add "F," and with "F" chosen you can then also choose either "D," or "E."
But you cannot select "A," if you have chosen "Elevation B," and have not chosen structural upgrade "1" and "2."
I'm not kidding. There is a lot of give and take when you are working with a host of options, even in many cookie cutter neighborhoods.
Honestly, the print out can be as confusing as it may be helpful.
I don’t doubt that at all. I’m an engineer so I am sure I could easily understand the info if I had it, so it’s a little frustrating that I can’t see it all. But it is what it is.
And you make a good point earlier that giving prospects a completely detailed price would lead to a lot of tire kickers, and/or confusion for most customers, wasting their time.
I don’t doubt that at all. I’m an engineer so I am sure I could easily understand the info if I had it, so it’s a little frustrating that I can’t see it all. But it is what it is.
And you make a good point earlier that giving prospects a completely detailed price would lead to a lot of tire kickers, and/or confusion for most customers, wasting their time.
I worked in home improvement and roofing sales long enough to empathize with anyone who wants to avoid spending too much time with tire kickers, and they certainly are out there in the real estate world.
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