This past week in working with a couple who are looking for their retirement home, I was asked this question. Of course this is my opinion from my perspective but this was my answer.
When you build a new home you are purchasing just that: a new home. All the extras that are needed to make life comfortable and live-able are "a la carte". A new home is a wonderful experience, but you are no longer in charge of the timetable for example as to when you will install curtains or blinds on your windows; most HOA/COA's will only put up with sheet covered windows for a minimal amount of time. You'll need to drag around a sprinkler to water in your new sod or it can quickly become damaged in the summer sun. How long do you want to live with boxes in your garage and attic because you have no proper storage areas?
In a resale home, what ever extras come with it may not be your taste but you have more leisure time to live in the home and get a sense of how you want to decorate, or landscape. I have found that living in a home and what I initially thought may be what I wanted, evolves and more often than not changes with time.
Items like extra shelving, lighting, in-ground sprinkler systems as well as curtains/drapes/blinds or even their hardware to hang them are expenses that add up quickly. A well or a water treatment system is an expensive upgrade to a home. Don't forget that extra blanket of insulation the last owner installed or even the external generator, are all the bells and whistles that make your life more comfortable and enjoyable. That lanai that was converted to a 3 season sun room provides extra living space that wasn't in the home's original plans, and of course the hidden costs such as permitting of these extras need to also be considered in the tally of benefits.
Unless money is no object (which is rarely anyone's case) you get more bang for your buck in a resale home.
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