To build or buy?

[CanGal 1]

My hubbie and I just been playing with the idea of getting our own home. We are renting right now and just feel like we are continually just throwing our money out the window. Our lease is up in October. We found a subdivision that allows you to customize your own home with the choice of 9 different plans with customized options at decent prices. We can't afford to prebuy right now but we were just getting some ideas. He has alot of experience in building homes (actually he was working on building a home for us after we got married that his father was financing but things got out of hand with him and we just ended up leaving it). So would it be more expensive for us to buy or just build. Nothing big right now but something basic?? Suggestions would be great

CanGal

[Fandango 1,440]

My hubbie and I just been playing with the idea of getting our own home. We are renting right now and just feel like we are continually just throwing our money out the window. Our lease is up in October. We found a subdivision that allows you to customize your own home with the choice of 9 different plans with customized options at decent prices. We can't afford to prebuy right now but we were just getting some ideas. He has alot of experience in building homes (actually he was working on building a home for us after we got married that his father was financing but things got out of hand with him and we just ended up leaving it). So would it be more expensive for us to buy or just build. Nothing big right now but something basic?? Suggestions would be great

CanGal

Depends on your ultimate goal, how much cash you have to put down, and how good your credit is!

If things are tight (which is what I get after reading this), then you'd prolly be best buying a 'starter home'...something not so palatial, but something all your own! Even a 'fixcer-upper' if either of you are handy. That would really drive the price of the house down.

Then you can sit on it for a few years, fix it up, and then take advantage of the increase in equity to sell it (hopefully for more than ya bought it for), take that money, and put that down on your dreamhome.

[Aymerlu 3]

Depends on what you want in a house. My parents built there own home a few years ago and after watching them and hearing them argue about this and that, I swore I would never build a house, I'll just buy one.

[CanGal 1]

I personally would just start off buying, even if there is stuff in it i don't like and could just work around but he's kind of set on building because he thinks it would be have the cost but then you have to take in property and all the extra costs. The little division we found is cute and they are expanding and you can actually prebuy or not. Something like that would be just fine for us and they all average btw 90,000 - 145, 000 and they are new homes so we will see.

[Jaylen Brit 0]

LenJay posting this......

You mention your SO has experience building homes - so I'm assuming you mean in your post to have him and you actually build your own... if that's the case, that is definately the cheapest way to go. Contractors and what not have to pay for supplies, just like you would - probably slightly cheaper then you can get them for... but they also have to turn a profit on it - which you won't need to do.

If he knows how to do it, and to do things to code - he'll need building permits and the local housing inspector - or what ever they call in in your neck of the woods - will come out several times to make sure things meet the local and state codes. That's the PITA part, and if he doesn't know what he's doing, could result in extra $$$ being put out.

There's also the fact that more then likely, having someone build it for you would be faster - depending on how many people he'll have helping him and what he may or may not subcontract out (plumbing, electrical, sewage, grading, etc).

If I had the knowledge, money (remember, your gonna have to pay for the supplies for the most part, not finance them... unless you get a loan from a bank to build the house), and most important.. patience... I would LOVE to build my own place and live there. Something about living in a place that you built... self-satisification I guess.. Plus, for the most part, it would be the house that I WANTED... or rather, what Jay wanted lol... and not some pre-designed variant of the contractor.