Home Builders...Some Good...Some Bad

Some builders have lost sight of their life-line...the customer. I'm currently adding 2 new homes to my investment portfolio. One home is being built by the home builder "Pulte Homes" and the other is being built by "Richmond American". It's amazing how different the experience can be from builder to builder.

The Sales Associates for both builders are nice, professional, and make an effort to accommodate within their limits. I call the Sales Associates "Foot Soldiers" because they're on the front line and understand the "buyers" needs more so than the big wigs above them.

The biggest difference between Pulte Homes and Richmond American is how the superintendents and their superiors interacted with me during the construction of the homes.

Pulte Homes is by far the best of the 2 builders. I've purchased several homes from Pulte in the past because of my favorable experience with them. Pulte makes sure the buyer is satisfied and happy with their service.. Pulte has consistently made sure that all issues of concern were addressed and taken care of in a timely manner.

Richmond American, (sales associate excluded), has taken on a very arrogant attitude during the construction of my home. A kind of "take it or leave it" attitude that absolutely has no place in the home buying and construction experience. A "Quality Build" should be the priority of any home builder, but my experience with Richmond American leads me to believe that production time lines are their priority...not quality. I've spent countless hours on the construction site making sure poor quality issues were uncovered and formally addressed (basically doing the superintendents job). You would think the superintendent would want to prove just how qualified they were by catching problems before the home buyer, but unfortunately that was not and is not the case with this new build.

I could literally write a small book on how disappointed I've been with the Richmond American home buying experience which leads me to the point of this post. When buying a home from a builder you have no history with, knock on the doors of people who live in the community or subdivision built by that builder. Ask the hard questions like, "Were you happy with the builder?", "Were you satisfied with the construction of your home?". The answers, if negative, could save you the stress of working with a builder that has no interest in making sure your buying experience is pleasant. In my case, it was the Lot and location that sold me...not the builder Richmond American. If the location is phenomenal, and you have no choice over the builder (as was the case with me) you may have to roll up your sleeves and fight the good fight to make sure your investment is built with the quality and workmanship you would expect.