Many people dream of building their own home, but in reality, think that they would never actually do it for various reasons. A house is usually the single largest investment that a person can make and therefore a lot of time and energy goes into finding your perfect property or going the other way and designing it for yourself.
Market trends, location, price, property tax, geographical area are all things which are factored in the long process of the house hunt. In addition, each house buyer will likely have a long list of specific needs which they require in a property, as well as wants (what the buyer would like but are not absolutely necessary).
Clearly, home-buying involves a variety of very important choices, one of the decisions that plenty of people have to make is whether they are going to look for an existing property or whether they are going to build a new one to their own specification. Going down either road comes with its advantages and its disadvantages, which is what we will be exploring in this guide.
Time and Money
Two of the biggest concerns for home-buyers are time and money. One of the most significant drawbacks of building your own property seems to be how long it would take to complete as well as the higher costs of having to do everything from scratch. Also, both of these factors can increase during the process, so it is far less clear-cut than buying a house at a certain price with a move in date in place.
If you do wish to build your own property, it is advisable that you try to get a lump-sum contract as opposed to a cost-plus contract. This will avoid any price increases occurring during the build. The lump-sum contract means you agree on a fixed price for construction, which in turn, puts the risk of the extra costs on the builder instead of you.
Furthermore, you should seek out contracts which include construction time duration. You should, at all costs, avoid open-ended deadlines as this could add more stress when you certainly do not need it.
Convenience Vs Customisation
If you wish to live in a particular established neighbourhood, near your work, near certain schools or your friends and/or family, it may be a better option for you to buy an existing property. Chances are you can find a convenient place for you.
However, on the flip side, a big disadvantage of buying an existing property is that you may have to compromise on the things that you want in a home. Whereas, if you build your own can design your house to your specifications, obviously your budget may limit you, but you can add in your necessary features nonetheless.
Pre-existing homes which are older may be functionally obsolete and may no longer meet the needs of a modern buyer. For example, older houses often have a decent number of bedrooms but only one bathroom. If you wish to see out an existing property, you could always buy one which you are certain will be able to upstand having renovations, such as a new kitchen, a loft extension or conservatories to give you more space and meet your needs.
Obviously, building your own home is nowhere near as convenient for the buyers who want to move into their new home as soon as possible. If it is in your interest to wait, then great, but this is not the case for most people. Not only do you have to find land to build your project on, you also have to factor in the hours and days to find an architect and a builder who suit you. There are a lot of things to consider since you are starting from scratch and things like plumbing are not a given.
