[psicodude]

This is pretty much the same as asking someone what kind of car you should or should not get, so take everything in this thread with a grain of salt.

In this economy, I would suggest sticking with one of the larger builders that has been around for a while. I am not an expert, but common sense says the smaller ones have a greater chance of not living through the recession. I have a friend that had their builder go belly up 6 months after moving in, and it sucked. That first year of warranty after building is extremely important, IMO.

The only other advice I could give, is to never trust that the builder has your best interest in mind. The salesperson will give you line after line about how important you are, and how much they care....but they don't. They are there to make money. Period. You really need to be onsite 2 or 3 times a week during the framing and rough-in phases and you have to be prepared to be a picky jerk. Most contractors will try to cut corners every chance they can, so you really have to watch.

That being said, however, I personally think there is a lot of equity to be made by putting in landscaping, deck, fence, etc. Especially if you can do most of it yourself. If you have the skills, you can upgrade a lot of the interior (paint, tile, etc.) and really raise the value of your home.


I am not sure about the deep south comment either. I am fairly certain that this is the fastest growing part of Calgary. My neighbour just sold his place in 13 days for 6K under asking price. Once the hospital gets done (2012?), it should really boom, but I am probably a bit biased.

Anyway, good luck! It sounds like the builders are pretty desperate right now, so stick it to them!