With the availability of land to expand on in San Antonio, new home construction has remained a popular choice for many home buyers and with a wide-array of choices in builders, floor plans, and amenities; it’s easy to see why. Building your dream home is always a fun, exciting process. From choosing your floorplan to picking out light fixtures, there are a lot of steps in the process and it does take time from initial purchase to the day you get the keys to your new home. Here are some tips to help make the new home construction process a lot easier on you.

Work with a Realtor

Obviously, this seems a little self-serving as we are Realtors. It’s one of those things we say all the time, and we understand why so many people think “well of course they would say that.” But there’s good reason we say it. The builder is offering the home at a particular list price. That list price includes a built-in amount of commission to be paid to your agent. The builder knows they will be paying this and as they are in the business of selling their homes for profit, they account for it in their pricing. Now, of course, you can go without an agent and the sales reps at the builder’s office will help you through the process, but remember, they work for the builder, not for you. Their job is to maximize profits for the builder. An agent’s job is to get you the best price and see you through the transaction smoothly. The agent is an advocate for you, the sales rep is an advocate for the builder (their boss).

Although builders do this every day for a living, every agent has countless stories about major mistakes made during the process of new home construction. We’ve seen it all: no insulation in the walls, fireplaces put in the wrong place, missing outlets, homes that were supposed to be stone but the builder started putting brick up instead, grass that was left to die (but came at a premium)…you get the picture. These details get overlooked sometimes and having someone to fight on your side is important to keep everyone on track. Using a real estate agent can save your time, money, and hassle.

Inspections

Speaking of things not being done, let’s talk about new home inspections. We’ve mentioned this before, but it is more important than anything else in this post. That’s right, ignore the rest of the post if you want, but don’t ignore this. Inspections cost money and yes, you can save a few dollars by relying on the builder’s inspections (they have to do certain inspections for code compliance, but they often do a series of inspections on the homes they build). Each builder will tell you how many steps they have in their inspection process and how great they are, but think about it for a moment…who’s paying the inspector? You guessed it – the builder. Like the old saying does, follow the money.

Take the extra time and money and hire a licensed inspector to perform a phased inspection. This will get you a series of inspections at certain milestones in the building process (foundation pour, framing, wiring, plumbing, pre-drywall, etc.). Not only will you be able to head off any problems, but it helps keep the contractors honest knowing that their work will be inspected by a professional.

Use your Realtor

We hate that we even have to mention this, but when you and your agent head over to the community to sign your offer and you walk out the door, the builder often will ignore the fact that you have an agent. They won’t call us, fill us in, or tell us much of what’s going on. Your agent will have to stay on top of the builder at all times. What winds up happening is they call you direct all the time and your agent won’t know the details of what’s happening, because the builder won’t tell them. This can be super frustrating for the agent and you. Sometimes builder use this time to put you on the spot to make decisions that would best be answered after some discussion and thought with your agent. Do not feel pressured and call your Realtor and get them involved. Not only does your agent have the experience to deal with problems that might arise, but they also can help you weigh decisions with insight from previous experiences.

Of course, your real estate agent should be proactive and calling you and the builder and checking in on the progress of your new home. Your Realtor should attend all meetings with the builders and contractors along with you, as well as the closing. Remember, most these people work for the builder (sales reps, contractors…and sometimes title companies and lenders, depending on your situation), your agent works for you.

Bonuses

Builders often offer some incentives to agents when they sell their homes in the form of bonuses. They might also offer you some incentives. These incentives are often tied to you using a particular lender. We suggest you talk with their lender, but know that you should be shopping around as well. Talk to your agent and ask them for some recommendations for lenders. There are many instances where an outside lender can beat the terms of the builder’s preferred lender and it may save you money, even if you forgo the incentives being offered. A good lender will look at the big picture for you and show you both sides of the equation – how much it saves you today (cash at closing) and how much it saves you through the life of the loan. A great lender will tell you when they can’t beat those terms and recommend you go with the builder’s preferred lender.

You should also look at the incentives being offered. Many come in the form of credits for upgrades to the home. The builder typically has a markup on these items, so the incentives true value may not be the face value of what they’re offering. We recommend carefully considering your new home upgrades as some are worth the price, some are not. As with anything, you need to find the balance between what you want in your new home and how much you’re willing to pay for it.

image courtesy of ** RCB **