Custom Home Building versus Buying an Existing Home

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<h1>Custom Home Building versus Buying an Existing Home</h1><strong> Author: <a href='http://www.articleseen.com/profile_Mark Stjean.aspx'>Mark Stjean</a></strong><br /><p>With housing affordability (reedconstructiondata.com/news/2008/12/housing-affordability-improves-but-will-not-boost-home-sales) improving and mortgage rates (mysanantonio.com/business/81017677.html) hovering near historic lows, the timing is right for purchasing a new home. And in this buyer's market, there are a lot of options to consider. But before settling on the style and number of bedrooms, you'll want to consider the different segments of the housing market. "Resale" homes represent the largest percentage of the market. Constructed years, or even decades ago, these houses reflect the needs and the tastes of previous owners. They may be outfitted with outdated fixtures and technologies, and have deteriorating construction. Buyers of these homes often fall in love with them for their character, their location or their "good-enough" fit with their needs, and accept the necessity of investing additional time and resources in renovation and restoration. "Spec" homes are built based on the speculation that a buyer can be found during or shortly after construction. These new homes may be designed with up-to-date floor plans and features to accommodate current preferences. When purchased before completion, a buyer may be able to select some finishing touches. But this type of home construction may also be designed to minimize cost and maximize profit for the home builder, potentially leaving homeowners with less than premium materials and designs that are not as contemporary. "Custom" homes are built according to the buyer's specifications, usually on land they already own. While this type of new home construction represents only ten percent of the market, it gives the homeowner the most control. Working with an "on your lot" custom home builder, the buyer determines all facets of home construction—from site selection to the home's style, size and floor plan, types of windows and doors, flooring and siding, and all the details—cabinets, lighting fixtures, drawer pulls, paint colors, etc. While "on your lot" home builders are often considered large home builders, they can also accommodate today's trend towards "right-sizing". (blogs.consumerreports.org/home/2009/02/rightsizing-mcmansion-mortgage-meltdown-gopal-ahluwalia.html?INTKEY=I95BOE0) These days a custom home builder may work on smaller homes starting around 1000 square feet. Benefits include keeping material and labor costs to a minimum (potentially in the low $100,000 range), and customizable floor plans. In keeping with cost-consciousness and "green" lifestyles, another benefit of working closely with a new custom home builder is the opportunity to incorporate the latest energy- and resource-efficient products and trends. According to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), "Today's homes are built twice as energy efficient as new homes a generation ago, making them more affordable (nahb.org/fileUpload_details.aspx?contentTypeID=3&contentID=104677&subContentID=249116) to own and operate." The latest in energy-efficient materials¹ include windows with low-emittance (low-E) glass coatings, upgraded insulation, high efficiency HVAC systems, house wraps and tight construction. Federal tax credits for Consumer Energy Efficiency² may also be available for new home construction, covering 30% of the cost of materials and labor for systems such as geothermal heat pumps, solar water heaters, solar panels and residential fuel cells. Note that in order to qualify, these systems must be placed in service before the end of 2016. An added bonus for those considering purchases of custom homes—"Current costs (hbrnetwork.com/building-materials/construction-costs-profits-both-down-from-peak-levels.aspx) of building a new home are relatively low,"—according to Jason Dickens, president of the Athens Area Homebuilders Association. 2009 lumber and other material prices have dropped considerably when compared to 2005. "Right now is a very good time to build a house." So, while the purchase of an existing "resale" or "spec" home will more than likely entail some compromises, a custom home is a cost-effective investment that offers incomparable rewards in function, esthetics and satisfaction—and the fulfillment of owning the home of your dreams.</p><strong>About the Author:</strong><br />This article was written by Lisa Santora, who has written copy for a number of <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.nahb.org/fileUpload_details.aspx?contentID=62120">B2B</a> and <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.energystar.gov/taxcredits">B2C</a> companies over her ten year online writing career. She is a guest writer for Schumacher Homes, the leading on your lot <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.schumacherhomes.com/">custom home builder</a>. Lisa Santora is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3<p> Article Source: <a href='http://www.articleseen.com/Article_Custom-Home-Building-versus-Buying-an-Existing-Home_11528.aspx'> http://www.articleseen.com/Article_Custom Home Building versus Buying an Existing Home_11528.aspx</a></p>

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Keywords : custom homes, custom home builder, B2B, B2C, new homes,

Category : Finance : Real Estate