Both Have Their Charms

Buying New vs. Pre-Owned Homes

By Mark Cunningham

You’re looking for your next home. You like the style of a contemporary new build, but your spouse loves the vintage Craftsman style.  Both have their charms, but both can have their potential drawbacks too.  It’s easy to understand how the Craftsman may have a downside to ownership, but you may ask; “how can a new build have any drawbacks”? Believe me, they can too.

I’m not about to come between you and your spouse and tell you which style is better.  After all, the decision has to be yours.  I will, however, explain the good and the not-so-good aspects of owning newer and older homes. Understanding the difference is the first part of making a decision that works for you. Let’s start with the new build. 

As an inspector, I’ve seen homes ranging from new to over one hundred years old.  New construction provides the latest technology, the latest industry standards and the sense that you don’t have to worry about a thing until the warranty expires. The newer homes, however, are not without their faults.  I’ve reported on substandard workmanship, damaged materials and build practices that were not up to code. 

Here’s a side note.  As an inspector, I am required to know local and national building codes, but I never use the word “code” in any of my reports.  I omit that word because I am not a code inspector and, out of respect, I’m happy to allow the local code inspector do his or her job. I do, however, use building codes to determine deficiencies during my inspections. Instead of the word ‘code’ or ‘building code’, I’ll use a phrase like “not built to current industry standards.”

A few years ago, during a seller’s market, builders could barely build homes fast enough to meet the demand.  During this time, I reported numerous deficiencies from a variety of newly finished homes.  I saw missing shingles on a complete section of roof, doors and windows installed backward, leaks from dishwashers because the plumber forgot to remove the knockout at the garbage disposer, carpet tack strips protruding through the carpet, missing shut-offs for gas and electric appliances, non-working or partially operating HVAC systems and missing ground fault or arc fault circuit interrupters. 

Once, I was performing a warranty inspection on home that had been completed the prior year.  I was amazed to find a roof structure that was not built to industry standards…There’s that phrase again. Some of the roof’s support structure was either missing or improperly placed. It simply meant that the roof was not constructed to withstand wind, rain and snow loads that the architect should have calculated. I was shocked when I was told that this was a custom home.

Older homes often offer the vintage look, nostalgia and features not found in today’s new construction, but; there’s plenty of fun to go around when inspecting a vintage older home.  The state of Texas makes inspectors treat all homes as though they were built today.  Of course older homes, that were never updated, will produce the lengthiest inspection reports.  The older the home, the longer the inspection. The longer the inspection, the longer the report. Based on the age of the home, I typically know what I’ll expect to see: knob and tube wiring from 40’s, aluminum wiring from the late 60s to early 70s and tainted & corrosive drywall in the early 2000s. For this reason, I make no apology for including an age fee when inspecting older homes. They require additional time to inspect properly and the inspector, that takes the time, should be properly compensated. 

Of course, things will be missed during rushed construction but not all of the items I mentioned were found during a rushed environment.  Most builders do a great job constructing homes. In just a few months, they convert raw materials into complete homes that last decades. When you think about it, that is no small feat, but like any other company, they’re not perfect. Mistakes can be made and it’s the inspector’s job to report those mistakes to their clients.