DR Horton experience/reputation (Frisco, Murphy: homeowners association, affordable houses, neighborhood)

[hughesfamily06]

Hello,

Anyone build with DR Horton lately? How was your experience? Any quality issues? Were they responsive to your concerns? I am looking at them in a community where their prices are $280-380k with pretty nice standard features, great schools and good lot sizes. Any feedback would be much appreciated.

[mikestrong]

Great value. Quality is hit or miss. Lot of turnover which can lead to problems with construction.

[hughesfamily06]

Looking for more feedback from anyone with firsthand experience....

[MurphyPl1]

Here is the link to the Ranch HOA website. That is a DR Horton community (possibly the one you are looking at?). If you click the board members I'm sure they wouldn't mind giving you some feedback about the homes and the neighborhood. I know Michele is very active and probably wouldn't mind sharing her thoughts (and I do think she'd be honest, not all sunshine and light).

The Gables website (they share a pool with the Ranch) isn't as user friendly or I'd set you in that direction too.

Hope this helps in your research>

[hughesfamily06]

[quote=MurphyPl1;34472475]Here is the link to the Ranch HOA website. That is a DR Horton community (possibly the one you are looking at?). If you click the board members I'm sure they wouldn't mind giving you some feedback about the homes and the neighborhood. I know Michele is very active and probably wouldn't mind sharing her thoughts (and I do think she'd be honest, not all sunshine and light).

The Gables website (they share a pool with the Ranch) isn't as user friendly or I'd set you in that direction too.

Hope this helps in your research>[/QUOTe


@MurphyP11
I don't see the link.

[MurphyPl1]

The Ranch Homeowners Association - Murphy, Texas

Sorry about that. I guess when I did the hyper link, it didn't like it

[KeyToFrisco]

They're decent. They build a good home for the money with a great deal of upgrades included in the base price. They are a high-volume, so tend to build quickly and may have smaller imperfections like walls that aren't straight or square. Be sure to check up on the job site frequently. Point out any concerns to the general contractor or your rep. Especially go after each phase- foundation, framing, drywall, etc. I always recommend doing this with any builder as they almost all hire sub-contractors. You can hire inspectors that will inspect the quality at each pase of building. This can be a bit costly, but is worthwhile in the long run. Cities will require this to an extent for permiting, but the inspector is looking out for your best interests, not just the minimum required by code.

Avoid doing off-plan changes, that seems to be where the majority of issues pop up. If you do, get it all in writing and be VERY clear about what it is you want. Check on these changes more frequently. The workers are used to building the standard plans, not custom homes.

I have seen them have issues, but I've seen them be very responsive to those issues and take care of the customers. For what it's worth, they wouldn't be able to claim "#1 builer 11 years in a row" if they had many big issues or didn't take care of their customers.

[hazergore1198]

They are one of those "quantity over quality" builders, but there are worse builders out there. I've known a few people who's DR Horton homes started falling apart after 10 years, but others have been more lucky. But they tend to build fairly affordable houses, so it all balances out, I guess.

[hughesfamily06]

Originally Posted by MurphyPl1

The Ranch Homeowners Association - Murphy, Texas

Sorry about that. I guess when I did the hyper link, it didn't like it

Thanks MurphyP11!

[hughesfamily06]

Originally Posted by KeyToFrisco

They're decent. They build a good home for the money with a great deal of upgrades included in the base price. They are a high-volume, so tend to build quickly and may have smaller imperfections like walls that aren't straight or square. Be sure to check up on the job site frequently. Point out any concerns to the general contractor or your rep. Especially go after each phase- foundation, framing, drywall, etc. I always recommend doing this with any builder as they almost all hire sub-contractors. You can hire inspectors that will inspect the quality at each pase of building. This can be a bit costly, but is worthwhile in the long run. Cities will require this to an extent for permiting, but the inspector is looking out for your best interests, not just the minimum required by code.

Avoid doing off-plan changes, that seems to be where the majority of issues pop up. If you do, get it all in writing and be VERY clear about what it is you want. Check on these changes more frequently. The workers are used to building the standard plans, not custom homes.

I have seen them have issues, but I've seen them be very responsive to those issues and take care of the customers. For what it's worth, they wouldn't be able to claim "#1 builer 11 years in a row" if they had many big issues or didn't take care of their customers.

Thanks KeyToFrisco!