Disadvantages of Purchasing a Custom Home

There are many advantages to owning a custom home. You are able to choose your location, and which way to have the house face. You can decide what type of home to build, such as a one story rancher versus a three story home. There are basic floor plans available by many custom home builders, but you can change these by moving walls, adding extensions, and cutting out an extra bay window in the front room. You have your choice of floors, your choice of colors, your choose of stone versus siding. There are many decisions you are able to make that give the home your sense of style and comfort. There are some limitations, such as being able to afford whatever you design and your design being constructionally stable, but custom homes offer you a great deal of freedom. You will sit down with the custom home builder, and decide on the particulars. You will obtain financing. Then, your custom home construction will begin! Having a custom home built is very exciting. However, there are also some disadvantages to building a custom home. Here are five drawbacks to purchasing a custom home.

1. You have to secure financing before construction can begin. If you are going to purchase a custom home, you have to come up with a way to pay for it. If you were buying a home that is already built, you would just have to come up with the financing. It's not that easy with a custom home. The custom home builders will generally not start to build your home until you've secured the financing. Most often, you're at least required to come up with a 20% cash downpayment, or at least the costs of the construction.

2. There are many decisions to make. You have to decide first on where you will put the home. This means you have to shop for a piece of land and purchase it. Some custom home builders allow you to obtain financing for a joint land/home loan, which includes the cost of the land and the building of the home in one loan. Once you decide on land, then you have to decide what type of home will be built. Will you have a three story home with five bedrooms and three baths? Will you have a one story rancher? Then, you have to choose what type of flooring to use and what type of walls to have. There are many more minor decisions to make later.

Whereas you could choose one of the basic layouts available through the home construction company, you may wish to modify them to truly customize the home. For example, America's Home Place has about 80 different basic home layouts from which to choose. After you choose a layout, you may wish to modify it. You may wish to move a wall or add an extension or take out a fireplace.

3. You have to wait for the construction to be completed. Once you decide to purchase a custom home, there are many steps, and they all take time. You won't be able to move into your home until it's finished. This could take six months, or it could take a year. Expect the unexpected and realize there can be many delays! For example, there may be some type of permit that has to go through, or the electrician installing your power might get sick with the flu for a week.

4. Something will always go wrong. You may think that you were clear when you said you want the master bedroom to be facing due south, but that doesn't mean the builder heard you correctly. If you and the custom home builder weren't on the same page, you may end up with a fireplace when you didn't want one or a bay window instead of two double windows in the living room. You could always just let it go, but if you want it fixed, it will delay things even more.

You may be lucky enough to find a home builder that you just synchronize well with, and everything goes smoothly, but you most likely will have a few things get messed up or not turn out the way there were supposed to. So, then you may end up in an argument with the builder or the electrician or someone. There will also be a discussion of who pays for miscommunications to be fixed, buyer or builder.

5. Things may not turn out the way you pictured them. You may have thought it would be great to have no windows in your upstairs, so that heat doesn't come in and run up the electricity bill in the summer for air conditioning. But then, you notice how dark everything is and you want windows. So now what, do you have them cut out windows and delay the process? Do you live with it? Or, maybe you thought the kitchen would look great with open shelves and no cupboards, but now you see that having your dishes out in the open makes things look cluttered. There are so many different decisions you might make that won't turn out to look so great or be as functional as they need to be.

In addition to all of these drawbacks, you also have to consider resale options. If you end up not liking the home or can't afford it later, will someone else buy it? If it was built with all kinds of ramps for a handicapped person, will someone else find these ramps useful or at least workable, and be willing to purchase the home from you? If you have many custom things, you could run the risk of no one else finding your home to be of value.

Before deciding to purchase a custom home, you want to make sure you consider all of these factors and find ways to avoid any that can be avoided. Otherwise, the drawbacks to purchasing a custom home could end up outweighing the benefits.