New Home vs. Re-Sale
You will need to make many decisions when buying a home. What is your tolerance for traffic, a daily commute, your personal preferences, and your pocketbook? Always get everything in writing when buying a home and work with a buyer's agent who will represent your interests exclusively.
New construction can be a dream or a nightmare: ¨In the pre-construction phase, you will get the best price, but the disadvantage is buying from plans without seeing your house or fully developed neighborhood. Builder contracts shift most risk of loss in escrows and deposits from builder to buyer. Amend the contract so that a lawyer or real estate broker, who is closely regulated, holds the money. Unless amended, most new home contracts give the builder up to 24 months to deliver the house. Be prepared to wait. Delays usually occur.
New home options do not always translate into resale profit. Both base and option prices are negotiable. Get details on the builder, project, restrictive covenants, adjacent zoning and development, future roads, schools, services, flood plains, wetlands, and other environmental issues.”
Resales have their own considerations: ¨What you see is what you get. Resales are sold ‘as is’ and are subject to the building codes in effect at the time the home was built; consequently, you always should have an inspection by a licensed professional.
Settlement on a resale purchase can be in as little as 30 days - quick occupancy is possible. Resales often have the added benefit of established transportation, shops, schools, community services, mature landscaping, and a neighborhood ambience that new subdivisions lack. No surprises. If you are planning a ‘redo,’ make your contract subject to a 30-day study period, and get professionals to give you specifics on costs and changes possible. Be prepared to live with disruption.”
More advantages of owning a new home: Today's new homes are safer, healthier, more energy efficient, require less maintenance, and have an incredible amount of conveniences and amenities. Technological and medical advances over the past decade have discovered the health risks of such materials as formaldehyde, lead, and asbestos, and eliminated them from building products. Radon detection is done on all new homes and abatement measures are taken where necessary.
Furthermore, new homes are much safer from the standpoint of fire safety. Most new homes have efficient smoke detectors on every level. Electrical systems are sized to accommodate today's heightened electrical needs.
Potentially dangerous auxiliary heating devices are no longer needed. Ground fault receptacles in baths, kitchens and outside, more electric receptacles, and adequately sized circuit breakers have eliminated potential fire hazards that could cause electrocution, tripping (extension cords), and fires. Glass in tub areas is tempered to reduce the risk of injury from broken glass.
Better windows, more efficient heating, cooling equipment, and better insulation have cut utility costs in half since 1980. Old homes are draftier, more prone to condensation, and have subsequent deterioration to trim and walls. The savings in energy costs enable buyers to spend more on new home features and less on utility
costs.
All of the above are important, but the bottom line is new homes just make you feel better. You choose the home site, the exterior look, interior colors, and features.
New homes are a statement of who you are and a reflection of your family's values and taste. Not only that, your new home is you; nobody else has bathed in your tub or cooked in your oven. You are not inheriting someone else's problems or lifestyle. Your "new" home is truly new.
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Everything You Need to Know About Buying, Selling, Renovating or
Financing - Real Estate in the Fraser Valley, and Vancouver area of Canada
