Building a new home / Quick Possession - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

Jayems · 05-18-2009, 11:33 PM

Hello fellow CPers. The fiancee and I continue our search for our first home. We're willing to build if the price was right, but we'd rather a quicker possession. Are there any home builders to avoid? Any good ones?

We'd be willing to go deep south. but are resale values good down there? Heard some people say they can't sell their place because no one wants to live down there.

did a quick search and nothing too drastically similar, so I started a new thread. So back off fata nazis.

This is specifically for builders to avoid / go towards.

What are some good sites to check out quick possessions?

psicodude · 05-18-2009, 11:51 PM

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!

Jedi Ninja · 05-19-2009, 07:05 AM

I'm pretty sure there has been a thread on this recently, as I recall this JD Powers Survey.

http://corp.jdpower.com/jdpcc/global...ly/calgary.jsp

Nage Waza · 05-19-2009, 08:36 AM

I would avoid Cardel homes, they have been in a bit of a battle with me regarding tearing drywall. They say it is no longer under warranty, I say they must have been negligent in their installation (thus not a part of the warranty period). It has become an issue of business ethics. I demonstrated that the construction was clearly flawed but only exposed itself after the warranty (many areas need repairing) and a reasonable company would fix it. I warned them I would be telling everyone about their response if they do not fix it. It has also been determined that they hired out the installation of the drywall, and when I requested their inspection reports on the work the contractor did, they had nothing.

The warranty period expired a year ago and I think they should fix something that is poorly done. Especially when the work was done during the major labor crisis Calgary was experiencing.

Swayze11 · 05-19-2009, 08:39 AM

I would also avoid Jayman. All they care about is building homes as fast as possible, when I used to work in construction I could definatly notice that their homes were VERY rushed in terms of paint, baseboards, railings, etc.

Dan02 · 05-19-2009, 08:43 AM

I would agree with Swayze, stay away from Jayman.

JohnnyFlame · 05-19-2009, 08:49 AM

I heard an interesting segment on the radio this morning on "slow homes". The premise sounded good in that it would be a home built properly. Not sure though if it's just a bunch of hogwash as per usual or if they actually do a good job.

Be worth looking into though if you want a home that is well built.

troutman · 05-19-2009, 09:00 AM

We had a very good experience with Jayman in 2001.

Skyceman · 05-19-2009, 09:14 AM

Shane homes is another one to avoid like the plague. I will NEVER buy a home through them again.

SportsJunky · 05-19-2009, 09:26 AM

Morrison was our builder and I'd recommend them. I think they won Builder of the Year again in 08 for like the 5th year running or something like that. I'm guessing, like most builders, they would have a glut of spec houses for quick possession.

FlamesKickAss · 05-19-2009, 09:46 AM

My parents bought a spec home from Jayman in december 2007 and had a great experience. the guy that came out to inspect during walk through picked out more than they did.

Jayems · 05-19-2009, 10:09 AM

Where is the community: Reunion ?

ken0042 · 05-19-2009, 10:12 AM

Looks like Airdrie.
http://www.reunionairdrie.com/

And just to add, I bought an Excel home- I'm the 2nd owner. I keep seeing all kinds of signs of them cutting corners. Everything is "to code", but some fo the things I find are just great examples of the contractors saying "meh- not my problem for long." Most recent example was finding a bunch of construction debris in the cold air returns. Things like cutouts of drywall where they cut out electrical boxes.

Envitro · 05-19-2009, 10:18 AM

We just took posession of our new Cardel home in Montreux and we couldn't be happier. The construction was very good and the service we have received has been awesome. The warranty tech. is really good so far and we couldn't be happier.

Jayems · 05-19-2009, 10:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Envitro

We just took posession of our new Cardel home in Montreux and we couldn't be happier. The construction was very good and the service we have received has been awesome. The warranty tech. is really good so far and we couldn't be happier.

We're up in Montreux right now! I love that neighbourhood, but wish we could afford to get a house there. Maybe in 5 years.

Anything under $400,000 yet?

Mike Oxlong · 05-19-2009, 10:21 AM

As you can see you will get a whole bunch of different opinions on builders from everyone.

Some people have built with Jayman and swear they will never do it again. I know they did have a reputation for building some pretty shoddy homes during the boom when they were just trying to put them up as fast as possible.

Some people have had good experiences with Jayman......

If you are looking for quick posession then a spec home is the way to go for you. You lose the ability to choose layout, colors, upgrades etc.... but they are usually ready to be moved into ASAP.

I know Homes by Avi has some good ones down in McKenzie Towne that were a good deal.

As far as being in the south I live WAY south in Auburn Bay and homes have been selling fairly quickly down there. There are tons of sold signs and conditionally sold signs all over the neighbourhood.

Like someone else said when that hospital is finished down there it should really help property values.

As long as you are in an area that has nice amenitites like a lake, or the popularity of Mckenzie Towne you shouldn't have a problem with resale.

PM me if you want info on those Homes by Avi spec homes.....

dustygoon · 05-19-2009, 10:27 AM

My situation is pretty different, but maybe some similar observations. I am looking at buying a home in the San Francisco Bay Area. I can not believe the price difference for a brand new house vs one that is a couple years old. I am looking in areas where most houses are over 50 years old. New houses come by the way of a replacement of a torn down old house.

Anyway, I am all about price per square foot.....and it seems that a house that has never been lived in seems to go for $100 more per square foot than a house that is relatively new at three years old. Keep in mind these houses go for $700 per square foot.

Anyway....kind of like buying a new car vs a slightly used one......a lot better value in a slightly used car.

Nufy · 05-19-2009, 10:29 AM

What about buying an older home in an established community with schools, malls etc at your doorstep.

When me & the wife lookked for our first home we thought about the future and whether or not we wanted our kids to ride the bus to school in kindergarten.

As well having to drive to another community to get a gallon of milk or beer wasn't that attractive.

In the end we bought in an established community and are on our second home in the same area.

My kids go to the school down the street and I have multiple options for shopping, beer stores etc...

I understand the desire for a new home but with it comes all the new home hassles.

Who wants to live in a dusty construction zone for 2 years or have to wait for year to lay sod or put up fencing.

Not me.

I have an older home, 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, double detached garage with an extra parking pad, paved back alley, schools, parks etc at my doorstep.

I'm not slamming new homes but look at all your options...

Just my .02

Saint Troy · 05-19-2009, 10:40 AM

It's hard to tell who to build with, but I can't imagine quality suffering right now. I'm sure most of the builders were at unsustainable paces in the last couple of years and quality suffered. We built with Shane in 2000, and they were fine, not exceptional but good to deal with overall. We are building again, and the experience thus far is light years better than it was in 2000.

bradster57 · 05-19-2009, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SportsJunky

Morrison was our builder and I'd recommend them. I think they won Builder of the Year again in 08 for like the 5th year running or something like that. I'm guessing, like most builders, they would have a glut of spec houses for quick possession.

We built with Morrison in Silverado and overall it was a good experience. We had some issues with our carpet and the gave us a really good free upgrade after we complained. There were some other minor issues and they actually dropped the price by 5K after we complained some more. Morrison does have a bunch of spec homes down there too.