Deciding whether to buy or build a house is a big decision. Buying a house can mean that you have a place to live sooner, while building a house gives you full liberty to design a home down to your exact wishes. There are various considerations you’ll want to keep in mind when deciding which option to go with.
Considerations to Keep in Mind
When you’re debating whether to build or buy a home, there are many things you’ll want to consider as you are deciding which option is best. Many prospective home buyers have the “perfect” home in mind when shopping for a new house, which can lead to them bypassing homes that might otherwise be a good fit in their quest for the optimal home. Keep in mind that when you buy a new home, you can quite often improve the structure after you purchase the home, which is a quick and easy way to give a home that’s generally a good match to start with a nice personalized finish. Buying a home that you like the looks of is an excellent place to start, but you’ll also want to think about the property taxes, price, location, any homeowners association fees, and market trends as you start shopping for a home. If you are considering building a house, on the other hand, the cost and availability of materials is a crucial consideration. You will also need to assemble a team to help build your home.
Advantages of Buying a House
The two main advantages of buying a home that has already been built are cost and convenience. To start, you will want to get pre-approved by a lender so that you can be ready to jump on the opportunity to make an offer when a home that you like appears on the market. If the owner accepts your offer, you can usually start the move-in process reasonably quickly, and you may be settled into your new home within just one or two months. Working with qualified real estate agents in Las Vegas is a good option for expediting and streamlining the home sale and purchase process. There are several steps that you’ll need to go through first to complete the home sale, including securing financing, looking at homes, making offers, arranging final inspections for the house you want to buy, and closing the deal. However, considering all that goes into buying a home, buying a home is still generally more convenient than building a home.
Advantages of Building a Home
While buying an existing home is typically more convenient than building a home, you may not get precisely the home that you want. Building a home means that you are in charge of construction inside and out and from the ground up. When you build a home, you can choose the layout for your house along with all the appliances, decorations, and amenities that go with it. You don’t have to spend money on remodeling or renovating, which is undoubtedly a cost that you might encounter when you get an existing home. Additionally, building your place means that you can also build a home that is energy efficient and meets all applicable modern standards for heating, cooling, and ventilation. You can work with a contractor to ensure the home has a suitable air filtration system and is adequately insulated, too. Building a home that is climate-controlled and efficient has the added benefit of being good for the environment, and it can also reduce the cost of your utility bills each month.
Disadvantages of Buying a Home
One of the biggest disadvantages of purchasing an existing home is that you don’t have every opportunity to create a custom finish. Most homeowners have at least one part of the new home that they don’t like, such as the floors, appliances, or paint color. If you decide to modify your home to either improve the parts that you don’t like or tack on another bedroom or bathroom, you will also need to consider the added expenses that the renovations or addition will cost. Modifying the home also means that you may need to make alternate living arrangements while the construction is completed, depending on how extensive the renovations are. If you are thinking of renovating a home before you even buy it, you should get an estimate for how much the work will cost and compare the end price to the total cost of any other homes you are considering buying. Depending on the age of the home, you may also need to put a fair amount of work into fixing up the property to make it safer, more livable, and more appealing in general. In the end, however, you may end up with great real estate investments in Las Vegas that are well worth the effort.
Disadvantages of Building a House
While you can often move into an existing home in just a matter of weeks, the wait is usually much longer if you are building a home. Building a home is a step-by-step process that revolves heavily around building materials and the availability of the professionals involved in the home’s construction. You’ll have to select a team of experts to build your home, but before hiring a team, you will also want to check their references for credibility and get estimates for the total cost of the work. Compared to moving into a home that’s already built, building a new home tends to be a bit more expensive.
Tallying up the Cost
While you can get a general idea of what an existing home costs based on the price tag in the front yard, the cost of constructing a new home is not always as clear. In Las Vegas, the average price of constructing a new home ranges from $400,000 to $10,000,000.
Factors involved in a home’s construction include:
- The size and style of the home
- Building materials and brands
- Customized interior and exterior features
- Location of the home
- Size of the property
- Cost of residential construction in the vicinity
On the other hand, the average cost of a residential home in Las Vegas is $309,000 before renovations and repairs.
How to Save Money on a New Home
When you are moving into a new home, the cost is one of the most important considerations you will need to consider. As the top property managers in Las Vegas will tell you, fixing up a home sometimes feels like you are pouring money down the drain, but the minor improvements that you make are well worth the effort. The good news is that you can make improvements to your home while saving money in the process if you go about making repairs carefully. Keeping the line of communication open with the home’s builder is an excellent way to make sure that the construction process keeps moving along. Maintaining communication and creating a construction schedule is especially important if you currently live far away, as you’ll want to make sure that the construction or other improvements are completed promptly. If you can’t make it to the property often, ask the builder to send photos of progress on the home so that you can make sure all milestones are met. Even if you are not there to physically inspect the property, checking out the progress through photos also ensures that you are satisfied with the outcome. Keep in mind that you can always ask a builder about using different materials and brands to reduce your overall costs.
Go With the Pros
Whether buying a home or building, working with the pros can ultimately save time and money. While you might be tempted to cut costs by buying a home on your own or attempting some repairs and renovations on a DIY basis, it ultimately pays off to work with professionals when you are building or improving upon a home. You may need to work with multiple experts, but at the very least, you should work with a contractor if you’re building a home from scratch or hire a real estate agent to help scope out houses for sale in Henderson. A pro can also help you navigate any complexities that arise during the home buying or construction process, including working through any legal challenges that come up as you are closing on a home and ensuring that a home’s construction complies with all relevant governing building codes.
MOR Group | Real Estate Agents in Las Vegas
Whether you are looking to move to Las Vegas in the next month or you want to build your dream home in Henderson, we are here to help you out. As the top property managers in Las Vegas, we are proud to have the experience necessary to help you buy or build a home with confidence, along with a warm and friendly staff ready to welcome you to the area and help you and your family settle in. Don’t hesitate to contact the best property management in Las Vegas today with all your questions about relocating to Sin City.