[Cassie325]

Just wondering if anyone knows the total costs or breakdowns of a new build?

If someone chooses a model home and wants it built on a specific lot of land....say the exact model (interior and exterior) are $200,000. The polt of land is $10,000. One would assume the cost of the home is $210,000 plus closing costs....

Does anyone know of any other fees that would not be included by the Developer for a brand new build?

[lj410]

In addition to closing costs you can expect a percentage of taxes to be put in escrow and home insurance premium costs for one year.

[GMONEY]

That is a sticky subject with TV. Your best bet would be contact them and ask. Sounds simple, if the home is 250 and lot is 30. then the price of the home would be 220. All closing cost are tacked on after the deal and are not included as price of home. You could call them or any builder in the area and should be able to get some good info.

MONNNneey Out

[Cassie325]

I am not really concerned about closing costs, insurance and taxes.

I assumed that if someone went to the model center and picked out a model home with it's exact interior and exterior...then asked for it to be built on a specific plot of land....then you would pay for that home what ever it is listed for...and then that plot of land. However, because the home is not already built there are several costs involved to actually build it...which makes sense...but why wouldn't they quote with all of that included.

We had family come into town with an estimated cost of a specific home. When they met with the realtor the cost was suddenly $10,000 more than originally esitmated.

We are SO confused...so I wondered if anyone ever went through this. Went to the model center...picked out a house....with the exact exterior and interior....picked out a lot....and had it built from scratch...

And if so were there any extra hidden surprises along the way. Taxes and insurnace and already known fees (amenities, bonds, closing etc...).

Have they ever added on impact fees, builders fees etc to the tune of approx. $10,000?

[rshoffer]

On a related note, I have a question... I heard that one can take up to a year to build on a newly purchased lot. I thought it was 90 days.... did this change?

[batman911]

Cassie,

The prices advertised and sometimes quoted are based on an average size interior lot. If you select a lot that is any larger than average or has any kind of view the price will increase accordingly. The price of the same model house with the same options will vary depending on lot size and location. This may be the $10K increase that is added in after you select your lot.

[swrinfla]

Cassie325:

batman911 is essentially right: the extra $10 grand is probably due to some amenity associated with the specific site. When I bought 4 1/2 years ago, I paid an extra $18k for my cul-de-sac lot, with an almost pie-shaped footprint to it. My second-choice lot had a partial view of a wetland and golf course, but the premium was $50k - not in my price range!

rshoffer: My house was built in almost exactly 90 days. I haven't a clue as to why you may have heard a year. Outside TV, yes, that wouldn't surprise me. My niece built not too far from TV and her house took close to 18months - much angst and gnashing of teeth, you can imagine!

SWR

[TomW]

When we were there in March, our rep told us the more "unrefundable earnest money, the longer the time we could take to build and close. I believe it was on the order of
$2,500 to extend the build/close date by 3 month increments. Of course he intimated that one could probably get the money back if unforeseen circumstances occurred.

[Shirleevee]

Two to three months from start to finish. Our friends just built a Designer in St. Charles. Started in February finished 4/10/09.

[NJblue]

Based on our experience from last July, here is what we found out:

The model homes had prices for the homes as well as any lot premium (if any). The agent could look at his/her sheet and tell you exactly what those two numbers were. For example the home could be $250K and the lot premium could be $50K, for a total of $300K. You could then look at an available lot and compare its premium to that of the model home. If the lot premium that you want was only $25K, then your total price would have been $275K. Conversely, if the lot you picked out had a $75K premium, your total price would have been $325K. And so on. (You could also add/subtract a certain select group of options to your house from the model which would have had an impact on the house portion of your total price.)

As far as the 1-year to build, as I recall the builder also offered a delayed build program as of last summer (but I think it was something less than 1 year). There was a significant catch, however: The total price quoted to you at that time included a discount of something like 6 or 9 percent (my recollection of the exact discount is a bit fuzzy). The catch for a delayed build was that for every month that you delayed the build, you forfeited a part of the discount up to a forfeiture of the entire discount if you stretched the build date out to its maximum. I don't know if this catch still applies to the 1-year delay that they are offering, but anyone considering a delayed build should inquire about it.

[GMONEY]

Originally Posted by Cassie325

I am not really concerned about closing costs, insurance and taxes.

I assumed that if someone went to the model center and picked out a model home with it's exact interior and exterior...then asked for it to be built on a specific plot of land....then you would pay for that home what ever it is listed for...and then that plot of land. However, because the home is not already built there are several costs involved to actually build it...which makes sense...but why wouldn't they quote with all of that included.

We had family come into town with an estimated cost of a specific home. When they met with the realtor the cost was suddenly $10,000 more than originally esitmated.

We are SO confused...so I wondered if anyone ever went through this. Went to the model center...picked out a house....with the exact exterior and interior....picked out a lot....and had it built from scratch...

And if so were there any extra hidden surprises along the way. Taxes and insurnace and already known fees (amenities, bonds, closing etc...).

Have they ever added on impact fees, builders fees etc to the tune of approx. $10,000?

WHen we got ours in BV, we could buy the model or build on one of the empty lots. The only catch in the price would be when we were to buy and build. the price goes up. If it was a model that had been setting a while, chances are it might cost more to build that same house depending on the market for the concrete, block, lumber packages and shingles and so one. I know TV will try to lock prices for a period of time. Not sure how it will work now.. also depending on the upgrades you change. One thing is the lot. even thought they all look the same, location of the lot will change the price dramatically.

[Cassie325]

Ok....this is exactly what I was sent via email from a realtor at POTV:


"This is an estimate, not a quote

The estimate I quoted this morning was not including a washer and dryer, but the house and the lot.

It did however, include what I estimate the building permits, water and sewer hook ups, State of Florida documentary stamps, impact fees.
I refigured the estimate plus the lot and I do have a figure of $201,000 rather than the $191,000 which I figured quickly before we met.

If we include the washer and dryer it would be an additional $1258 minimum.

The permits, doc stamps, impact fees, etc are figured on the final price plus lot so I am estimating an additional $10k .

The paperwork (contract) does list everything included in the cost of the home but it is not itemized by price. "

This is what I do not understand!! How can someone forget to add in $10,000 worth of fees and why isn't it built into the home when they discuss rates. I spent hours doing this prior to bringing family into town to make the deal and then this happens. I wouldn't have bought either!! I was embarrassed and confused....and who charges $1258 for the least expensive washer and dryer possible!!? I thought they would want to sell a house....but it has been a very difficult process....you would think they would make it a little easier.

[downeaster]

I don't know how POTV handles their sales but, as a licensed Florida real estate broker, this is how I do it.
The price is established including the lot, the house, appliances, and other possibilities such as lawn mower etc.
Then all selling expenses are listed and attributed to either the buyer or the seller. These include document stamps, points, taxes, title insurance, etc.
The only estimate is taxes.
These are all entered on a Sales Contract together with the down payment and this is what the buyer can expect to pay and the seller can expect to receive and both sign the contract agreeing to all of it's terms.
When the actual annual tax is determined there may be an adjustment but this will be stated in the contract. When one sits down at the closing table THERE SHOULD BE NO SURPRISES.
As a buyer of a Villages home, seven plus years ago, this is also how the POTV did it. We signed the contract in August and closed in October and there were no surprises.
Having said all of that I emphaticaly add, READ THE CONTRACT BEFORE SIGNING.

[GMONEY]

Originally Posted by Cassie325

Ok....this is exactly what I was sent via email from a realtor at POTV:


"This is an estimate, not a quote

The estimate I quoted this morning was not including a washer and dryer, but the house and the lot.

It did however, include what I estimate the building permits, water and sewer hook ups, State of Florida documentary stamps, impact fees.
I refigured the estimate plus the lot and I do have a figure of $201,000 rather than the $191,000 which I figured quickly before we met.

If we include the washer and dryer it would be an additional $1258 minimum.

The permits, doc stamps, impact fees, etc are figured on the final price plus lot so I am estimating an additional $10k .

The paperwork (contract) does list everything included in the cost of the home but it is not itemized by price. "

This is what I do not understand!! How can someone forget to add in $10,000 worth of fees and why isn't it built into the home when they discuss rates. I spent hours doing this prior to bringing family into town to make the deal and then this happens. I wouldn't have bought either!! I was embarrassed and confused....and who charges $1258 for the least expensive washer and dryer possible!!? I thought they would want to sell a house....but it has been a very difficult process....you would think they would make it a little easier.

That is why you never buy a house with a washer and dryer in it, heck if you can, get it with out any of the appliances and get your own before moving in. I know TV is sticky with this. We had to keep the ones in the house we got, but changed them out. Got our own W-D from Home Depot, Front Loaders upgraded for about 2000 for both, but are not paying for them over 30 years. Everything you add to the house you are paying a 100 times more for when you figure them over 30 year mortgage with all the intrest that gets added. The impact fees are also different depending on the county on a new build I do belive. Just like when you close they ask do you want blinds and all that put in the house, we can add it to your closing statement. Can you say H*** NO fast enough. You can go to 48 Hour Blinds or another of others and get it alot cheaper and a great product. Always remember as the post before said,,, READ THE CONTRACT and ask a MILLION questions. If it makes the sales mad because you ask so many questions, tell them to take a hike!!!!!!!!!!!!! I agree with you, It is a scam the things they will try to get you on when you buy a house. They might as well put on the contract another item, The """"I NEED A NEW ESCALADE OR BENZ"""""""" column and charge you for that also.

Bottom Line depends on where you buy and when you buy. but if at all cost do not add the appliance to your home and incude it in the mortgage if you can. ANything you can keep out of the contract helps your bottom line..


G-OUT

[graciegirl]

I believe that there are some advantages for buying an already built BRAND NEW house and there are usually plenty already built BRAND NEW houses to choose from in every style and lot in the new villages. We have not used the choice feature, it wasn't available when we bought a year ago, but I am very satisfied with our home. We have built seven times in our life, it was fun and stressful all at the same time and we are still glad we bought our already built Camellia in Hadley. (Thinking it would be a vacation home, but that idea is rapidly changing, TV now feels like home!!)

What everyone needs to know is that TV sales does it their way, probably because it is the easiest for the seller (and for them) and they have LOTS of experience. At first I was suspicious but I don't feel that way anymore. There is no negotiation on their sales, and once you get past that fact it is easier. The whole transaction went very smoothly and any minor thing that is not correct is fixed immediately, and they were minor believe me.

These folks have the house buildin' business down pat.