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My husband and I have meet with Schumacher homes and are considering using them to build a home in Asheville or Weaverville. I've read a few good and bad reviews here and there, but most are from people who built with them in Ohio (their home office, I believe).
Can anyone in the WNC area comment on their experience with Schumacher? Thank you so much.
GOOG'd them out of curiosity, and the reviews are mixed, as they say.
Not a builder, but have invested in the building of a couple of spec homes here in Waynesville, (and GC'd our former NY house), but my opin is unless that multi-location builder has some things or some features specific to them, or is a brother-in-law, why not check out any of the several local/area builders?
Local and area builders have finished product that one can see/knock on the door and hear the home owners' experiences. Local bldrs will hire and have relationships with local subs and suppliers, and on and on.
In my experience of having houses 'built', (several over several decades), I would always contract with a local builder if I could vs a larger 'name' builder, unless the community or subdivision only had one or a few big name 'factory' builders, to choose from.
My 50Cts...
GL, mD
We toured their Asheville model a few years ago and liked some of the elements of that plan. Based on that I made an appointment to meet with them and get a feel for how they work. I'll be really blunt and hopefully you will understand and not be offended. Schumacher builds homes for people who A) don't know and don't care about the nitty gritty of house construction, B) are ok with being presented with limited choices (a menu, really) for everything - windows, flooring, cabinetry etc and C) are prepared to deal with the up-charges that will inevitably be part of the picture to get the house to look like what they expected.
It was not a good fit for us and in the end, what I liked was a floor plan (or parts of it) and floor plans are a dime a dozen on the internet - there's a million of 'em, but IMO a good architect is money well spent. If you've met with them and feel their process and their suppliers are a good fit for what you want then your next step is to get referrals directly from them. You want to meet with and question people who are in all stages of working with them - still in design, part way through a build, a completed house and someone who has been in their house for a minimum of 3 years. Here's a link to a building forum that has been enormously helpful to me and a thread about what to ask the references that builder gives you. Questions for Builder's References
Schumacher is a production builder and there is nothing wrong with that and there are often some advantages in terms of build time because they are not reinventing the wheel with each build. Also tour their models in Duncan, SC - it's less than an hour from Asheville. Do you have your land yet? That should factor into your decision. If you have a challenging site (steep) make sure you get references fro homes they've built that are on similar sites. Good luck with your build, whoever you choose - it's an interesting ride!
We never really considered building as an option, and our original plan was to look for an existing house to purchase. But, the more we've looked at the homes that are out there, the more discouraged we are with the inventory.
So far we have talked to Schumacher, Mountain Brook Homes, and Red Tree Builders. The latter two are local builders, and as much as I would love to go with a local builder, we're getting ball park ranges of $180 - $220 per square foot, and that is above our price range. We need to be more in the $140 -$160 range, as we will need to purchase land and are estimating $50-$60k for 1/3 - 1/2 acre.
One of these builders (Mountain Brook) also builds modular and that would keep our cost down. We are considering this as an option, and I would love opinions going the modular route too. We're also going to talk with Home Crafters of Western Carolina, another local and modular home builder.
So we have about three options swirling around. 1. Purchase an existing. 2. Stick build if we can find a local builder in our price range or consider Schumacher or 3. Build modular.
We never really considered building as an option, and our original plan was to look for an existing house to purchase. But, the more we've looked at the homes that are out there, the more discouraged we are with the inventory.
So far we have talked to Schumacher, Mountain Brook Homes, and Red Tree Builders. The latter two are local builders, and as much as I would love to go with a local builder, we're getting ball park ranges of $180 - $220 per square foot, and that is above our price range. We need to be more in the $140 -$160 range, as we will need to purchase land and are estimating $50-$60k for 1/3 - 1/2 acre.
One of these builders (Mountain Brook) also builds modular and that would keep our cost down. We are considering this as an option, and I would love opinions going the modular route too. We're also going to talk with Home Crafters of Western Carolina, another local and modular home builder.
So we have about three options swirling around. 1. Purchase an existing. 2. Stick build if we can find a local builder in our price range or consider Schumacher or 3. Build modular.
Time will tell where we end up!
(You didn't mention how many sq. ft. of living area you want/need, or location.)
If you have no experience with building on contract, or purchasing land (especially in Western NC), or how to deal with all the intricacies and regulations, you should purchase an existing home in your price range (imo). Get on www.realtor.com and see what fits your criteria and budget by zip code.
Carrieg11 we went through the same thing, not being able to find a house to fit our criteria and we were looking in a much larger area and had a more generous budget so I certainly understand your frustration. If at all possible, widen your search area to try and find an existing home. You are going to run into significant financial hurdles with building. The better value in housing is ALWAYS with an existing structure even if you have to spend money to upgrade or personalize. Are you currently in the area and looking in person or are you looking only online? A good realtor will be invaluable in this search. Good luck.
We've been in Asheville for 4 months - my family is here, and they've all gone through the home buying process here in Asheville with success. We've purchased homes in CT and CA in the past, and are happy to be in a less expensive market and not be house poor! We're the Realtor my family used, and have just started seriously looking now that we are pre-approved, and simultaneously entertaining the idea of building.
I'd love to find that existing home and pick our battles with making it out own...just losing hope after looking after looking for a few months.
...The better value in housing is ALWAYS with an existing structure even if you have to spend money to upgrade or personalize. ...
+1.
With the current almost monthly rise in material costs, and the fact that any 'good' subs are in very high demand, (thus, can charge more/may rush the sub work), I vote for finding existing house.
Although we have built several, I still rec'd an existing house for the OP. That $140-$160 per sq ft, plus lot, will be a hurdle that probably only small time/non higher cost accredited builders would take on, or the 'factory' type builder. Add in thousands more for 'finishing', landscaping, paving the drive, some upgrades, and an existing house would be my rec'd.
But, hope your house hunting/building go well.
GL, mD
We've been in Asheville for 4 months - my family is here, and they've all gone through the home buying process here in Asheville with success. We've purchased homes in CT and CA in the past, and are happy to be in a less expensive market and not be house poor! We're the Realtor my family used, and have just started seriously looking now that we are pre-approved, and simultaneously entertaining the idea of building.
I'd love to find that existing home and pick our battles with making it out own...just losing hope after looking after looking for a few months.
The areas you seem to be interested in are above average for your budget. If you can increase your budget to 'between' $300K and $350K you will have a better chance of finding something you like. Above you said 'we're the Realtor', you must have meant 'we're using the Realtor', etc. ?? The market this year/season is hot, and the ratio between listing price and recorded sale price is hanging around 3% to 4%, and more in your areas of interest. With mortgage rates low right now, take a larger mortgage if you can and lock in the rate. When building to contract you always have to build in extra costs in that price range of probably $25K -- you will want upgrades, and you won't like the headaches, trust me.
Another option is to widen your search area, to possibly Hendersonville, Mills River, Mars Hill, Fletcher, Arden, Fairview, etc.
Last edited by QuilterChick; 07-25-2015 at 04:59 PM..
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