House shopping...

Here are a few model homes that we actually considered buying:

Centex Home, Cambria
The model home was beautiful although it was a little big for just the two of us. We figured that we wanted a house that we can grow in. Our BIL was our agent and we put down the required deposit, even got approved for a loan, and were in the process of selecting our interior colors and amenities when we backed out.

We backed out because we made a mistake. We didn't look at other homes to compare prices, incentives, or floor plans, before deciding on the best one. We just wanted a house and rushed into it. I'm glad that we were able to cancelled the contract without any penalties. By far they had the best customer service. Our sales person was just wonderful to work with. They kind of ruined us because now we expect the same from all the builders. The main reasons for us backing out is the location and the 8 feet ceiling.








Woodside Home,Sequoia
This home was beautiful, very high ceiling, perfect location, and just gorgeous. We were able to use the Centex home as leverage to negotiate with the builder. The builder was going to pay for half of the upgrade selections, waive the lot premium, reduce the base price by $20K, and pay $10K in closing costs. We were actually ready to hand them a deposit, but changed our mind.

There was only 2 car garages, it was a two-story, and the master bedroom was downstair instead of upstair with the rest of the bedrooms. This would not work when we have children and we can not live with only 2 garages.






Lennar/Cambridge Home, Yale
After backing out of the Cambria and deciding not to buy the Woodside,we almost settled for this one. We actually put down the deposit, but we also backed out without any penalties. This one was no where as nice as the other two or as big, but we liked the layout a lot. Also the price was good considering that everything was included and there was no additional upgrade needed. On the plus side there was 3 car garages, it was one story, but we wanted the granite and stainless steel appliances which was not included or an option. As much as we would like to save a little bit of money, I just can't live without my cherry cabinet, stainless steel appliances, and the granite counter top. Also the location was not where we wanted.


Tip: Make sure to have your agent present at your first visit, negotiate with the builder on the base price, incentives, and anything that you want. It doesn't hurt to ask!