With Fewer Homes For Sale and New Construction In Demand, What’s the Best Option When Looking to Buy?
Finding your perfect home can come down to many factors. Before you begin your search, you may want to consider if you’re looking for Existing vs. New Construction? With low inventory and new construction ramping up, it’s helpful to know the pro’s and con’s of both these options.
According to The Wall Street Journal, a surge in home-buying demand and limited inventory for existing homes is spurring construction to help fill the gap:
“New single-family-home sales rose 13.9% in July from June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 901,000, the highest level since December 2006, according to the Commerce Department. Single-family housing starts, a measure of U.S. home building, rose 8.2% in July from June to the highest seasonally adjusted annual rate since February.”
New Construction
When buying a new home, you can often choose more energy-efficient options. New appliances, new windows, a new roof, etc. These can all help lower your energy costs, which can add up to significant savings over time. With today’s technology there are many option that will also help protect the environment and reduces your carbon footprint.
Lower maintenance that comes with a newer home is another great benefit. When you have a new home, you likely won’t have as many little repairs to tackle, like leaky faucets, shutters to paint, and other odd jobs around the house.
Existing Home
While a newly built home may offer state-of-the-art amenities, you may be forced to make some concessions in order to enjoy those luxuries. For example, a new home is likely to be built in a developing community, meaning that you will be living with ongoing construction in the neighborhood for some time to come.
In addition, existing homes are typically less expensive and there is more opportunity to negotiate. Because they are less expensive, older home will come with a lower tax burden for the owner. While this shouldn't be a deciding point when choosing between a newly constructed home or a resale property, it is an important consideration.
To Summarize
Every family will have different circumstances driving their decision. Both are great options and each come with pros and cons. If you are looking for help to navigate these waters\, reaching out to a real estate professional is the best option!
h/t to Keeping Current Matters
