It’s an age-old question. Should you build a new home or buy one? 

Well, both options have definite pros and cons. Which need to be considered with your personal preferences, finances, schedule, and circumstances. 

However, in this article, we will focus solely on the reasons why you should build your dream home, instead of buying one. Around the world, many people successfully build new homes every year.

In the USA, for example, more than 1.60 million new privately owned house builds started in 2021. While in the UK the figure was more like 175,000, and in Australia, it was 178,000.

Buying an existing house can be a quicker and more convenient option. But those who decide to build a new property, get to enjoy several benefits that home buyers don’t.

These include the following:

You can build the exact house you want

When buying an existing home, you sometimes have to make compromises when it comes to its layout. It might not have the ensuite bathroom you were after, or perhaps the kitchen may not be quite big enough.

However, one of the main advantages of building your dream home is that you will have complete control over the design process.

Whether you are after four bedrooms, one of which needs to be downstairs; a separate media room at the back of the home; or even a wine cellar in the basement of the property, your architect will be able to incorporate this when drawing up the plans.

By adding your own classical design to your home you will be able to build something unique. A manifestation of your own vision and a place you will love to call home.

You will get a better-quality of home

Another key advantage to building, as opposed to buying, is that you will get a better quality of the home.

Many older properties could have issues with structural integrity, such as the foundation, roof, plumbing, drainage, outdated features, and layouts, as well as electricals that are no longer up to scratch. All of which could cost you thousands of dollars to repair or upgrade – at some point in the future.

In addition, harmful materials like asbestos or lead paint may have been used in its construction. Older properties, in general, are also more susceptible to dry rot and mold if their construction process neglects the long-term vision.

However, when building your new home, the construction will be done by experts, for example, plumbing services, to properly lay out your pipelines and water supply according to the latest knowledge, technology, and standards.

Better for the Environment

Another big advantage to building your own home is that you can ensure it is better for the environment.

Green building programs like Earth Advantage, Built Green®and National Green Building Standard recognize that homes need to be energy and material-efficient. As well as possesses excellent indoor environmental quality, and is fully set up for water conservation.

During the building of your new home, you can do this by incorporating solar panels, water tanks, double glazing, insulation, energy-efficient plumbing and appliances, and a host of other environmentally friendly, and sustainable, features into its construction.

All of these will save you a lot of money in the long run when it comes to energy, heating, and water bills. Your house, and its overall construction, will also leave less of a carbon footprint.

Your home will keep you healthy

As good as they may look, buying an older home could put your health at risk.

Homes that are poorly insulated, have inadequate ventilation, have old air conditioning systems, and even, potentially contain asbestos, lead paint, or mold, could well make you sick.

Over a prolonged period, this could lead to conditions like chronic sinusitis, nervous system damage, or even cancer.

Building a brand-new home to code – with a reputable builder that uses natural materials – will completely eradicate these issues. Thus, ensuring that you live within a much healthier residence.

Cost and value for money

Clearly, the cost is a major factor in whether you build a new home or buy one.

However, it is important to note that building a new home can often be cheaper than the cost of buying an existing property.

This obviously depends on the design of the home you want to build, but you should also consider value for money.

You may well find that building a home for $500,000 could get you more ‘house’ than buying an existing property for that much, especially in a popular suburb. An essential aspect when building a home is understanding financing options since they can significantly impact your budget. For those buying land or taking out loans, it’s crucial to know how to compare mortgage rates online. Ensuring you secure an ideal mortgage rate can save you thousands in the long run.

Fewer upfront costs

When buying a home, you need to have a lot of money saved up. Typically, anywhere between a 5% and 20% deposit of the full purchase price is required by your bank, before they will agree to provide you with a mortgage.

Even after doing this, you will need to wait years until you have completely paid this big debt off before you can call the home your own.

By contrast, if you build a house, you can do so in stages, as per your financial schedule.

The first step would involve buying the land. Then the second might involve building the ground floor. The third might include building a second floor. Further stages could see you add a pool, granny flat, or even a deck.

Over the years, and between each stage, you can keep saving money to fund each stage.

So instead of having a massive mortgage around your neck for a period of up to 30 years, you can keep it to lower, more manageable levels. Thus ensuring your home is built at a pace that is financially sustainable for you.

Better insurance rates 

This is where building your own home can help you save thousands. Home and contents insurance is generally considered essential for protecting your most valuable long-term asset and the safety of your family. 

However, purchasing an older home can result in considerable insurance premiums that are often not worth the effort. This is because old homes cost more to rebuild or repair and as mentioned earlier, they can be littered with faults that newer homes don’t have.

In fact, some home insurers may even refuse to cover you if your home is considered too old, hazardous, or risky to insure. If this is the case, you will have to spend significant sums to repair these faults to a standard with which the insurance provider is happy.  

This is a prime example of how constructing a new home can save you money in unexpected ways. As a homeowner, you’ll want to take the necessary precautions to preserve your dream home and decor for as long as possible. Home and contents are essential for covering the unexpected and you’ll find that older homes can be much more expensive and challenging to insure. 

Caters to your aging needs

When buying a home, it can be difficult to find somewhere that will cater to your needs as you get older.

For instance, two big flights of stairs might not be an issue for you to climb now. But they might present a struggle once you get into your eighties.

If building a home, especially your forever home, you can ensure the design keeps your future needs in mind.

Spaces can therefore be designed with flexibility in mind. So what is now a reception room could well be turned into another bedroom – if you decide to grow your family further, or for yourself, as you get older.

Peace of mind

When you build a home, you know exactly what you are going to get within the layout and design. So, you can focus all your energy and efforts on making that happen once you get the green light to build.

eco-friendly appliances in your new dream home

However, if you try to buy a home, you could expose yourself to new levels of stress and lots of potential anxiety and heartache.

You might need to search through several properties before you find one you like. Then when you do find something you want to put an offer in for, you might get outbid for it by someone else. Or become involved in protracted negotiations with the seller.

While this might be something you can handle, it’s worth noting that these situations don’t occur when you build a new home. 

Recouping Investment

Depending on your design specifications the cost of building a home can be very high.

However, it is a safe bet to assume that you should be able to recoup your investment if you were to sell further down the line.

Newer homes are usually more appealing to buyers than older homes, particularly as they have more aesthetically pleasing designs, as well as warranties and code certifications.

So as a rule, you will make more profit on your investment if you were to sell the house you built a few years down the track. As opposed to an existing property you purchased.