1650 E. River Road
Who Builds the Best Overall Communities and What Should You Look For?
Something many new home buyers neglect to consider at time of purchase is the builder’s plan for the neighborhood. How many homes will be built? What size homes will be built? What else is scheduled for the neighborhood? All of these are important questions to ask if you are having a home built because many features such as parks will not have been constructed yet. The overall community has a lot to do with the ultimate value of your home.
So, on average, which homebuilders build the best new communities? In my opinion, several do a good job, and a few don’t do as well. I would say Meritage and Pulte are ahead of the pack. Their homes all blend together well, and they take extra steps to assure that their neighborhoods have good street layouts. These are not communities of row houses, where each house is just one of hundreds. In most Meritage or Pulte neighborhoods, you will see many different styles of homes that accent each other well. The color schemes are unified yet variable enough that each home has a unique appearance. You will typically see play areas for children and several parks that are venues for neighborhood events and foster a sense of community.
Who else does a good job? KB Home has some nice communities and some horrible ones. The nice ones are really nice and the bad ones are just that. Their nice communities include their Santa Rita project and their Mesquite Ranch neighborhood. Although the homes are close together in Mesquite Ranch, they were done well and feed off the master planned community. Both neighborhoods are very alluring. Black Horse Ranch in Catalina was also a winner, and if you take a drive through there, you’ll be amazed by the neighborhood that KB was able to produce. However, they have had enough misses to make you think they couldn’t care less about the communities they build. One of these “not so good neighborhoods” is Highland Park, located off Cortaro and Shannon on the northwest side. The community is very small and the homes look awkward, to say the least. Another “not so good neighborhood” is El Rio in Continental Ranch. It looks OK, but when you compare it to the Pulte homes just down the street, you feel like a second-class citizen. All the homes in El Rio look the same, whereas the Pulte homes are very well done and have several elevations (outside look of the home) for each floor plan.
What should you look for when buying in a new neighborhood? When making a purchase decision, become informed about the rules for the other homes that will be built. Will two stories be allowed on corners? This makes the neighborhood feel cramped and limits views when driving through. What is the minimum space allowed between homes? What parks, pool, and recreation areas are being constructed? When? What will they look like? The builder should have drafts of these areas, assuming they are not brand new in the community. If the recreation area looks cheap, take a second look at other communities in the area to see who seems to be doing the best work. How many homes will be built in the neighborhood? Do you really want to own 1 of 2000 homes? Maybe, but maybe not. It’s good to know up front prior to buying. What other “product” (types of homes) does your builder plan to be building in this neighborhood? You don’t want to buy a high-end home if the builder has plans to build several more series of homes in that same neighborhood that will be much smaller with fewer included features and much lower prices. That would be a BAD thing for you to get into! However, the opposite would be great for you. It’s ideal to purchase a smaller, less expensive home if the builder has plans and commitments to eventually start building larger, more expensive homes in the same neighborhood as your home. Other important information to gather is the planned location of new schools, shopping, hospitals, and other developments. A hospital or school is usually a good thing UNLESS it’s being built right next door to you. That may not be “so good” due to noise, traffic or other inconveniences. Make sure you ask about all these items. Nine times out of ten, the builder’s sales representatives know the answers. Your real estate agent, who works for you and only you, also should be able to get this information for you. As ALWAYS, DO YOUR HOMEWORK!