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What are the pros and
cons of buying a brand new
home?
What a joy it would be to
own a home that required
little, if any, maintenance
for 5 or 10 years. This is a
major attraction of buying a
new home. There's no need to
fuss with remodeling and
repairing. You simply move
in and enjoy. That is,
unless you have the
misfortune of buying a
lemon.
Several years ago, a couple
bought a new home in a small
development in Marin County,
Calif. They thought they'd
lucked into the home of
their dreams until one house
after another in the project
developed similar problems.
First, the windows and
skylights leaked. Then, the
drainage systems failed.
Finally, water seeped
through some exterior walls.
The only recourse was to sue
the builder. He, however,
had fallen into financial
hard times soon after
building the development.
New homes are usually built
with approval of the local
building department. This
involves a building permit
application process
including such requirements
as a soils report,
architectural plans and
structural calculations.
Licensed professionals -
soils engineer, architect,
and contractor - are
involved in creating a new
home project, which is
inspected by city building
inspectors during the course
of construction. At the end
of the project, a
certificate of occupancy is
issued.
You might expect that with
all this planning and
scrutiny, new homes would be
perfect. But, just because a
home is new and built with
permits doesn't mean that it
was properly built, or that
it's free of defects.
Sometimes builders make
mistakes. City inspectors
aren't infallible either,
and they are usually immune
from liability.
Many homes built after the
Oakland Hills firestorm in
1991 developed costly
dry-rot problems within
several years after they
were completed. The culprit
in most cases was lack of
adequate ventilation. City
building inspectors had
inspected and approved all
the homes during
construction.
HOUSE HUNTING TIP:
Don't assume that
because a city inspector
looked at the property
during construction that you
don't need to have it
inspected. You should
include an inspection
contingency in your purchase
agreement, regardless of the
home's age.
It's best to have a new home
inspected by a home
inspector who has experience
inspecting new homes. You
may want to have an engineer
evaluate the soils report,
plans and structural
calculations for you.
In addition to inspecting
the structure, make sure
that you investigate the
builder's reputation. You
want to buy from a builder
who values his good
reputation and will promptly
take care of any
construction-related
problems that might surface
in the first year or so of
ownership.
Ask the builder for a list
of homes or developments
that he has built in recent
years. Visit these. How do
they look? Speak to some of
the homeowners to find out
how satisfied they are with
his product. Be sure to ask
how the builder responded to
requests to take care of
problems.
Ask the builder to give you
a written warranty, which
states that he will repair
construction defects that
develop within your first
year or so of ownership.
Some builders won't do this.
Also, the law is not always
clear about what a builder's
responsibilities are to you.
Consult with a knowledgeable
real estate attorney if you
have any questions about a
builder's responsibilities.
Older homes need updating,
they often aren't energy
efficient, and they may be
poorly designed. Renovating
is expensive and
time-consuming. But, a
benefit of buying an older
home is that it has stood
the test of time.
THE CLOSING:
You should exercise
diligent care in buying a
new home.
Dian Hymer is author of
"House Hunting, The
Take-Along Workbook for Home
Buyers," and "Starting Out,
The Complete Home Buyer's
Guide," Chronicle Books.
Copyright Dian Hymer
Distributed by Inman News
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