Here in Arizona the new home builders are still cranking out so many incentives - to both the buyer and the buyer's agent. There are increased commission incentives, there are upgrade incentives, there are financing incentives, etc., etc, etc. With all of those incentives and the lovely lure of a fresh, unblemished, squeeky clean, brand new home - shouldn't we all be bringing our homebuyers to the new home developments? Actually I think it is our duty to try to keep many of them away - especially our first-time home buyers.
More often than not people rush into a contract on a new build without having thought through the additional expenses involved. When a homebuyer buys a resale home typically the home will already have in place:
- Landscaping - front and back
- Watering systems
- Window treatments
Additionally, many resales may also have:
- a pool
- upgraded window coverings such as plantation shutters
- designer paint
- upgraded flooring
Just to name a few things. So often I have seen first-time homebuyers get into a new build only to hate it because while they budgeted for the mortgage payments they simply don't have the money that they need to make that house into a home.
While a newly constructed home may make sense for people with plenty of spare cash after their mortgage payments are made they really don't make sense for those on a tight budget. We need to educate our buyers to make sure that they make a fully informed choice.
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