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Understanding Your Cost
When discussing buying your next home, you might not know where to start. There are many options. Which is why understanding the differences between a resale home, an inventory home, or a newly constructed home is key to finding the right fit for your family's bright future.
But before you try to decide which kind of home is ideal for you, there are some questions that must be asked.
The first is this: What's important to you?
For most people, location is the first thing to come to mind.
Do you want to be close to family? Your job? Do you have a specific school district in mind for your children? All these questions are vital considerations for every new owner.
Once you narrow down the "where", the next question to ask is: What features do you want?
Do you want a one- or two-story home? A three-car garage or a two-car garage? Would you prefer a big yard or a little one? Which features best fit your lifestyle?
Once you've answered these questions, it's time to consider whether to get an inventory home, a resale home, or a custom new build.
This is where people tend to have doubts about the difference between each home type and which is the right choice. Our hope is that the information you find here will steer you toward the answers you should ask to uncover your specific wants and needs.
A resale home is exactly what it sounds like. It's an existing home that has already been built, usually in an established neighborhood within the city.
If you are a handy person and purchase a fixer-upper, you may be able to buy it at a lower cost and have higher equity if you are willing to put in a bit of work yourself with an extra investment. This is often seen as one of the more cost-effective ways to purchase because you're dealing with older homes that often have a depreciated value.
However, purchasing a resale might mean you are sacrificing newer technology and energy efficiency found in many new homes.
Another disadvantage to purchasing a resale is warranties are usually not transferable, so most of the coverage the home once had with its first buyer is gone. This lack of warranty could affect various features, from the appliances to the construction materials used in the home.
Buying a resale home has its perks. The biggest advantage of a resale home is that you know exactly what you're getting, since these homes are inspected and searched for major damage and defects before you buy.
Resale homes often have unique designs and are in neighborhoods with a strong community feel. If you buy one of these homes, you might see its value grow as the area gets better over time.
Plus, these homes can have beautiful gardens and landscaping that are already grown in.
Resale homes can also be less expensive up front, especially in cities like Houston where there are many different styles of older houses.
Sometimes, sellers are ready to move quickly and might sell for a lower price. Since there's no need to wait to complete a new construction, resale homes are perfect if you need to move quickly on a strict timeline.
Resale homes aren't new, and some can be quite old. Older homes can sometimes surprise you with issues like old wiring or leaky windows, or more serious structural flaws in things like the roof that can be expensive to fix.
They don't come with the warranties that new homes do, which means if something breaks, you have to pay for it yourself.
Hire experts to check important things like the foundation and heating system for damage, and have some money set aside to fix any issues that might come up right after you move in.
An inventory home is a brand-new house that's already built and ready for you to move in. Everything in the house is unused, from the appliances to the paint on the walls.
Inventory homes come with extensive warranties, including builder's and manufacturer warranties, which protect your purchase. Overall, they have a fair amount in common with resale homes. The primary difference is that inventory homes often have super similar architecture, so they may not have as much "character" as a resale home.
Buying a new inventory home comes with lots of pluses. No one has ever used or lived in this property before you, so you get all the warranties that come with a newly constructed home.
This means if something does go wrong, you might not have to pay out of pocket to fix it. Also, since these homes are ready to go, you can move in quickly after your loan is approved, usually within a month or so.
And the move-in process is quick, just like with a resale home. Since the home is already constructed, you can often move in within a month or so after your financing is approved.
Inventory homes also have the latest in energy-saving, tech, and safety features, which helps cut down on your bills. And everything is brand new, so you likely won't need to fix anything soon.
There are a few things to think about before you decide on an inventory home. For example, you don't get to make many choices about how the house looks.
Things like the color of the walls, the type of floors, or the backyard setup are already decided by the builders.
These homes are also in developments where all the houses use the same traditional layouts. The result is that they often look similar and are close together, which might not meet your preferences. And while the builders have put everything together nicely, the lack of personal touch might make it feel less "yours" right from the start.
A semi-custom or custom new build allows you to create a home that is completely tailored to your preferences and needs. Unlike resale and inventory homes, these houses are designed from the ground up around your specifications.
The primary benefit is that you control every detail from the floor plan to the finishes, which makes sure every square foot and finish in your home improves the way you live your life.
This means you every aspect of your home meets your specific lifestyle preferences, from a large, open kitchen to a dedicated home office space.
These homes are built on larger plots, often offering more privacy and unique architectural designs that stand out from typical neighborhood homes. Plus, with many builders offering customizable options, you can ensure your home is both functional and reflective of your personal taste.
There are several considerations to think about before committing to a custom home. The design and construction process can be lengthy depending on the complexity and location of the build, and working with your builder to price the project accurately from the start and adjust your plans to stay within budget is important.
While you have the opportunity to customize many aspects of your home, it can be overwhelming without proper guidance and planning from builders like Dunn & Stone. You'll have to make decisions about everything from the materials you use to your paint colors.
Finally, because a custom project is a newly built home, moving in will take longer compared to buying an inventory or resale home. You’ll need to plan for this extended timeline and consider temporary housing if necessary.
Building a customized home from scratch might be the costlier alternative to resale or new inventory home but it is the only option that allows you to build a home that you wouldn't change a bit. After reviewing the different options for your next home, it is important to find the course of action that fits you best.
Schedule a call with Dunn & Stone Builders to ensure you get the best information to make the best decision. We have new inventory homes available for quick move-in, or we can build your custom dream home on your lot from scratch.
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