We found a home we love – it’s Brand-New Construction.

We found a home we love – it’s Brand-New Construction.

What should we know?

Hello, Home Buyer! That’s excellent news! Buying a New Construction Home can be super exciting! Wilcox Real Estate has 20+ years’ experience navigating New Home Sales and it thrilled to help! Here are a few things you may want to consider when contemplating a New Home Purchase:

Pros: The best part: No one else has lived in this home; everything is new, clean and pristine! Some New Construction Home Builders allow for customization or upgrades of the floor plan, features and materials allowing you to make your new home feel very custom. New Homes are often built taking advantage of new technologies and innovations. Energy efficiency is much more likely in a New Home vs. a resale home. Some Builders will offer incentives, such as free Appliance Packages, Lower Interest Rates on Mortgages or by Paying Closing Costs on Full Price Sales. New Construction Homes require much less up-front Maintenance than their resale counterparts, meaning you could have years of maintenance free living.

Cons: New Construction Home Builders are not all equal. Check out the Builder’s online reviews and look beyond their splashy and exciting marketing. Look to see if they’ve had any complaints and learn what the neighbors are saying. Same as above, there may be some customization available – but they may not allow you all the options you are looking for or for a price you’re willing to pay. Resale homes are priced by the market and by the Seller. Pricing is completely different with New Construction. Builders set pricing on s ‘base price plus upgrades’ system. The base price of the home is typically not negotiable since that same home will be built multiple times in the neighborhood and lowering the base price would affect several homes – essentially lowering the comparable homes and sales in the whole neighborhood. Custom Building and Buying from a “Spec Home Builder” building in your local neighborhood are two entirely different things. One thing that is constant, however, is that New Homes take time to build – sometimes things move quickly and sometimes it can seem that no progress is being made – in each instance, however, it requires a whole lot of patience. If you’re in a hurry to move into a new home, a New Construction Home may not be the best fit for you.

Inspections: Even though you’re purchasing a New Construction Home and it was built according to the local governing jurisdictions codes and requirements, has gone through multiple inspections and has had all work signed off and approved prior to closing, we always advise our Buyers to include an Inspection Contingency in the Purchase and Sale Agreement.  This allows time for the Buyer to conduct their own independent inspections.  It is the Buyer’s responsibility to research and inspect the property to the fullest extent they desire and ensure that they are satisfied with the home prior to signing off on the inspection contingency. We provide our expert guidance but we leave the decision-making up to you!

So, is buying a New Construction Home right for you? The Pros, Cons and Information shared above are just the basics to help guide you in the decision-making process. You will have individual concerns and questions to evaluate and ultimately, this is a decision you should make only after doing all of your research, weighing your options and thinking about what is most important to you now and in the future. Regardless of your decision, we’re excited for you and ready to help!

For more details and to schedule an appointment to learn more, please contact us at [email protected] or call us at 253-256-1721. We are so excited to work with you!