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I have recently looked at two new construction communities in my area and am seriously considering preparing to submit an offer on one of them in the near future. However, I'm starting to learn that almost everything is an option. My fear is that even though the base prices on the communities are attractive, the upgrades can add serious $$$ to the cost.
I am not one to purchase things (not even groceries, let alone a house) blind. While the sales agents have offered ballpark figures for some items I inquired about that were obviously upgrades, I need way more info than that before I consider an offer.
Would I be out of line to request a full list of base equipment for the homes and a full list of options with accompanying list prices before submitting an offer? I don't want to get nickeled-and-dimed to death after signing a contract, and that's my big fear (especially with one of the communities). I want to know exactly what I'm spending, and while I expect to have to add small things here and there, I cannot get into a situation where I'm spending $500,000 on a house I thought would cost $350,000 because the sellers kept everything a secret.
BTW, if it helps, the builders are Ryan and Pulte. (Ryan seems to be the bigger nickel-and-dimer, but the Pulte community is in a nicer town and has a higher base price.) Thanks for any info or advice. This will be a first house purchase for me and my head is swimming.
Now that you know there's no negotiating the price, you had better make a move.
While you were here on CD, many of the more desirable lots have sold!
They should give you a list. You have the money and they want it so tell the, you will not move forward without it. I would also ask them for a location of where electrical outlets, lights etc would be. We made the mistake of assuming because some other models had outlets installed certain places and we wanted a couple is specific places in the dining room for plugging lighted cabinets in that we needed to pay $75 or whatever for an outlet there. Then, when the house isn't built, a different company or crew did the actual work and they out outlets in the spots we wanted them (they were logical places, IMO) so we have two outlets a foot apart. One we paid for and one that came free. Not a huge deal, but just don't assume anything as it might be more than a $150 mistake.
They should give you a list. You have the money and they want it so tell the, you will not move forward without it. I would also ask them for a location of where electrical outlets, lights etc would be. We made the mistake of assuming because some other models had outlets installed certain places and we wanted a couple is specific places in the dining room for plugging lighted cabinets in that we needed to pay $75 or whatever for an outlet there. Then, when the house isn't built, a different company or crew did the actual work and they out outlets in the spots we wanted them (they were logical places, IMO) so we have two outlets a foot apart. One we paid for and one that came free. Not a huge deal, but just don't assume anything as it might be more than a $150 mistake.
I paid extra for some outlets and they still didn't put them where I wanted them. I've since added one where I wanted it (it's on the kitchen island, so I don't really mind having both, they come in handy) but the other one is a half hot and was a bigger issue to try to move it, so I've just adjusted. If that is my biggest complaint about a new construction house, I guess I did pretty well! lol! I was pretty much my own GC for it, and went to the site often enough that the builder game me my own key so I could come and go as I wanted. But I wasn't always there when the subs were working in order to do things like get the outlets all the way I wanted.
In my limited experience, you're either going to get nickeled-n-dimed to death, OR it's going to be a running gun battle to get the options you want installed and not the Communist-housing-bloc standard.
If you're too difficult to work with, there's plenty of other applicants who will happily buy whatever slop is thrown in the troth.
If you buy it before it's done, you still gotta do the lawyer thing and verify that all "48 pages" of upgrades were installed and working. If you ask around, eventually you'll find people who turned on their upstairs master bathtub and had water come out of their recessed lighting fixtures on the first floor ceiling. I am NOT being facetious (not your builder, I'm sure).
There are construction upgrades (different bath configurations, ceiling fan prewire, extra outlets, built in bookcases, gas line on the patio etc.) and design upgrades (countertops materials, bathroom tile, flooring, etc.). You should be able to get a list of costs for construction upgrades easily from the builders sales rep; design centre prices won't usually be provided unless you are under contract and picking your finishes. The average in both the two states we have built homes is about 20% in upgrades on top of the base price of new construction. To get an idea of design centre costs we went through the models with the sales rep and requested numbers for particular things (hardwood floors, quartz counters, etc.) we were interested in.
With both homes we figured the cost of the home with all the construction upgrades we wanted and negotiated from there. (Don't forget to include the lot premium in your negotiation, too. That's usually the easiest thing to negotiate away.) We requested a design centre credit each time, too, but definitely spent way more.
Design centre items are more expensive than doing it yourself so choose wisely. We paid the premium and had the builder upgrade the stuff that requires major construction (i.e., we upgraded the floors because we would have had to rip out the builder grade tile) or was just too numerous and time consuming (doors and door hardware, for example) to do later. Faucets, lights, ceiling fans, backsplashes (we just tell them not to install the small back piece), etc. we do on our own later. (Appliances depend on their cost at the design centre. We have gotten our own in one home and upgraded with the builder in the other because their pricing was great.)
Remember to budget for window treatments (you can get them at the design centre but the prices are ridiculous) and backyard landscaping if they are not included. Some HOAs also have time frames in which you must landscape the back and/or insist on money held in escrow towards the landscaping, so ask about that, too!
Thank you all for the advice. It is greatly appreciated.
Here's where I stand now... I have looked at two communities. They are not in my preferred area (where I've lived most of life), but about 30 miles away. I simply can't afford new (or old) construction where I live.
The Pulte complex is in a top-tier town. It is two bedrooms (the layout can accommodate three, but it was designed as a loft in this town as a condition to begin construction in order to lessen the likelihood of a run on the schools). According to the sales rep, the town will never allow the conversion to an official 3 bedroom unit. It was a nice unit, but did not include a deck, and the houses overlooked a fairly busy road. Base price is $429,000. Pricing, with desired options, would be $460,000 - $470,000. That is simply too much for me.
The Ryan community is eight miles away from the Pulte community, in a somewhat more isolated "B+" town. They are 3 bedrooms. The houses all have decks and walkout basements standard. There's lots of grass and trees behind the houses. It's close to a major interstate, but is high up a mountain, so noise isn't an issue. It's nice. Base price is $379,000. I priced out options with the sales rep, and after a few incentives, the house came to $425,000. Still expensive for me, but, with some belt-tightening, within the realm of possibility.
Build quality between the communities seems comparable, with perhaps a teeny edge going to Pulte.
I haven't completely decided yet, but I'm seriously considering trying to go for a home in the Ryan community. But I gotta try to get that $425,000 number down a bit (without stripping the house down to a bare cube). I think I'm going to e-mail the sales rep, thank her for all her previous time and assistance, and tell her I'm really interested in a home. Then, I'm going to plead my case that 425K is still too high for me, but I love the house, but I don't want to live in a bare cube, and I don't expect to get a fully loaded house for the base price, etc., and very nicely ask if there's any other upgrade discounts or incentives that she could possibly get thrown it to get the price down some and make a deal happen.
Thank you all for the advice. It is greatly appreciated.
Here's where I stand now... I have looked at two communities. They are not in my preferred area (where I've lived most of life), but about 30 miles away. I simply can't afford new (or old) construction where I live.
The Pulte complex is in a top-tier town. It is two bedrooms (the layout can accommodate three, but it was designed as a loft in this town as a condition to begin construction in order to lessen the likelihood of a run on the schools). According to the sales rep, the town will never allow the conversion to an official 3 bedroom unit. It was a nice unit, but did not include a deck, and the houses overlooked a fairly busy road. Base price is $429,000. Pricing, with desired options, would be $460,000 - $470,000. That is simply too much for me.
The Ryan community is eight miles away from the Pulte community, in a somewhat more isolated "B+" town. They are 3 bedrooms. The houses all have decks and walkout basements standard. There's lots of grass and trees behind the houses. It's close to a major interstate, but is high up a mountain, so noise isn't an issue. It's nice. Base price is $379,000. I priced out options with the sales rep, and after a few incentives, the house came to $425,000. Still expensive for me, but, with some belt-tightening, within the realm of possibility.
Build quality between the communities seems comparable, with perhaps a teeny edge going to Pulte.
I haven't completely decided yet, but I'm seriously considering trying to go for a home in the Ryan community. But I gotta try to get that $425,000 number down a bit (without stripping the house down to a bare cube). I think I'm going to e-mail the sales rep, thank her for all her previous time and assistance, and tell her I'm really interested in a home. Then, I'm going to plead my case that 425K is still too high for me, but I love the house, but I don't want to live in a bare cube, and I don't expect to get a fully loaded house for the base price, etc., and very nicely ask if there's any other upgrade discounts or incentives that she could possibly get thrown it to get the price down some and make a deal happen.
We'll see what happens...
Send her an offer with a $500.00 deposit check saying basically if they accept, you buy. Otherwise you are just playing them.
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I've since added one where I wanted it (it's on the kitchen island, so I don't really mind having both, they come in handy) but the other one is a half hot and was a bigger issue to try to move it, so I've just adjusted. If that is my biggest complaint about a new construction house, I guess I did pretty well! lol! I was pretty much my own GC for it, and went to the site often enough that the builder game me my own key so I could come and go as I wanted. But I wasn't always there when the subs were working in order to do things like get the outlets all the way I wanted.
