Advice on pre construct and newly built homes.. (Tampa: short sales, apartment)

[ironsmurf]

Ive read a lot of the pros and cons on the above but would like to hear peoples experiences.. Ive had a look at some properties in riverview and they look fantastic but I am very wary when something looks too good to be true.. I know some have had issues with construction quality but surely all new homes cant be bad.. after all EVERY home started as a new home right? Anyway any help with this would be greatly appreciated..

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by ironsmurf

I know some have had issues with construction quality but surely all new homes cant be bad.. after all EVERY home started as a new home right?

Bear in mind the older homes that were once new homes, were built with integrity (sorely lacking with many builders) as well as quality materials like concrete block versus timber-frame construction. A partially remodeled 1970s home is going to far outlast a new build. The premise that new homes are somehow superior to existing homes has always amused me.

[bentlebee]

The major benefit is the warranty part...but with any home you buy you can buy Home Warranty, so keep that in mind and many home warranties from builders are not transferable so keep that in mind, if you want to sell, buyers don't like that.

Also many owners of the land that builders are building on are now putting in the little letters that they will receive a 10% every time the home is sold, which can be a huge disadvantage. This is something that should be clearly disclosed but mostly will be told to you so fast in between all other things that you probably won't even hear it...Many have a time frame of 99 years.

For example every home, or apartment, condo in Saddlebrook has a trasnfer fee of at least $ 1700. Even if the deed transfers from parents to their kids...That is a huge amount even if the same people are staying in the home...To me that is a rip off and I would never buy such a home...but that is JMO!

[ironsmurf]

Thanks for the replies folks.. thats great advice.. Looking further into it there must be some good deals to be had.. I gather its a case of covering all areas ie researching the builder, having the home inspected, getting a good attorney etc? Fairly basic questions but as Im movibg there from scotland I just dont know and its very hard to get impartial advice..

[TampaKaren]

It depends on your personal preference; there are advantages and disadvantages to both. A newer home is built with a more restrictive construction code so it has a higher wind tolerance. Therefore, the carrying costs for an older, similar-sized home will cost more in the long run, for example in deferred maintenance and homeowner's insurance. IMO, one advantage of many in an older home is usually the lot sizes are larger and the greenscapes are more mature giving the neighborhood a more lived in look.

One thing you might not know is that in 2004, there were 4 hurricanes in Florida in a short period of time (Charley, Frances, Ivan, & Jean). Homes that were under construction during this time period were left exposed to the weather and the adverse results are still showing up in leaky windows, roofs, wood rot, stucco cracks, etc. You should have the house inspected whether it's a used house or new construction. If you contract for a new house, make sure you engage the inspector before the slab is poured.

[TampaKaren]

Originally Posted by bentlebee

Also many owners of the land that builders are building on are now putting in the little letters that they will receive a 10% every time the home is sold, which can be a huge disadvantage. This is something that should be clearly disclosed but mostly will be told to you so fast in between all other things that you probably won't even hear it...Many have a time frame of 99 years.

For example every home, or apartment, condo in Saddlebrook has a trasnfer fee of at least $ 1700. Even if the deed transfers from parents to their kids...That is a huge amount even if the same people are staying in the home...To me that is a rip off and I would never buy such a home...but that is JMO!

This pops up every once in a while. I don't know how Saddlebrook gets around it, but private transfer fees in Florida are illegal. This recent article below is pretty good.

Some states ban private transfer fees | HeraldTribune.com

[housingcrashsurvivor]

I bought two older Tampa houses featuring deferred maintenance (one was actually scary), but at the appropriate price such that bringing them back to shape (new kitchens to new windows, etc, all to my taste) keeps costs under area recent sales on a cost per sq ft basis. I love the mature trees (I've more than 30 of them) and amount of property as I'm into gardening and ran out of room to plant at my last home. I'd never find this in a new development at such a price, nor so close to town at pretty much any price.

Existing stock can be hardened to better withstand hurricanes which I might do to the frame house but my block house is totally solid including every rafter strapped (though I may harden the gabled ends). I don't know that it will make such a big difference in insurance costs here because I'm pretty far inland, in the 110 mph zone, having relocated out of a 140 mph zone. That previous home was a Dade County Pine structure built in the 40s and it was just about as solid as block and hurricane hardened originally & tested well a number of times.

While newer developments were built in an age of more stringent codes, they were also constructed during a frantic building boom and so I would question as to whether there was proper inspection during construction. Probably there was plenty of opportunity for cost cutting and that might put quality and even presumed safety at risk.

So I think it is not so easy to say that an older home is more solid because people cared so much more about quality before or that a newer home is so much better because of current codes. I think you still have to carefully investigate what you are buying on an individual basis, regardless of when it was built.

[StreetSmarts]

Get it inspected!

[bentlebee]

Originally Posted by TampaKaren

This pops up every once in a while. I don't know how Saddlebrook gets around it, but private transfer fees in Florida are illegal. This recent article below is pretty good.

Some states ban private transfer fees | HeraldTribune.com

Thanks for the article. I have sent it to friends of mine who live in Saddlebrook and almost every HOA/CDD meeting they had so far Mr. Dempsey didn't want to discuss issues like this and home owners were left with having an awful hard time selling their small apartment. Can you imagine for a 1 bedroom apartment this large amount....

[HughMcs]

I can't tell you how informative the information on this thread has been. My wife and I visited the area a couple of months ago and looked at 10 homes in both Pinellas and Pasco. With the exception of one house they all looked "beat up" and they really weren't very old homes. We looked at homes in Texas that appear to have been built around the same time and they were in much better shape than the one's in Florida. Granted almost all that we were shown were in some form of financial distress (short sales or soon to be short sales/foreclosures). But in addition to not only to have cosmetically been neglected by previous owners (needing new paint, new rugs, all new appliances...) they looked worn out. I originally thought it might be because of the weather but we have more sever weather in NY than in Florida and our home looks better. I know it gets hot in Florida and has storms but so does South Texas and the homes there look better. I then thought that maybe it was the quality of the building materials or that the builders, during the boom, needed crews so bad that they went to the local bar and hired the first ten men who said they knew how to swing a hammer.
I guess the reason for my impression is a combination of all three factors. The only house that really looked OK has the "model" house. When I inquired as to why this home fared better over time I was told (1) no one ever lived in it and (2) the home has all the "bells and whistles" and they didn't cut corners when building it.