Phoenix Home Builders: Building a Home in the Valley

As many headlines as the housing crisis is grabbing, the fallout from unwise lending practices is also isolated to certain areas of the country. Where Stockton, CA has become the cautionary tale with one of every 30 homes posted for foreclosure in 2007, Phoenix has been relatively insulated from the worst of the housing crisis. Second only to Las Vegas in urban development and population growth over the last 20 years, Phoenix has a strong economic underpinning that has helped keep the housing market firm. I recently talked to a Phoenix homeowner who had originally purchased a 1957 home for $250,000. She said a homeowner down the street from hers was asking $1.8M, not exactly a sign of decreasing property values, although she did qualify her statement with mention of problems on the city outskirts.

Home Building in Phoenix, AZ
Why does the housing market affect someone looking to build their own home? Though you may have a specific vision of your dream home, the financial wisdom of building a new home can be circumspect when property values are declining. The cost of building a home including labor, materials, attorney's fees, etc. don't often reflect the downtick of an ailing housing market. This means it may take a long, long time for the resale value of your home to catch up to the cost of building it. Of course, people who build their homes from the ground up generally aren't as concerned about resale value as a more traditional homeowner, but it definitely helps to know you don't have to shoot yourself in the leg to get the home of your dreams.

Custom Home Builders in Phoenix
Once you've decided that you want a brand new home, one of the biggest decisions you'll need to make is the level of customization you'll need. As you're probably aware, most new homes are built as part of a subdivision/planned community project. The reason for this is simple: like anything else, the more mass-produced something is the lower the cost of producing it. This doesn't mean you have to choose a cookie-cutter home, either. Many home building companies allow homeowners who sign on early enough to pick amongst any number of home designs in their catalogue of house plans. Find a subdivision that's in later stages of construction and you may have to choose from what's been left unsold.

Of course, you can also find and build a truly custom built home. Often, this course of action is taken by homeowners who live somewhat outside of the city, where property can be had at less of a premium. A word of advice, though: Look at places that are close enough to civilization that your home builder isn't going to have problems getting the building materials to the site. Custom home building isn't cheap, but these projects don't necessarily have to be million dollar homes for the uber-wealthy, either. Many people hire a custom home builder to construct a modest, vacation home to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Construction Times for Phoenix Home Builders
On average, new homes take about six to nine months to build. Phoenix home builders tend to fall on the short side of this timeline, given the favorable climate, but certain elements of home building are unavoidable. You might be able to cut down on the construction if you're willing to streamline the process, as pre-fabricated home builders do. So long as you're not working with a rigid custom house plan, the design options for pre-fabricated housing have risen exponentially since the last generation, and can accommodate many people's dream homes. While home building doesn't have the same frustration as, say, a six-week kitchen remodel, keep in mind that anything that reduces the time of construction also tends to greatly reduce the cost of your new home building project.