[quote=Navydoc] . . . If I build a new house I can specify everything the way I want it, and can rationalize the crappy market with “I got exactly the house I wanted” and can almost look at it like a car purchase.
I realize this is stupid, but I’m sure the psychology of this is very similar to everyone buying new construction right now. The whole thing just seems less risky, even though it may not be.
By the way, I consider the Stonebridge location to be very desirable, but to each his/her own.[/quote]
Navydoc, I’m sure you’re aware that vehicle buyers EXPECT their cars to depreciate the moment they drive them from the lot. As you know, real property requires a MUCH larger cash outlay than buying a vehicle.
You can make ANY property exactly the way you want it. If it is already in an established area, the most cost-effective way to do this is buy it first, move into it and remodel it room by room until you get it the way you want it. This strategy is only feasible for a VERY well-located property which will bear a sales price in line with your at least your purchase price plus remodeling costs, IMHO.
Buying new construction in the current climate is akin to buying a vehicle, IMO. There is no sweat equity involved, everything is (presumably) the way a buyer wants it now, and, due to often trumped-up developer asking/selling prices and inferior locations, a buyer today CAN expect to lose equity almost immediately. How much? I don’t know. It probably depends upon the development, its location and the qualifications and financial stability of successful buyers in a particular development. This immediate loss of equity doesn’t even take into account the funds a buyer needs after closing to install needed landscaping, even at bare minimum.
You may like Stonebridge because of its proximity to Miramar. However, it is quite far inland, can be very warm, hence the need for (expensive) A/C, has high power/tension line easements, no mature vegetation, and, due to being somewhat isolated, has little to no local services available there, from what I read on this blog. Relative to SD County’s finest areas within the asking price ranges of Stonebridge properties, this community cannot compete in location and quality-of-life issues, IMO. There are too many superior communities in SD County in the same price range as Stonebridge which offer location, an abundance of natural beauty and a lifestyle that Stonebridge can’t.
I don’t have a disdain for Stonebridge, in particular. Just using it for an example here. This post could be applicable to ANY major new construction development. They are ALL in inferior locations to 85% of the existing housing. Why? All the BEST and BETTER locations were built on long ago. That’s my point.
