Welcome to New Homes, a biweekly column highlighting the new construction real estate market, written by Conor Sullivan and Dave Moya of Three Stones Residential at Keller Williams Realty. We are here to share our experience and expertise in lot acquisition, financing and construction of custom homes.
When you first bought your home several years ago it may have been just what you were looking for! Memories have been made, but as life moves along, that home may not be exactly what you need any more. Now the question is – do you put your home up for sale to buy something new, or give your current home a facelift with renovations?
To help make this decision, there are several factors you should take into consideration. Here is a guide to help you decide what might be the best option:
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What Is Your Emotional Investment In Your Current Home?
Think deeply about what life would look like if you were to move to a new home. Does this mean living in a new neighborhood or a new town? If you have built a strong attachment to your neighborhood and the life you’ve built there, maybe a renovation is the best option. Or perhaps you have a neighbor that has just been a pin your side since you bought the home – perfect opportunity to move on up!
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What Is Your Budget?
Perhaps the most important question to consider is what are the actual costs of selling/moving vs. renovating. Take a look at how much equity you have in your current home, price points and other costs associated with buying a new home, and if it will leave you in a better financial situation than renovating.
If going the renovation route, planning out exactly what updates you are looking for will help determine if your budget will get you there. Work with a variety of contractors to get quotes. You’ll want to include different options so you won’t be surprised if an unexpected issue comes up with renovations. If you plan to move, you’ll need to consider the costs of selling your home (commission and closing costs), as well as buying a new home and moving.
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What Is Your Timeframe?
Both options of moving and renovating come with their own timing frustrations. Before making a decision of which route you want to go, determine if you have a deadline date. For example, do you need to be moved in by a certain date before school starts? If you plan to move, you may not find your dream home right away. Establishing your moving timeframe needs up-front will help your real estate agent understand expectations ahead of time. If you plan to renovate, work with your contractor to establish an end date, then add some buffer time just in case!
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What Is Potential ROI?
Even if you don’t plan on moving in the next several years after remodeling your current home, you’ll still want to evaluate what the return on investment will be if you decide to make upgrades. Will the costs of remodeling be covered with a future sale of the home? It may be worthwhile to speak with a real estate agent to review your neighborhood marketplace trends and comps of recently sold homes.
At Three Stones Residential, we understand that these decisions can be tough! We want to help make the process as smooth and stress free as possible. We offer home valuations to help determine if selling your home is the right step for you. We will work with you to understand your goals, and explain our process so you will know what to expect from us. We will provide you with comparable marketplace data to help determine the best price for your home and how long it should take to sell. For more information to set up a home valuation, contact us at [email protected] or 571-429-7670.
Below is a list of new homes currently on the market in the Arlington area.
- 6251 North Kensington Street, McLean – $1,995,000 – 5,930 sq. ft.
- 2616 2nd Road North, Arlington – $1,875,000 – 4,227 sq. ft.
- 2116 North Culpeper Street, Arlington – $1,499,000 – 2,968 sq. ft.
- 1937 North Culpeper Street, Arlington – $1,449,900 – 3,862 sq. ft.
- 4712 North Carlin Springs Road, Arlington – $1,634,900 – 5,055 sq. ft.
- 2004 North Greenbrier Street, Arlington – $1,624,900 – 4,725 sq. ft.
Want to learn more about financing a New Home build? McLean Mortgage (NMLS ID: 99665) can handle all of your construction financing needs. You can build your new home with as little as 5% down. Contact construction loan expert Troy Toureau (NMLS ID: 5618) at 301-440-4261 or AnyHomeLoans.com to learn more.