Take it to the boxing ring: New Construction vs Older Homes

It’s getting really tense and charged in this boxing ring. Droplets of cascading sweat, gorging muscles of roaring fighters flexing, chants and cheers on either side of the contenders. The challengers?

Buy-a-home (Challenger 1) vs Build-a-home (Challenger 2)

Who takes home the WWE golden belt of ultimate investment?

It’s a shared, universal notion and sentiment that a home is most likely the single largest, key investment that a person will ever make. Most buyers end up spending lots of time and energy either searching for or designing “the perfect home” before signing any contracts. Location, price, market trends and the condition of the property are cogent issues factored into the house hunt.

However, coming down to the nitty gritty of it, what’s the case for either shopping around for an existing home or building a brand new one? Each path has its own pros and cons, but here’s some of the main reasons why you should build new:

It’s modern and novel from the get-go: New homes are built with today’s and even futuristic tastes in mind, so you’re more likely to find elements renters are looking for, like open floor plans, stainless steel appliances and higher-end finishes such as granite countertops. There’s no need for you to embark on counterproductive, money gulping merry-go-rounds doing a complete tear-down of a ‘70s-era kitchen or spend time and money upgrading an outdated electrical system.  No repair, no revamping, no renovating; nope your house isn’t going to rehab.

No lacuna, no whitewash, no mirage: What you build is what you get. You won’t have to worry about a home inspection suddenly revealing or not revealing hidden, underlying problems, only for these problems to surface now or later.

Minus maintenance, plus energy efficiency: With everything spick and span, you’ll save time and money on maintenance for years to come. And if some installation should go bonkers in the first years you own the property, you most likely have a manufacturer’s warranty. New homes also tend to be more energy efficient when comparing them to older and established homes as a result of being constructed with the most up-to-date materials, saving you money on your energy bills in the long run.

Bigger earnings mostly a given: Recent real estate studies ascertain that twice as many people prefer newly built homes to existing houses. Many renters are willing to pay more for brand-spanking-new properties, especially when they come with higher-end modern amenities. This results in a steadier cash flow, lower vacancy rate and often a higher resale value when you finally decide to let the property go. All of which equate to more money in the bank for you.

More likely to get what you want: For many home buyers, this factor alone is enough to seal the deal. Moving into your own home that you’ve uniquely designed to fit-to-type? Bliss doesn’t even describe it. Building anew gives you a blank canvass of sorts, with flexibility to customise it all as you deem fit. Undoubtedly, there’s a greater sense of pride moving into a new home you’ve created yourself – this is your creation that matches your style and personality.

Granted, there is a case to be made for an already existing home as they might have a stronger presence of charm and character having built a life of its own over time, with antique and retro vintage feels. They also might possess a great heritage of better, more mature landscaping, especially if there are scenic surrounding trees and shrubs as these have had time to come full circle and take shape. Your initial costs might also be on the lower end with an already existing home. its very often even possible to get a steal (a great property at a lower price with an even greater possibility of remarkable price negotiation, especially if the homeowners are bent on selling, and you can bore a few holes in their offer by pointing out lapses requiring upgrading and repairing in the home).

It is also true that you can take up an existing home in a highly desirable neighbourhood that currently has no provision or outlets for new construction, and this bears its merits.

With an already existing home in an already established area, you can get access to more accurate market research data consisting of historical trends, price points and expectations of renters (since that existing home in said area comes with the benefit of having a longer helm side of history).

Regardless, when talking about the biggest crux of this punching round, which is investment, is it crystal clear by now which opponent is delivering the dastardly, FINISHING punch when it comes to guaranteed, highly sought-after investment?

No need to go wild guessing.

Looking to secure a canvass(land) on which to build your new home, or for investment needs?

Landwey is happy to help. Get in touch with us on 08186554455.