Is going the new construction route worth it? (Plano, Irving: hardwood floors, sale)

[ZestyCharles]

It seems like there are pros and cons to it, especially in this market in DFW.

If you go with a new construction home, it's much easier to actually get the house in this market, as you're not having to compete with dozens of other buyers on an existing home. You can take your time to decide what you want, and not have to make any quick decisions. Even with this housing shortage, new construction homes are very plentiful, and you often don't even need a realtor for them.

With a new construction home, you get (mostly) exactly what you want, since you go through the design center and builder's meeting to choose all your options that suit your lifestyle the most. You don't often have to "settle" for things you don't like, like with an existing home. (Yes, you can change anything you want in a home after you buy it, but structural changes are incredibly expensive post construction)

A new construction home will usually be incredibly energy efficient even compared to something built 5-10 years ago, and since everything is new and under warranty, you usually won't have to worry as much about an upcoming roof replacement or A/C unit replacement. This means that the actual monthly/yearly costs of a new construction home can often be lower.

Now for the downsides....

The biggest downside is that the builders seem to charge way more for the house than what it's actually worth when you go to close on it, especially if you did a lot of upgrades. It's not uncommon to pay 10 or even 20% more for the price of the house than what you could immediately sell it for upon closing. That's a lot of money to be effectively throwing down the drain. This can be mitigated quite a bit if you get the house on a big builder's sale or opt to do certain upgrades yourself. In this current market, the price of your house may appreciate in value 5-10% in between the time that you signed the contract and closed on the home which can also offset this. It seems like the higher end builders charge a lot more than what the house is worth than production builders do.

Building a home can be a lot of work and frustration. There are so many choices to make, and you have to really stay on top of the builder to make sure they're doing everything correctly.

Just as there are many things that can go wrong in an older home, there are many things that can go wrong in a new home since everything is new and hasn't been used yet.

Personally, I went with a new construction house and am glad I did, but if the market wasn't as crazy I probably would have gone with a pre-owned home.

[BigDGeek]

I've witnessed coworkers go through the agony of having houses built. It seemed like so much more trouble than it was worth.

Plus there's the additional pain of an extra long commute (for some of us anyway) if you want new construction that you can AFFORD. Sure, they in-fill new houses in other parts of DFW...but we can't afford it!

[ZestyCharles]

Originally Posted by BigDGeek

I've witnessed coworkers go through the agony of having houses built. It seemed like so much more trouble than it was worth.

Plus there's the additional pain of an extra long commute (for some of us anyway) if you want new construction that you can AFFORD. Sure, they in-fill new houses in other parts of DFW...but we can't afford it!

The commute is a separate issue entirely. I work in Plano and so new construction in McKinney works well for me. I choose to work in Plano for a slightly lower pay than what I'd probably get if I were to take a similar job in say, Irving, but obviously the commute is so much better. And I get to work from home 1-2 days a week which is something becoming increasingly common.

I always hear people say that having a house built is agonizing and a lot of work. But honestly I haven't had that experience. I went with a production builder that builds hundreds of my floorplan though, so they have it down to a science.

My parents went with a fully custom builder, and yes their experience was quite different and required much more hands-on attention.

[CookieBoss80]

My first home was builder's inventory, built second one with a "custom" mass builder, current home was an existing truly custom built. All had some pros and cons. Something has to give, no matter if it's age of the house, size of the lot, location, commute, builder, schools, resale, views, upgrades, floor plan etc etc. My next target is to buy a smaller and older single story home with a more convenient location and bigger lot.

[biafra4life]

It's part astonishing and part scary how much home prices have soared over the last few years. Case in point: I live in an unfashionable suburb (Wylie) in its most unfashionable part (east Wylie) yet driving around I see new developments popping up starting in the $300s. In my subdivision, 3 bed 2 bath 2,000 sq ft homes are going for close to $300K! Unbelievable. Yet like the OP says, that's still easier than the dog fight for pre owned homes even here in Wylie. I can only imagine how much worse it is in hipper burbs like Frisco or Plano.

[Rakin]

I compare it to being pregnant....An initial thrill, then 9 months of discomfort, growing pains and agony but worth the effort in the end.

Then you have to take care of it for the next 20 years and get some Govt write offs.

[Threestep2]

We bids the custom build, total remodel of pre owned and remodel of new. It can get stressful but in my experience good planing is key.

[ImpartialBias]

I have a few friends who just had homes built. For most of them, it boiled down to a couple common reasons why they went that route.

Modern, up to date style and finishes. For a $300k price point, you won't be getting nice hard hardwood floors, granite counters, fireplace, and you may have to deal with updating brass hardware/carpet/wallpaper all throughout the house if you're buying used, depending on location.

So, my friends wanted a newer style home, open floor plan, etc. Buying new, they got all that, with the caveat that they got less sq footage.

Location. In established neighborhoods that are highly desirable, they were priced out when trying to find a home that had the features they wanted. They had to go further out.

Customization. Some of my friends like the idea of being able to choose their own finishes and design, and have their home be move in ready the way they wanted vs buying a home and doing extensive renovation afterwards.