Cookie Cutter Builder (e.g., Ryan homes, etc.) are a joke and overpriced (buying, money)
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When DH and I were downsizing we looked at new construction. I remember one place that had all the glitzy stuff in the kitchen- island, quartz countertops, stainless steel appliances. The guest bathroom was built with a crummy pre-fab plastic tub and shower enclosure.
No, thanks.
The neighborhood I live in was built in 2004 by a local builder. Most of the homes are large, beautiful all brick. But they put the prefab acrylic tubs and showers in both the guest and master baths! Admittedly, these units are not AS cheapie as some of the lower end products, but still...... It surprises me when I see homes go on the market in my neighborhood that so few people have taken the step to upgrade even the master shower to tile. I have only been in my house about 2 years and have been chipping away at doing repairs and upgrades....the master shower is my next project.
In my area the primary builders are Lennar, Maracay, DR Horton, and Fulton. They all seem to have decent quality to the models... but then again, they are the models. I've visited a few units which are almost ready to be sold and they seem to be built alright. Not sure what "quality" issues you're talking about. "Quality" is so subjective.
But in general, you should expect to pay over market pricing for a new home. Just because of it's new construction-never-lived-in-before status. It's not surprising if you can find an equivalent house (sq footage/neighborhood) for quite a bit less $/sq ft.
Well yeah... currently it costs more per sq ft to build. There’s a lack of people so labors up, as are materials.
In my area (DC), this means that you can buy a Ryan home for $700,000, or you can get a custom-built home for $1.5 million.
Take your pick.
I sold my home on 5 acres in Great Falls 12 years ago .....$2M+ . I remember when Tysons Corner was one traffic light, next traffic light on two lane Route 7 was in Leesburg. I remember when there was no beltway no WW Bridge, no Dulles Airport, you had to drive through DC to get to Maryland...Reston was a farm.
I sold my home on 5 acres in Great Falls 12 years ago .....$2M+ . I remember when Tysons Corner was one traffic light, next traffic light on two lane Route 7 was in Leesburg. I remember when there was no beltway no WW Bridge, no Dulles Airport, you had to drive through DC to get to Maryland...Reston was a farm.
Today it's gridlock much of the time.
A suburb like Great Falls is probably not going to have that many cookie cutter homes for middle income people. It’s going to have actual mansions for wealthy people.
You have to be in an old timer to remember when the beltway or Dulles airport didn’t exist.
^^^ No, not saying one is better than the other, or how things should be done today. Just pointing out how much things have changed. Heavy masonry walls in California don't make sense with the earthquake danger. It just seems like for the price you pay for a new home in OC, you might expect something a little better than a stucco/osb/styrofoam box. It also makes me wonder how long some of those new homes will last.
But in some ways you are comparing the two, when no comparison can or should be made.
Heavy all brick/masonry along with lathe and plaster structures were expensive and time consuming to build back in the day, and that only got worse as 20th century rolled on. Post WWII housing shortage and resulting building boom in Europe and USA meant faster and if want, cheaper means needed to be found for new construction.
Dry wall has largely replaced lathe and plaster, far more use of reinforced concrete, curtain wall construction and so on.
Large part of new housing costs today is cost of land acquisition followed by labor. When you add everything up plus the pressure to bring in a product that is "affordable" to middle or working class, you end up with what you end up with.
Will agree on balance with your statements. Have seen new construction of both private homes and multi-family housing where quite honestly developer and or builder ought to be lined up and shot. They've some nerve charging prices they do for such (IMHO) poor quality housing (and often shoddy work), but again market seems to be more concerned with price than anything else.
You'd think paying a million or more would get something with better fixtures and fittings than the junk right out of Home Depot or Lowes many builders are using. But sadly that isn't the case.
I live in a strict building code state. There are a lot of windstorm requirements in new construction (the free market of insurance and reinsurance drives this, not state government) which add 10-20% to construction costs compared to building a similar home in Alabama or Georgia. These are not obvious to the naked eye. That the builders cut corners on fit and finish in order to try to hit price points can be very obvious though. We also have higher energy efficiency standards for new construction than pretty much any other state- no, the as energy efficient as you can get impact-rated windows are not as flashy as the hardwood floors or quartz countertops but the end result house requires hardly any energy to keep cool in the long summer and it helps the state's not great power infrastructure stay ahead of population growth.
There seems to be no improvement in quality when shopping in the upper-mid level homes to upper level (non-multimillion dollar homes) homes in many areas. This is apparent in Florida where you will see homes from 350K-600K in similar areas(Tampa area for reference, and no comparing homes in the same area to keep it similar) that look the same just scaled to a larger size for more money. No improvement in build quality, materials used, fixtures in kitchens, cabinet in the home, same school district ect. Its disappointing when you think to yourself, a 600k 2500sf 3 bed room home should be spectacular compared to the 350K "entry level" models in the same neighborhood, NOPE it looks like the 350K house with some wood on the floor.
a suburb like great falls is probably not going to have that many cookie cutter homes for middle income people. It’s going to have actual mansions for wealthy people.
You have to be in an old timer to remember when the beltway or dulles airport didn’t exist.
67...was there beginning in 1958 as a young child.
Well yeah... currently it costs more per sq ft to build. There’s a lack of people so labors up, as are materials.
I think that's part of it, but not all of the main drivers of prices. Builders do put a higher price tag in an attempt to sell people on the newness factor so that has something to do with it. Especially once they have you locked into the deposit and start having you pick the "upgrades". All cosmetic upgrades for the most part are pure profit for the builder.
These builders would be forbidden to build this crap in Mexico, where everything is built of concrete.
What's the big deal of buying a pre-1975 home anyway! How much to put in all new electric and water lines? And then you have a home you can trust and feel secure in!
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