New Home Builders in Virginia Beach, Chesapeake? (Norfolk, Hampton: bank owned, sales)

[MKAlston]

Hello,
A friend of mine is moving to the Hampton Roads area and needs help! She can't decide between VA Beach and Chesapeake. Her job will be in downtown Norfolk but she is in need of excellent schools for their young kids.

MOST of the real estate searches we have done result in older, run-down looking homes with vynl siding. Are there any NEW HOME BUILDERS in the area? So far, I've found Chesapeake Homes (www.cheshomes.com) and Napolitano Homes (www.napolitanohomes.com). Are there others? She doesn't want to spend more than $350,000-400,000.

Thanks for your help!!

[DanZ2008]

I searched and found 51 properties built in 2009 that are actively listed in the Real Estate Information Network (REIN), that are on sale in the Chesapeake and Virginia Beach areas ranging from 318K to 398K. On another note, if you still need to contact other builders in the area check out this list and call those builders with area code starting with 757 and check-out their home inventories, if any.

[telemonster]

Originally Posted by MKAlston

Hello,
A friend of mine is moving to the Hampton Roads area and needs help! She can't decide between VA Beach and Chesapeake. Her job will be in downtown Norfolk but she is in need of excellent schools for their young kids.

MOST of the real estate searches we have done result in older, run-down looking homes with vynl siding. Are there any NEW HOME BUILDERS in the area? So far, I've found Chesapeake Homes (www.cheshomes.com) and Napolitano Homes (www.napolitanohomes.com). Are there others? She doesn't want to spend more than $350,000-400,000.

Thanks for your help!!

She wants to loose money? Why would you pay $350K for a vinyl wrapped pressboard box in a region with lackluster jobs and a huge overhang in high end properties that will never sell.

Let me guess, she can't take the thought of being an icky renter, and instead wants to put like 5% down, pay a huge mortgage, and then claim she's a homeowner? Funny term, you're a homeowner if you have a title and no mortgage, otherwise you rent from the bank.

The new builders should be hungry enough to build. One problem is all their (or their subs) illegal labor might have already left due to non-work. I'd push for 40% to 50% off of the Oct. 2007 price. Anything else is overpaying. A big issue is land that was bought during the mania. The people who own it will want more money than is realistic.

[desertsun41]

Originally Posted by telemonster

She wants to loose money? Why would you pay $350K for a vinyl wrapped pressboard box in a region with lackluster jobs and a huge overhang in high end properties that will never sell.

Let me guess, she can't take the thought of being an icky renter, and instead wants to put like 5% down, pay a huge mortgage, and then claim she's a homeowner? Funny term, you're a homeowner if you have a title and no mortgage, otherwise you rent from the bank.

The new builders should be hungry enough to build. One problem is all their (or their subs) illegal labor might have already left due to non-work. I'd push for 40% to 50% off of the Oct. 2007 price. Anything else is overpaying. A big issue is land that was bought during the mania. The people who own it will want more money than is realistic.

Really really good post. How true you speak. Words you will never hear from a Realtor's mouth. If there are any left. Most of them went back to their old 9-5 jobs.

I lived many years in Great Bridge, I come by here now and then because I miss Chesapeake quite a lot. I did business with quite a few large builders and I dont care to mention any but what I will mention is to save yourself trouble later is DO NOT buy Napolatano. Forget all the hype you read on their web page. They are too cheap to even put light bulbs in the new homes they sell. Go ahead and laugh. Check it out.

It seems pure insanity to buy a new home/any home now when there is a 100% chance it will continue to fall.

But good luck to ya.......

[SiestaBay]

Try Terry Peterson Residential.

There's also Centex, or Ryan Homes.

There's lots more but names are escaping me now!

[Erma]

I would never buy a newly built house unless it were 100% plywood and I was overseeing the building. My next house, when I build on a lakefront will be built by a man who built his own home. Private building has more quality.

[stacylee926]

There are lots of builders in the area - Associated, Dragas, Franciscus, Hearndon, Stephen Alexander, Stylecraft, Wilmik and Chesapeake which is a very large builder in the area - just to name the bigger ones. Dragas builds smaller homes, but they were voted best in the country this year.

[rtandc]

Originally Posted by MKAlston

Hello,
A friend of mine is moving to the Hampton Roads area and needs help! She can't decide between VA Beach and Chesapeake. Her job will be in downtown Norfolk but she is in need of excellent schools for their young kids.

MOST of the real estate searches we have done result in older, run-down looking homes with vynl siding. Are there any NEW HOME BUILDERS in the area? So far, I've found Chesapeake Homes (www.cheshomes.com) and Napolitano Homes (www.napolitanohomes.com). Are there others? She doesn't want to spend more than $350,000-400,000.

Thanks for your help!!

Most of the better local home builders build at a higher price point then you are looking for especially if you want brick. Several are starting to build close to your price but in the end that is what you get a cheaply built home......

Sure building materials are very low at this time so builders are able to offer a lower price per square foot for a home especially if you find a home in a neighborhood almost built out or if you have your own lot as then the builder can estimate their short term cost much better. The problem is many new neighborhoods are not selling very well in this market and builders must try to maintain somewhere close to their original price point long term for future sales in case building materials, labor, interest rates, taxes or even sales sky rocket again ...

Several of the better long term builders in our area are having the same issues as many homeowners and are having major financial problems and are losing spec homes they built back to the bank because they cant sell them.........Look in the MLS you will find a number of brand new homes bank owned .... that is why you are seeing builders offering tricks and gadgets for buyers right now especially on sitting inventory that is costing them money.......and that is why you see many developments sitting vacant with just a few occupied homes and many empty lots because builders dont have the money to build any spec homes or have the trust that they will sell anytime soon if they do build one......

I have a friend that moved into a new higher end custom devolpment here in Va Bch that is stall out almost completely as far as new bulding...this neighborhood is less then 50% built out so pleanty of vacant lots ...his POA fee is around a 100 bucks a month so he can live in a neighborhood full of grown over vacant lots that are muddy and cause drainage problems when it rains and will be weedy and a dust bowl again this summer.........No thanks I'll pass......Unless the neighborhood was almost completely built out you could not pay me to move into a new development right now not knowing how its going to turn out....

But when it is all said and done the bottom line is the land the home sits on... land value is what drives the price of new homes in this area.......Land value is very high especially in Va Bch and until land value drops from its unrealistic price point new home prices will still be costly....Yes land is cheaper in Chesapeake especially if you get out in the "country" but then you do not have city water or city sewage and have to deal with well water and septic systems which can be costly and a headache to deal with...... plus the tax base is higher in Chesapeake at 105 compared to 89 at most places within Va Beach but many people look at that as a wash but I guess that is also something to think about when you look at how much your total monthly payment is going to be on a house

[telemonster]

A co-worker had his house taken by a Tornado a year or two ago (locally). He walked around the office getting opinions from everyone. Everyone was against recommending their builder, and he didn't want to use the builder he had before (even though the guy called him after seeing the house gone on the news).

Didn't seem promising to me.

You know, you can get one of those big steel buildings pretty cheap. I think 18,500 sqft goes for around $200K. Just supply concrete and land. Could make an unusual but large house. You get to finish off the inside. Buy fancy appliances and trendy counter tops from people walking from the McMansions, trick it out real nice.

[sassyfragger1]

Originally Posted by telemonster

A co-worker had his house taken by a Tornado a year or two ago (locally). He walked around the office getting opinions from everyone. Everyone was against recommending their builder, and he didn't want to use the builder he had before (even though the guy called him after seeing the house gone on the news).

Didn't seem promising to me.

You know, you can get one of those big steel buildings pretty cheap. I think 18,500 sqft goes for around $200K. Just supply concrete and land. Could make an unusual but large house. You get to finish off the inside. Buy fancy appliances and trendy counter tops from people walking from the McMansions, trick it out real nice.

Actually that's a pretty good idea- bet you could qualify the house for LEEDs or some other eco-friendly certification too and get some tax bene's out of the deal if you did it right (and not have to worry about monthly energy costs)