If you're beginning the house hunting process and want a home that looks as fresh and modern as possible, then you may be leaning towards buying a brand new home rather than one that has been lived in before. Often, buying a new home means selecting your own special features, like counter tops and kitchen fixtures, which can result in an abode that satisfies your every want and desire. But a fresh, customized look is not the only thing a brand new house has to offer. Here are five other benefits of buying brand new.
You get to meet the builder.
When you buy a previously lived-in home, you're likely to have questions like, "Why does the door open this way, rather than that way?" and "Did they really have to design the staircase like that?" There won't be anywhere to go with these questions at that point since you probably won't even know who built the home. On the other hand, when you buy a brand new home, you will know who the builder is -- and you can ask them all the questions you want about the ins and outs of the home. They can tell you why certain elements were designed a certain way, and they can even tell you how to maintain certain materials, like the specialty tile in the bathroom or the unique carpeting in the dining area.
Everything is under warranty.
When you buy a home that's five or ten years old, the warranties on items are beginning to wear out. If something breaks, you'll have to come up with the cash to replace or repair it. In a new home, however, almost everything, from the carpet to the furnace, will be under warranty. That means you should have virtually zero repair costs in the next few years. When you're just adapting to home ownership and need to furnish your new house, it's really nice not to have repair expenses! Just make sure you keep all of the warranty information where you can access it quickly if there is ever an issue.
Energy-efficiency should be top-notch.
Appliances are becoming more and more efficient every year. Furnaces, refrigerators, air conditioners, and even televisions use less power today than they did even five years ago. Builders have begun employing more energy-efficient insulation, wall, and roof materials, too. Surely, a house that is five or ten years old will be efficient, but one that's brand new is often even more efficient. Ask the builder for specific stats on the home's efficiency and the efficiency of individual appliances.
There are no haphazard repairs made.
These days, more and more homeowners are turning towards the DIY route when it comes to making repairs. While there are some handy homeowners who do a great job of making repairs themselves, some of their efforts leave a lot to be desired. If you buy a lived-in home, you may find, down the road, that a circuit was improperly wired, a roof was improperly patched, or the furnace was not ventilated properly because the previous owner tried, in vain, to make their own repairs. With a brand new home, the only people who have ever worked on the home are the building team -- and you can bet that they knew what they were doing!
You may pay a bit more for a new home than for one that is a few years old. However, in exchange, you will get a home where everything is under warranty, there are no botched repairs to worry about, you can ask the builder questions, and energy-efficiency is top-notch. No-brainer? Definitely.
