Holmes Homes and basement questions? (Tooele, Richmond: for sale, townhome, crawl space)

[srstacey]

Okay, we're moving to Stansbury. There are some Holmes homes for sale, ready to move in. Anyone heard anything about this builder? They don't seem to be selling as the Richmonds do. Also, how important is it to have a basement in UT for re sale?

[kaytidid]

Yay for a new neighbor in Stansbury!!!
We sold our first house sans basement rather quickly. This was at the height of the boom, so most anything that was standing on a lot of land was going to sell. Right now? Buyers have so much choice, that I think they would go for something that had a basement first. As far a resale value, you would probably be better off with one. The potential for the extra living space is just invaluable.

I think the Holmes builder doesn't have as great of a reputation as Richmond or Ivory. I haven't been through their models yet (LOVE doing that!!)

Welcome to Stansbury! I LOVE living here!!

[Tim Tim Tim]

I wouldnt buy one without a basement personally. Are you buying it for you to live in for a long time or just something for a few years tops? if its just for you then how important is hte basement to you?

Also I have wonderd why most of the houses out there dont have basements, is the water level to high over there or something? I have even been in a few that advertise basments and its actually about 4 feet tall. wtf are you going to do with that ? haha

[kaytidid]

Must have just been there area that you were looking. Actually, the majority of homes DO have basements out here. When John Laing was building (our first home) we bought in the first phase and they were not offering basements to keep costs down. They told us they would never offer basements. In the second phase, guess what was an option?? Ticked us off like no other! I have a full size basement in our home now.

I do remember looking at a Fieldstone model (because I like walking through them) and remember them saying that they only had a 4 foot crawl space, or something like that, for storage. Where they were building, the water table was supposedly too high. I found that hard to believe though, because if I am not mistaken, Richmond was building right around the same area and offered basements. There are homes right on the lake that have them too, and if the water table isn't too high there, why is it higher further in?
Personally, I wouldn't buy without a basement anymore either. My basement has never flooded at all. I am very surprised because the original owners of this house did some funky grading to the yard. If that is something she would be concerned about, there is always a sump pump.

[kwm03160]

Stay away from Holmes Homes! I've sent you a DM with my experience with them. They will say anything to get the sale made, but don't follow through with good warranty work, and the overall craftsmanship is not as good as they say it is. In addition, their pricing seems aggressive for the market. The subdivision had their grand opening last year; there's a reason why it is so bare. In addition, Holmes still has homes in Comiskey Park (in Tooele) unsold that were built in 2006!! I know the townhome community in Overlake has had major problems with Holmes, including bad PRV valves that they refuse to fix.

[srstacey]

Thank you guys so much! We had a bad feeling about the Holmes!