So you’re ready for a new home, and you decided you want it brand spanking new. Well, you’re not alone, as many Americans feel the same way. Before you decide on that new construction home, you might want to know a bit more about the potential benefits and pitfalls of taking this route with your most vital purchase.
Pros of a New Construction Home
More Customization Options
If you’re planning on building your home, you can customize it until your heart’s content. Perhaps you want every room painted purple and the master bedroom upstairs. No problem. You can add anything from that walk-in closet to a luxurious master bathroom. Finding a home that suits your needs can become a struggle and take months or even years. However, you can build a home that fits exactly what you want.
Fewer Maintenance & Energy Expenses
Buying a new home usually means there is little maintenance or repairs. New homes use more energy-saving insulation than older homes. When building a new home, you can expect to have lower bills because of the energy efficiency built into new homes.
Safer Building Materials
Some older houses contain asbestos or mold, but building a new home means you can build something better for the environment and your family.
Better Warranties
Most new construction homes have warranties covered by the builders. They fix items such as windows, plumbing, siding, drywall, and other problems. The warranty usually lasts between one to two years, but some can last as long as ten years.
Cons of a New Construction Home
Now that we talk about some perks to buying a new home. Let’s go over the downside.
Higher Price Tags
Building a new home can cost you a significant amount more than if you buy a home a few years older. While you thought of all you wanted inside your new home, those upgrades aren’t cheap. For instance, wood floors throughout your house could run 20,000 and upward. Kitchens aren’t cheap either. By the time you finish designing your new kitchen with all the soft cabinets, stainless steel appliances, and other gadgets, you’re looking to spend 12,000 or more. You have to pay for those sudden expenses that come with construction, and then there is the cost of adding necessary items such as utilities and sewage, which only increases the cost of your home. You may even have HOA fees that can range from 100 to 700 a month.
Depending on where you want to live, you could also pay a significant amount of money for the location. For example, if you live in California, the average price for a newly built home is around 700,00.
Less Charm
New homes sometimes lack charms that an older home model has. Older homes often have charms and details of their period.
Unforeseen Delays
When building a new home, delays happen, including poor weather. One of the mistakes some future homeowners encounter is waiting during the worst possible season to build, which causes more delay before you can move in than if you had purchased a home.
Unexpected Expenses
No matter how you budget, you can expect expenses to occur. Those expenses include anything from builder fees to drainage issues.
Less Scenery
Unlike buying a home already established, you probably won’t see much scenery if you’re building your home from the ground up. Your neighbors are probably going to be closer as well.
Longer Wait Period
The wait time for buying a home is shorter than if you were building one. Those factors slowing the building of your home could include foul weather, permits, framing your home, installing the wiring, and other problems.
Homes for Sale in San Marcos, Tx
Whether you’re building a home or looking to buy an existing home, hopefully this article will help you consider all the positives and negatives of both sides. If your immediate time and budget constraints are too tight, then you may be better off going with an older home. But if you have more time and are willing to spend more up front, then the added customization and lower maintenance costs of a new construction home may be worth it to you.
