The Most Important Design Center Upgrades for New Construction Homes | Unnecessary Builder Upgrades

hello family so this video is for you if you're thinking about buying new construction or if you're already under contract to buy a new construction home and you have a design center appointment and you want to know what to do and what not to do as you head into the design center if that's you stick around let's jump right into it first you want to make sure you have a budget and stick to it yes i know this seems obvious but too often i have clients who either have a budget and they've come in well underneath their budget or i have clients who blow past their budget and they're stressing because of how much money they spent at the design center typically most people spend anywhere from ten to twenty percent of the base price of the home at the design center so if you have a home that is worth four hundred thousand dollars the typical person will spend about forty to eighty thousand dollars in the design center and i recommend spending closer to the 10 to 15 percent but regardless of what i say have a budget and stick to it now let's get into the real practical stuff before you sign a contract for a new home make sure you know what is standard for that builder not all builders offer the same upgrades and in reality even the same builder offers different upgrades in different communities there is a builder in my area who offers a deluxe kitchen package as standard in this community now the deluxe kitchen package is when there are double ovens that are built into the cabinetry along with a gas range and a vent hood or a microwave above the stove but that same builder doesn't offer that deluxe kitchen package as standard in the community right down the street same builder different standard packages and the deluxe kitchen package is a 30 000 upgrade if you decide to add it at the design center so it is important to know what comes standard in that community because it could save you a ton of money in the long run real quick let me introduce myself i'm sir ashley and on this channel we talk about money real estate and the carolinas after this video feel free to check out some of my other videos and if you gain any value out of this video go ahead and hit that like button and consider joining the family now let me backtrack a little before you go into the design center there are several things that you need to decide you need to decide if you're going to have that second or third floor added and you also need to decide if you're gonna add that third car garage in addition you also need to decide if you're gonna have a bump out in the living room or the bedroom and the bump out is just that it's where the room bumps out anywhere from three to five feet and give the room some additional space now these are structural items in which you usually pick out before you go into contract and i want you aware of that because this is not something you get to decide at the design center now next thing to do is to know your aesthetic have a vision and coordinate the look you're going for you want to make sure that you know your aesthetic so you already have a vision of what you want before you go into the design center that way you're at least less distracted by the shiny objects they put in front of you in the design center you do want to get bracing for ceiling fans you'll thank me later now i said get bracing for the ceiling fans do not do not buy ceiling fans from the design center but make sure you have the ceilings fans wired and braced for future ceiling fans and lighting it's definitely more cost efficient to get the ceiling fan from lowe's home depot or some online store in the design center you're also going to want to add electrical receptacles and outlets so you can have those built into the framing of your home do not get blinds or shutters builders will overcharge you for those items but remember what i said earlier in the video certain communities will include certain things and in some communities blinds come standard but it's not that common nowadays so you want to make sure yes i'll admit it is a bit inconvenient not having blinds for the first week or two just get some paper blinds from lowe's or amazon for the time being and you'll be glad that you saved the money do not do not get the kitchen backsplash while the design center yes their selections will look beautiful but in reality their selections are going to be limited and you'll be able to have a third party install your backsplash at a much more reasonable price after you've bought and closed on your home when you go into the design center i want you to have the end in mind now what do i mean by that you may think that this is your forever home but chances are this is not going to be your forever home so at the design center you want to make decisions that are going to bring you the most return on your investment and to accomplish this you want to focus on the kitchen and the owner's bathroom in the kitchen you may want to consider upgrading the cabinets to a 42 inch cabinet instead of the standard 36 inches and i believe that's a prudent upgrade to do also while in the kitchen you may want to upgrade the kitchen countertops now this is imperative that you catch what i'm saying because it may seem like i'm contradicting myself but i'm not if you're going to get granite countertops stay with the level one granite do not upgrade granite countertops the level one granite is good enough and trust me when i tell you this no future home buyer is going to come in and ask oh look at this granted is this that level six granite they're not gonna care they just see granite countertops now if you are considering upgrading your kitchen countertop to a different stone let's say quartz or marble then yes upgrade it at the design center because it doesn't make any sense to pay for the level one granite countertop just to have it ripped out and then have a coarse countertop put in after you buy the home at that point you're just throwing away money because you can't really repurpose that granite countertop that you just pulled out while in the kitchen you're also going to have to address the kitchen sink now different people have varying thoughts on the sink i say upgrade the sink at the design center yes it will be more expensive to upgrade it at the design center but there's a certain peace of mind you get by having the builder do the upgrade for you now sinks are tricky i've remodeled homes in the past and had countertops break and crack when professionals try to install that new luxury sink and that is why i recommend to just have the builder do it because if something goes wrong and trust me things do go wrong when you're building a home or rehabbing a home if something breaks or if a seal is broken you have the luxury of having the builder to have to deal with that problem and to fix that mistake as opposed to you having to get a whole new kitchen island because the previous one broke or cracked when the plumbers tried to install that under mount farmhouse sink that you want it it's just more peace of mind to have the builder do it yes it is going to be more expensive but if something breaks you have their warranty and you can blame them also focus on the owner's bathroom suite make sure there are two vanities and two sinks and even though most people don't use it i say get a large tub in your owner's bathroom suite in addition to a very large shower now the tub might not be for you but it will help the resell of your home at a future date also real quick regarding the owner's shower go with a tile or stone shower pan do not get that base white shower pan now yes you can change out that base white shower pan at a later date but i want you aware that changing out that shower pan will increase the overall aesthetic and resell appeal for your home moving on to floorings now flooring is a tricky one flooring is a do and a don't regarding the downstairs if you want to get laminate vinyl planks or hardwood i say go ahead and do that with the builder yes it's going to be expensive and costly but it doesn't make sense to pay for that standard flooring and then rip it all out and replace it right off the jump that way you're just throwing away money so i say do it initially up front i'm a little on the fence on that one if you can't tell but if you're not sure about flooring i say the better option and probably the most cost effective option is to not upgrade the flooring and just keep the standard carpet but i do advise you at the design center to get a larger thicker carpet pad that way your carpet will last longer and feel more plush and it'll also save you tons of money do not under any circumstances upgrade the paint just don't do it the expense is not worth it it's better if you get situated in your home let the home settle for a year that way you'll get a chance to see the nail pops and get the builder to fix them and then you can have your home painted and it'll be much more cost effective and it'll give you additional time to fine-tune your aesthetic let me know in the comments section if this was helpful and if you agree or disagree with anything i said in this video be sure to check out some of my other videos and don't forget to share this one on your social media pages i'm sir ashley talk soon [Music] [Music] to yourself

Channel: Real Estate Advisor Sir Ashley

Views: 46,762

Keywords: what are the best upgrades for a new home, how much do upgrades cost on new homes, how can i save money on a new build house, builder upgrades to skip in a new home, average cost of new construction upgrades, unncessary builder upgrades, best vs worst upgrades for new construction homes, best and worst upgrades when building a home, new home upgrades to skip, new home construction tips, home building tips, new home construction process, new home design center

Id: FZvTgvVU04o

Length: 10min 5sec (605 seconds)

Published: Wed Jan 19 2022