Please help me decide on choosing home!

[love__goofy]

So my DH and I are completely stressed out trying to make a decision on which house to build. Please help me decide!

House 1 - $275,000 - community pool...great price, but surrounded by power lines. That's my concern. Also friend had this builder for their home and it was disastrous..ex. never wrapped house. Terrible electric bills.

House 2 - $ 325,000 - community pool, tennis courts, playground, private golf course..husband said it was amazing, not near power lines, a smaller lot, builder declares home is excellent in concerns to electric bills.

Both homes are comparable in size.

Forgot to add, we are renting right now and just found out the home we are living in, is being foreclosed on in early September. So, time is of the essence.

 

[loricdietzel]

If the money isn't an option, I would go with the second one because you know there is an issue with the builder for the first one and every day you would wake up with the first one and say "I hate those power lines." Also, if there is an issue with your home for the first one you probably would be more upset because you knew there were problems with the builder before you bought. It just seems like you could have a lot more regrets with the first one and reasons to be unhappy with it.

 

[ilovemk76]

So my DH and I are completely stressed out trying to make a decision on which house to build. Please help me decide!

House 1 - $275,000 - community pool...great price, but surrounded by power lines. That's my concern. Also friend had this builder for their home and it was disastrous..ex. never wrapped house. Terrible electric bills.

House 2 - $ 325,000 - community pool, tennis courts, playground, private golf course..husband said it was amazing, not near power lines, a smaller lot, builder declares home is excellent in concerns to electric bills.

Both homes are comparable in size.

The bold holds the answer. House #2. Another option is to keep looking.

 

[ilovepete]

house #2

 

[emksmama]

If you can afford house #2, why are you even considering house #1? You have a personal reference that says the builder sucks, you know the electric/utility bills would be disastrous, and you have another con with the power lines! To me, it's a no brainer...house #2.

And if you can't afford house #2, then keep looking. Also, if your rental is being foreclosed upon, there should be options out there where you aren't forced out without due notification...consult an attorney to make sure you know what your rights are.

 

[mrsklamc]

I would keep looking. I'm sure there are other rentals out there and this is the kind of decision you don't want to be forced into.

 

[Lucille1963]

House two or a different house all together. There's no way I'd buy the first one.

 

[ekatiel]

I'm so over buying new houses. You can never tell what the neighborhood is going to end up like, what the schools are going to be like, etc. Have you looked at newer pre-owned homes? Our first two homes we bought new and ended up unhappy with the neighborhoods. The home we live in now, we bought almost entirely based on location. School district was our main concern. We are VERY happy here. We ended up buying a home that was 10 years old. Yes, we had to put a little work into it, but it is in a great neighborhood that will stay nice, and in an excellent school district. Just a reminder to check the listings of pre-owned homes in your area, too . --Katie

 

[nicki.momof3]

I'm so over buying new houses. You can never tell what the neighborhood is going to end up like, what the schools are going to be like, etc. Have you looked at newer pre-owned homes? Our first two homes we bought new and ended up unhappy with the neighborhoods. The home we live in now, we bought almost entirely based on location. School district was our main concern. We are VERY happy here. We ended up buying a home that was 10 years old. Yes, we had to put a little work into it, but it is in a great neighborhood that will stay nice, and in an excellent school district. Just a reminder to check the listings of pre-owned homes in your area, too . --Katie

I have the complete opposite opinion. I would never buy a pre owned home. All you are doing is buying someone elses problems and you can not customize it.

We built our home and LOVE it. We picked out every fixture, paint, flooring, floor plan, and so on. We built the home we wanted.

Building a new home is no different than purchasing a pre owned home in regards to neighborhood and schools. A little research can prevent any problems in that area.

We built our home of our dreams in the neighborhood we wanted and the school district we wanted. To top it all off made sure our new home came with a home warranty. You usually don't get that with a older home.

To answer OP question I would pick #2 if that is your dream home. If not keep looking, don't settle.

 

[a1tinkfans]

STAY AWAY from the power lines................nough said..
RUN, dont walk..................

 

[littleelf]

If you are starting from scratch with building I would be very surprised if you could move in by early September. Four-six months is more the norm, at least in this part of the country (upstate NY).

I do like new construction, although I feel guilty about it environmentally. Our current house was new. Our first house was 8 years old--still nice and new, only needed cosmetic/optional updates. We would still be there if it had been bigger or hadn't appreciated in value so much (bought in 2001!).

 

[Honeybell]

What are the monthly HOA fees and what do they include? That is as much of a concern as the cost of the house. If both of these neighborhoods are still under developer control be aware that they might be subsidizing the HOA so that the fees stay low while they are selling homes.

That aside, you don't sound that excited about the first option. Keep looking. When you find the right place you'll know.

Also, is this your "forever house". The first house we bought we knew would only be for 5-6 years. We looked for different things in our current house. We've been there 10 years with no plans to move.

 

[love__goofy]

OP here. Thanks for all of the opinions. We are definitely leaning heavily towards the second home. We figured it would change our payment by about $250 per month. That's not too big of a deal to us.

But, sometimes I believe there are signs..you know, to lead you in the right direction. Well tonight, while we're driving to dinner, after a small thunderstorm, we were routed another direction because the road was closed. So on the way home, we tried the normal route. And I couldn't believe it!! There was a down power line in the road!! What are the chances of that? The main reason we are between the two are the power lines. It's gotta be a sign! A tree had fallen down on the line and it was hanging maybe 6 feet above our car as we drove under. The tractor trailers were stopped.. There was no way they were making it under.

So our decision is now made!! Now where to move to for the next 5 months until the house is built.

 

[disny_luvr]

Definitely #2. I actually chuckled when you mentioned about the power lines that are by house #1. When we built our home 2.5 years ago, we looked in a development that had power lines running right through the middle of it. We loved the development - beautiful homes, large lots, etc. but we could not get beyond the power lines. In the end, the power lines sealed the deal and we built in another development. We love where we are and know we made the right decision, but it is a ashame for the other development - it really is nice minus the power lines.

 

[ktlm]

I'm with the others...absolutely 100% No. 2, or keep looking. No way would I buy a house right near major power lines. In fact, we have a very nice neighborhood that one side is right by big power lines. We flat out rejected building over there. They are having trouble selling those lots (which obviously is why you are seeing a lower price on that house). I think you might have some real issues trying to sell that house, if you decide to move elsewhere or upgrade to a different house someday. Also, you know No 1 has builder issues, and a brand new house in this day and age should NOT have crazy electric bills. I am amazed how the bills at our new house, are about the same as at our old much smaller house. You do not want to buy a house from a builder that you know has issues. You are asking for trouble. If he has trouble with building defective houses for a lot of homebuyers and goes belly up, you may have trouble getting your issues fixed or getting the money for repairs, or getting them to uphold any builder's warrant. Often a builder's commercial insurance does not actually cover workmanship issues, so you need to be very careful about the reputation of who you choose to do the work. Run far far away from No. 1.

 

[SplashMo]

Great choice. Power lines are bad for your health and bad for resale.

 

[disneychic2]

I think you made the right decision. Glad you're at peace with it.

 

[kellydizfan]

House #2 but have it inspected by an home inspector before purchase. Have it built into your contract. I would purchase new over lived in any day but since you know the issues with the first builder and # 2 doesn't bother you pricewise I would go with that but again have it inspected and make sure you get a detailed inspection report.

 

[sk!mom]

House #1 would be out of consideration. The power lines are bad enough. The builder issues take it from bad to worse.

If I could afford #2 without a problem, then it sounds great. If I couldn't afford it then we would keep looking. Even if it meant renting again or buying an existing home.

No way would I take choice 1.