One of the most intimidating yet exciting endeavors to undertake as a homeowner is building a new home from the ground up. Yet it doesn’t have to be such an overwhelming process when guided through the various steps and stages by a designer and general contractor, and the benefits far outweigh the concerns.
“The most common reason why someone opts to build a home rather than buy one is that they can’t find an existing home that meets their needs. Custom construction allows a homeowner to create a home that meets their specific needs and taste, while also planning for the future whether that means enough space for a family to grow or empty nesters to age in place,” explained Rick McAlexander, CEO of The House Plan Company, a house plan marketing company based in Eugene, Ore.
Location, Location, Location
One of the biggest benefits of building a new home over buying an existing one is location. As a homeowner, you get to choose where it’s located.
“It’s really the first big advantage of building over buying,” explained Ken Pieper, owner of Ken Pieper & Associates in Evergreen, Colo. “Choosing the place to build is as much a custom feature as selecting paint colors and fixtures. Whereas when buying an existing home, you’re confined to the house that is already built on the property whether you like all of it and the surrounding neighborhood, or not.”
Today’s trends in home designs are all about simplicity and house plans are created to fit any type and size of building lot from narrow to sloped and to take advantage of a specific view.
That New House Smell
In all seriousness, there’s nothing quite like that “new house smell” says McAlexander. “It comes with with the knowledge that you’ve selected all of the finishes and fixtures to meet your exact taste, from floor coverings to paint colors to plumbing fixtures and appliances.”
While remodeling an existing home is not necessarily a bad thing, it can often mean a lot of disruption to daily family life or even moving out of the house altogether and living in temporary quarters. McAlexander says that it’s ultimately about building your dream home. Selecting a house plan that meets your needs, tastes and size of the lot is much easier than spending hours upon hours touring homes for sale in what can often be a competitive real estate market.
Pieper agrees and added, “Designing a new home from scratch offers a much more personal, individualized experience for living in the space as opposed to occupying a house that reflects someone else’s design thoughts.”
All the Bells and Whistles
Homeowners today also like to take advantage of the hottest trends in home design, such as open floor plans, spacious kitchens with oversized islands, indoor/outdoor living areas, multi-purpose mud rooms and much more.
“New construction allows homeowners to decide which trends are most important to them based on how they want to live in the home day to day. In this way, you’re not trying to force a design concept into an existing structure,” McAlexander said.
One trend that has become increasingly important to homeowners in recent years is “smart, energy efficient homes”. According to Safesmartliving.com, the number of smart homes in the U.S. is expected to reach 70.6 million by 2023.
Energy-saving features in lighting, heat and water are priorities for those building a new home, along with with being able to control lights, security, electronics and temperature with one swipe on a Smartphone.
“Being able to incorporate the latest technology in energy efficiency and fire, safety and security measures means a safer, more environmentally sensitive home,” McAlexander added.
As seen on PRUnderground