UPGRADES NOW STANDARD

As the market for new homes tightens, builders say more traditional upgrades are now considered standard in properties. "The inventory of builders is up so high that to reduce their inventory and get back to the previous levels of success, they are adding more incentives, which become standard," says Victor Furnells, national director at market researcher Hanley Wood Market Intelligence. For instance, he said, no matter what the home price is, today there are more granite and Corian countertops. Making popular features standard cuts down on the sticker shock that drives some people away from new homes. "People are discouraged when they walk into a home starting at $500,000 and find out it costs $1 million," says Kreisten Thomas, sales manager at Coles Run Manor, a Stanley Martin development in Virginia.