Hello!

i understand your desire to build a home but I still believe you will get a better price if you buy an exisiting home. You can buy one from a current owner or a builder. It may not be 100% of what you want but the prices are very good right now in the Lowcounty. Sellers and builders are very willing to negotiate. Some builders may even be willing to make some changes if the homes are not finished.

All the buyers I am working with have indicated they want a home already built because they believe they will get a better price. Yes, the builders and trades need business, but I don't think you will get prices as low as you think. Everytime you make a change you will get an increase in your cost. As you make your hundreds of decisions, you will decide later to make a change. A change order cost money.

I have buyers now, that own lots, are putting them up for sale, and buying existing homes. Why? Because they can get so much more than if they build on their lots.

Why not purchase an existing home at a great price, live in it a while, and then decide what and if you want to make any changes. If so, then hire a contractor to make just those changes.

Yes, there are good deals on exisitng homes that are not published. Sellers are not willing to lower their prices but they will negotiate. Make an offer. See what happens!

Best of luck with this.
Diane

There are a lot of good deals on the market right now which make buying a tempting idea, but if you can't seem to find anything that meets your needs building is always a great option. In more rural areas (like Awendaw and McClellanville) you can have your pick of location and the add inventory keeps land prices more reasonable then in the subdivisions. You can obviously also pick out exactly what you want, but be prepared to invest a good amount of time making decisions, even if you go with a hands off builder you're going to be spending hours picking out faucets, countertops, etc. Come up with a realistic budget with a builder and STICK TO IT, plan on 10% magically getting tacked on at the end, because it almost always happens for unexpected things.

I've only ever dealt with custom home builders (IE - not KB Homes or Beazer) and haven't gotten quotes in a while so I don't know what the cost of building materials has done recently, but for a $500-1M house I'd guess you're in the $200/sq.ft. range, give or take $25m. Keep in mind that that is excluding the cost of land, so don't compare against any MLS stats that might give price per sq.ft. This $200 range should be able to get you hardwoods, granite, custom cabinets, a few built-ins etc. If you're considering resale try to stay a middle of the road on taste so that you will appeal to as many people as possible. I highly recommend interviewing several builder and go with the one that you feel you can trust the most and are most comfortable with. Bids will vary but going with the cheapest can come back to bite you when he starts cutting corners to meet an unrealistic quote.
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions especially about buying land in the more rural areas outside of Mount P in which you also have to consider septic permits, wells, and the costs to install. Best of Luck, Daniel Bates