Happy Valentines! I hope you have a terrific Valentines day and weekend. Amber and I are going to the Market Street Grill tonight and hitting the slopes tomorrow. What are you doing?  I need good ideas for the future so please let me know :  )

With the tulips coming up in my front yard it appears that we skipped winter this year.  With the warmer weather our real estate market is in full swing. All real estate market indicators point to another fantastic year! I can’t believe mortgage interest rates are still below 4%. Unbelievable!

Lately I’ve been working with several clients who have chosen to build new homes. Since Amber and I have built 3 homes ourselves and I’ve helped hundreds of clients build new homes I think it’s very exciting! Some people do not know that I sell new construction. It is true that I sell a lot of existing homes but most people do not realize that new construction sales accounts for about 25% of my business. I love new construction and for those buyers who want to design their own home and have the time to build it’s a great option.  Here are some Pros and Cons to building a new home vs. buying an existing home.

Pros:

You get to design the home they way you want it! Builders vary as to how many changes they will allow but all of them let you pick out your interior and exterior colors, flooring, cabinets, lighting, plumbing fixtures, appliances, and floor plan. By the way I help with custom homes too!

You get to design and finish the basement the way you want.

You get to design and finish the yard the way you want.

Cons:

Usually more expensive than buying an existing home.

Usually the buyer finishes the basement and yard after they move in.

Usually there are not mature trees in your yard or in the neighborhood.

In your ward you may have a huge primary and a very small High Priest Group or Youth Program. Just ask Amber how many kids are in our primary :  )

Requires days, weeks and sometimes months designing a new home.

Usually takes more than 6 months to build vs. an existing home you can normally move in less than two months.

Some will argue that having CC&R’s and a HOA is negative not a positive so for those people an older neighborhood with out and HOA may be best :  )

Buyers obviously want the best home for the money. This is typically achieved by purchasing an existing home but for many good reasons it’s difficult to find an existing home that fits a buyer preferences and needs so they’ll decide to build. For example right now I have clients who are building a new home in Salem with a beautiful apartment in the basement for their parents which is very difficult to find in an existing home. In Orem I have a new home for sale that has a Legal Accessory apartment that rents out for $1,000 per month. I have two really nice single family homes under construction in Saratoga Springs and Eagle Mountain both under $250,000! In North Lehi I have clients building a beautiful new home with a custom boat garage over looking the entire valley and a large park with a nice lawn area, tennis courts and a swimming pool! In Riverton one of my good friends from Jr. High is building an incredible home that is his and his wife’s dream home!

Building a new home is really fun and exciting. If you or someone you know is considering building a new home now is a good time to get started. If we start now your new home should be done late summer. If you have kids we should still be able to get you moved in before school starts in September.

Please contact me if you are interested in new construction or if you have any other real estate needs or questions. As always I look forward to speaking with you or anyone you refer to me.

Sincerely, Lewis

PS: Thank you for the referrals and please keep them coming!