Choosing between Breland vs. Hunter Homes (Huntsville, Madison: sales, HOA, new home)

[DanteHome]

Good Morning Everyone,

My wife and have rented in the Huntsville Area for about a year now, and intend on owning a home in a few months. We've done some research on neighborhoods in the area and would prefer to find a new home being built:

West of Redstone, East of the Airport, South of I-565.

We like the seclusion of the area and its proximity to both of our work sites. We're looking for a home in the $100k-$150k range with the intent of living in it for 5-8 years before leaving the area. From what we've seen this opens up four neighborhoods for us:

Breland Homes:
The Willows
Towne Lakes

Hunter Homes:
The Grove at Savannah
The Terrace at Savannah

This now brings us to the meat of our discussion. Breland vs. Hunter. We've searched these forums and know that the Hunter Pro/Con debate is one of the most polarizing topics here. We're fine with that, in fact, we want you guys to hit us with everything you've got on both builders, good or bad (PM if necessary by forum rules), but we ask that one rule be abided by:

Quantify your complaint/praise. Back it up with numbers/dates/etc.

Telling us that "Builder X is Terrible" does nothing for us. We want numbers and facts for what is arguably one of the most important financial decisions we all make.

So, let's break some ground with that we researched so far:

We've checked out the neighborhoods and homes in question. We like them, but want to find a balance between the size of the home we get and it's ability to be resold later (not necessarily at a profit).

We've also learned that Hunter is making 3/4 Brick and Full-Brick a bit of a requirement since 2010-ish. This appears to be reflected in the neighborhoods mentioned above, as it's easily 75%+ Brick Homes.

In regards to rumors we had heard that some builders use inferior construction materials or practices (but still meets standards), we haven't seen much difference between the way the homes are built. They are all using the same thickness of sheetrock, same spacing between studs, same termite repellant coating, etc. So, we're interested in hearing if anyone has any additional things we should be checking for as we inspect homes currently under construction.

Additionally, we'd like to hear from people who have purchased a Breland and Hunter Home. We'd mostly like to know how long you've had it, what neighborhood you chose, and your experience with trying to sell it (if applicable).

Outside of that, we know of the differences in building spacing, yard size, and HOA availability. We'd like to hear your experiences with each, so let's get the conversation started.

Thanks again for taking the time to read all of this and providing feedback.

~DanteHome

[CoreLysium]

Hunter has some serious quality issues.

I bought a Breland in 1996 and was very happy with it. It was in the Creekwood subdivision, so when the hype over Providence school was at a peak (before it opened) and out house appreciated 50% in just a few years, I sold. I kinda miss that house though. We lived there 10 years. Sure liked my 0.2 acre yard better than my 1 acre I have now.

[rae-zor]

I bought a Breeland home in Lake Forest about 6 months ago and so far, I love it. Not to say there haven't been a couple little issues, but nothing out of the ordinary. This is not the first home I had built, but it is the best quality for the money. Houses like mine in VA where I moved from, can easily go for double, even in this market.

[LCTMadison]

Breland > Hunter. It isn't even close. There is no comparison to the construction quality between the two.

[Elizabeth_G]

DanteHome- I think you would be wise to go knock on several doors in the neighborhoods that interest you, or find neighbors that are outside. Also, check the BBB. Breland has had zero complaints in the past 3 years. That says something when you have sold as many as they have! I'm a Breland fan all the way and feel confident when I sell their homes that they WILL take care of my buyers.

[CP79]

NO comparison. Breland by a mile

[pamnbam]

One of the things that drew me to Breland (also in Lake Forest) was that there were a lot more plans to choose from; a lot more variety. Hunter has a lot of "cookie-cutter" styles, which they cover up by giving you an "open floor plan." Fine if you don't mind the outside of your house looking like every other Hunter home. It wouldn't be as bad if many of the Hunter homes' front elevations didn't look so plain.

I also loved Breland's flexibility. They made it easy to do upgrades and changes to the plans they had, and they did it with a wonderful attitude. Some builders get upset if you make changes to their plans, but Breland worked well with us and even encouraged plan diversity.

I've only been here a little while, so I haven't sold, but I love it so far. Breland's quality is quite impressive for the price you pay.

[BMW Dave]

Originally Posted by LCTMadison

Breland > Hunter. It isn't even close. There is no comparison to the construction quality between the two.

Honestly, anyone who doesn't know to tell you this is clearly not knowledgable of anything important.

Sadly my mother bought a Hunter Home, at the time she was faced with either a 60's era ranch in Madison City or for a little more a NEW Hunter home.

At least I talked her out of that goat farm a few years back...

[habs2487]

I am currently building a Breland Home right now in the Ashbury subdivision off County Line Road and must say I have been impressed so far. Been to the house every other day just to check up on things and even when I caught something that wasn't quite right, Breland was out there the next day to fix it without question. Very smooth building process so far.

[felix1028]

Bought a Breland Home about a year and a half ago in the Research Station subdivision. We are very happy with the house, impressed with build quality, and the only problem I had were popped nails in my first year and they fixed those without any problems.

The problem I'm having now is that Breland is not enforcing the covenant for our neighborhood. I take offense to that because I spent extra money on my home projects with the covenant in mind, and then I turn around and see people parked on their front lawn. The weird thing is that their sales are still going strong here -- the neighborhood may be complete by the end of the year. Once Breland is out I think it will be impossible to establish an HOA here

That being said, I have co-workers in Brookes Landing and The Willows and this is not a problem for them. In fact, Breland seems to crack down on HOA rules at The Willows.