6 min read
Price and what it includes
A model home is dressed to sell. The base price rarely matches what you walked through. Upgrades, lot premiums, and finishes can add a lot, so compare a resale to a realistic build, not to the showroom.
A resale usually comes with finished landscaping, blinds, and a fence already in place. Those are real costs a new build may not include in year one. Add them in when you compare.
Timing
A resale can close in about a month. A new build can take several months or more, depending on the stage when you sign. If you have a lease ending or a home to sell, that gap shapes the whole plan.
Build timelines in places like Jerome Village and the Marysville subdivisions move with demand and supply. Ask for the current timeline in writing before you count on a date.
Monthly cost, not just price
The number that matters is the monthly payment, taxes, and any HOA, added together. New communities often carry an HOA that a resale neighborhood may not. Property taxes also differ by school district, which changes the payment.
A new build can cost less to maintain in the early years. A resale may cost less per month at the same price. Run both as a monthly number so you are comparing the same thing.
Builder incentives
Builders often offer credits, usually tied to using their preferred lender. The credit can be real money. It can also come with a higher rate or price that gives some of it back. Run the numbers both ways before the showroom visit.
Free upgrades are not free over thirty years if they are rolled into the price. Look at the total cost of the loan, not just the sticker on the upgrade.
Who represents you
The friendly agent in the model home works for the builder. They are good at their job, and their job is the builder's interest, not yours. You can bring your own agent, and on most Central Ohio new builds the builder pays the buyer side.
Independent representation means someone reads the builder contract for the terms most buyers never think to ask about. That is the part that protects you long after the paint dries.
How to decide
Match the choice to your timeline, your monthly budget, and how much you want to customize versus move in and settle. There is no universally right answer, only the one that fits your situation.
If you are weighing a specific community, the New Construction Playbook compares the builders and the incentive math before you visit. It is free, and it makes the showroom a lot easier to read.
Want the current incentives for your area?
Builder offers change monthly, so anything printed goes stale fast. Tell me which areas you are considering and I will send you what builders there are actually offering right now, compared side by side. Free, current, and it commits you to nothing.
Text, call, or email. If a resale is the better math for your situation, that is what I will tell you.
