Real Estate Information

Buying an Unfinished Home Maybe Your Answer


For the first time "want-to-be" homeowner, purchasing an unfinished new home maybe just the answer. With mortgage interest rates still at record lows, there has not been a better time to purchase a home in decades. However, home prices have dramatically risen over the past several years, and even with low interest rates, for some the dream of owing one's own home has still remained out of reach.

Purchasing an unfinished home can save tens of thousands of dollars, thus enabling some prospective homeowners the opportunity to buy a house that they may not have otherwise afforded. Unfinished homes are particularly attractive to young couples with no children and who have limited financial resources. The unfinished home concept allows the young couple to grow/finish the home as their family and financial resources do. In addition, if the new homeowners are willing to put in sweat equity they can save significantly on finishing the home.

Typically an unfinished home has a completed kitchen, living room, bath, and at least one bedroom. This is pretty much required by mortgage lenders and building inspectors as the home would otherwise be considered unacceptable for living standards. In many two story unfinished homes, the entire upstairs maybe left unfinished.

When purchasing an unfinished home there are a few items to consider first, such as; what is the expected timeline for finishing the house, what is the expected completed floor plan and who will complete it. All these questions should be answered prior to signing a Purchase and Sales agreement. For example, if more bedrooms will be required prior to when the homeowner anticipates finishing the home, then an unfinished home purchase may not be the right solution. Secondly, ask the builder/prior homeowner for a copy of the floor plan of the completed home. Usually a builder/prior homeowner has these, and it will help immensely when the time comes to complete the unfinished space. Changes to these floor plans are typically feasible, however, it is important to talk with the building inspector prior to beginning the project. Also, in the case of new construction, you may want to negotiate with the builder to complete a portion of the unfinished area, such as the rough framing, electric or plumbing. Finally, you need to determine who will complete the work and assess how much, if any, sweat equity you are willing to contribute. In either case, building permits will need to be pulled prior to any work.

Purchasing an unfinished home can be the means to fulfilling the American dream. For many, it is also a way to buy a larger home, once completed. For others, it enables them to not sacrifice quality in their initial home purchase. Whatever the reason, the purchase of an unfinished home has traditionally been an excellent investment.

Mark J. Donovanme_Donovan@comcast.nethttp://www.homeadditionplus.comhttp://www.homeaddition.blogspot.com

Over the past 20+ years I have been involved with building homes and additions to homes. I have completed many projects that have included: building a vacation home, family room additions, and a garage. I have also finished the upstairs on unfinished homes. My formal education and profession has been as an Electrical Engineer and Marketing Manager.


MORE RESOURCES:

Hypo Real Estate's Viermetz Steps Down After Bailout (Update1)
Bloomberg - 15 hours ago
By Nandini Sukumar and Oliver Suess Oct. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Kurt Viermetz quit as supervisory board chairman of Hypo Real Estate Holding AG, five days after ...
Hypo Real Estate chairman resigns after bail-out Monsters and Critics.com
New HRE CEO Wieandt steps into the limelight guardian.co.uk
UPDATE 1-Hypo Real Estate gets access to credit line Reuters
International Herald Tribune - Reuters
all 180 news articles


Wall Street Journal

Hypo Real Estate Denies Report It Withheld Data on Liquidity
Bloomberg - Oct 9, 2008
By Oliver Suess and Karin Matussek Oct. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Hypo Real Estate Holding AG, the commercial property lender that needed a revised 50 billion-euro ...
CEO of embattled Hypo Real Estate to step down BusinessWeek
German Govt rescues Hypo Real Estate in a Euro 50 bn package Hindu
Hypo Real Estate tripped by funding strategy MarketWatch
Deutsche Welle - Bloomberg
all 1,088 news articles


Forestar Real Estate Group to Release Third Quarter 2008 Results ...
MarketWatch - 10 hours ago
The conference call may also be accessed through Forestar Real Estate Group's Internet site, www.forestargroup.com, by clicking on "Investor Relations ...
Forestar Real Estate Group to Release Third Quarter 2008 Results ... PR-Inside.com (Pressemitteilung)
all 8 news articles


Triad group to give real estate tour The Business Journal of the ...
Bizjournals.com, NC - 12 hours ago
The Triad Dealmakers Symposium announced that it will give a tour of key commercial real-estate projects in Greensboro, Winston-Salem and High Point. ...


Movoto.com Expands Real Estate Search Service to South Texas ...
MarketWatch - 14 hours ago
Movoto's tools make home buying easy with access to an unrivaled quantity of homes for sale, statistics and proprietary real estate information and an ...
Movoto adds Houston homes to listings Bizjournals.com
all 8 news articles


eawood real estate agent pleads guilty in mortgage fraud scheme
Bizjournals.com, NC - 15 hours ago
A Leawood real estate agent pleaded guilty to several charges related to a mortgage fraud scheme that federal prosecutors say bilked lenders for more than ...
Kansas man pleads guilty in $12M home loan scheme Forbes
all 19 news articles


Weak real estate continues to draw down Bank of Florida earnings
Bizjournals.com, NC - 16 hours ago
The bank said in a release announcing preliminary third quarter results that continued weakness in real estate values caused it to set aside more money for ...
Bank of Florida Corp. Provides Preliminary Third Quarter 2008 Results Business Wire (press release)
SCVBank Finds Growth Opportunities in Challenging Market MarketWatch
Bank of Florida reports $3.4M third quarter loss Naples Daily News
all 29 news articles


TEXT-Moody's on Hypo Real Estate Bank International AG notes
Forbes, NY - 16 hours ago
... EMEA CMBS transactions as described in the Rating Methodology report 'Update on Moody's Real Estate Analysis for CMBS Transactions in EMEA', June 2005. ...


Real estate department grants stay for Cole
Bakersfield Now, CA - 7 hours ago
By BakersfieldNow.com Staff A high-profile Bakersfield real estate agent will not lose his real estate license as scheduled on Oct. 15 after being granted a ...
Cole secures extension to keep real estate license for now Bakersfield Californian
all 3 news articles


Bad Economy Not Discouraging Some Real Estate Developers
ABC2 News, MD - 9 hours ago
And Silo Point is being sold with gusto...even though real estate in Baltimore is in a slump. "We have fitness centers we have retail we have spas in here ...

Real-Estate - Google News

home | site map
Realty Web Services © 2007 MesaSky Services