There are a TON of different ways to build a house. Once someone has decided that is what they want to do, it can be overwhelming to figure out what kind of house to build. Some ways are considerably cheaper than others. Some ways look more high end than others. Some types of houses are only aloud in certain areas. Here is just a quick list of some of the types of houses I have heard of people building recently:
- Tract homes
- Pole building homes
- Tiny homes
- Dome homes
- Manufactured homes with or without an add on
- Straw bale homes
- Underground homes
- Stick built custom homes
- Container homes
- Grain silo homes
- Kit homes
Really the sky is the limit… well, and your checkbook is also the limit. But you can build just about any home you can dream up, as long as it is allowed in your area. (Check with your building department before making plans please.)
In our area, there are three main types of homes that go in: Manufactured homes which then get added on to, stick built custom homes, and tract homes.
Today I would like to discuss tract homes vs custom homes, and which one will be better suited for your situation.
First, for those of you who don’t know, what is a tract home?
A tract home is defined as: “A dwelling that has a similar style and Floor Plan to those of all other houses in a development.”
The companies who build tract homes are evolving though and are now offering these “cookie cutter” homes all over the place, not just in housing developments. They have a few generic floor plans to choose from, and then you choose the finishes from the options they give you. These homes are easier, quicker, and cheaper to build because they are all basically the same house being built over and over again. But there are also drawbacks to tract homes, which we will discuss in a second.
Let’s start with what people like about tract homes.
- One of the biggest hooks for people is the low price per square foot of a tract home.
I don’t blame people for being drawn to that super ridiculously low price per square foot that these home building companies advertise. I too was intrigued when I saw one particular company starting at just $67 per square foot. I went online and looked through their floor plans and their brochures.
Then I started asking around and what I learned from people who had built and were living in a tract home is that you get what you pay for. Yes, they will build you a house for really cheap, but it will be the bottom of the line stuff. If you want anything changed or upgraded, the price goes up. A friend of mine told me that their siding only lasted 2 years before it was literally falling off, and that after 3 years they needed to replace kitchen cabinets. Just choose carefully what will be put in your home.
2. Another big pull is how quickly a tract home can go up.
Doing anything for the first time is considerably slower. Once you have a system down, and you don’t have to figure things out, things get accomplished way faster. This is one reason why tract homes can go up so quickly. They already know what materials they need, how much, and exactly how to put them together because they have already done it a hundred times. This saves a lot on labor.
Also, these big companies have crews for each trade that work full time on their homes. I have personally watched a tract home go up next door to me and man were they fast! Sometimes they had ten guys out there working on something and could get a huge amount of work done in a day. They don’t lose much time in-between trades either because they all work for the same company. It generally flows very smoothly.
3. The easiness of choosing a plan, and options laid out for you.
It’s a whole lot easier to choose what you want in a house when you only have 5 options. That’s not to say you can’t find exactly what you want, it’s just that when the options are narrowed down then it’s not difficult.
It can be very overwhelming to decide what you want in a custom home because your options are literally endless, and you have to research and learn about all the options in order to make the best choice.
Many tract home companies even have showrooms you can come to and see and feel all of the options. This makes it very easy and exciting when planning out your home.
4. You know exactly what you are getting.
Building a tract home is a lot safer in that you know exactly what you are getting and they can tell you almost exactly what it will cost. This is very attractive to people because it takes the guessing out of building, and it feels less risky to the home owner.
They present you with options, you make your choices, then they tell you how long it will take and what it will cost. Done.
On the flip side, let’s compare it with a stick built custom home…
- Custom home price range isn’t even something you can put a number on.
Every custom home is sooo different that it could cost anywhere from $20 per square foot to $1,000 per square foot. This is hard for people to wrap their heads around because most of us can’t build a house if we don’t know what it will cost.
However, just like I said before, you get what you pay for. Custom homes may cost more in general, but they can be better quality and exactly tailored to your wants and needs.
The really cool thing about owner building a custom home though is that you have a lot more control over that price. You can price match, make offers or trades, or do some of the work yourself. Tract homes have a set price for each thing you choose, so the price is just what it is.
2. Custom homes take longer to build.
This is not true 100% of the time, but in general custom homes take longer. Things have to be figured out, which takes time.
If you are owner building, it may take even longer because you don’t have the contacts list of a general contractor and you are not first in line because you are just one house. You also will spend extra time figuring things out, dealing with issues, and maybe doing some of the work yourself.
Of the people I have talked to about it, the timelines for each go roughly like this:
- Tract homes 4-8 months
- Custom built stick homes 6-12 months
- Owner built custom stick homes 6-24 months
3. Nothing about it is easy, but it is custom.
It’s easier for you to build a tract home, yes. Custom homes are harder because they are custom. But no one will have the same home as you, and you will get EXACTLY what you want. You don’t have to choose from a group of floor plans, or 5 counter top options. You get to pick out every single thing down to how many outlets you have and what type of texture you want for your drywall.
4. Higher quality.
Custom homes are almost always made with higher quality materials… unless you want a lower quality custom home that is. If you want a home with extra insulation, you can do that. If you want reenforced walls on the windy side, you can do that. If you want to use top of the line finishes, you can do that. Corners are not cut in custom homes, they are built to last.
5. Resale value.
The resale value of a tract home is lower than that of a custom home. Most of that is because of the reasons we just discussed- the quality is lower, and there are a million other homes exactly like it. Why would someone pay top dollar when they can find a home just like it. Custom homes will sell for more because they are one of a kind, built well, and have no identical competition.
So if you plan to resell, consider the value of a tract home vs a custom home.
Farmer and I chose to build a custom home pretty early in our planning. Though the price of a tract home was enticing, the cons were really concerning to me. We don’t plan on ever selling our home, so we wanted and needed a home that would last as long as possible. I did not want to be replacing things 3-5 years down the road. It was especially concerning to me when I started asking others about their tract homes. I have heard from very few people who were happy with the quality of their home. I also have heard from several subs that told me how poor the quality was, and that they wouldn’t work on tract homes because of the corners that were being cut.
Also, owner building is not possible with a tract home. Some companies will allow you to be involved, but you are not the general contractor. I wouldn’t have been able to price shop, choose the sub contractors that worked on my house, or make changes during the build.
That being said, I still believe tract homes are a good option for some people. I don’t want to say that they are all bad, because that is not the case. You can build a tract home really inexpensively, and you can build it fast. You also don’t have to be involved hardly at all if you don’t want to. In some cases, that is exactly what a home owner needs.
Everyone has a different situation. Everyone has different wants and needs and opinions. And there are as many different home building options as you can imagine. For Farmer and I, owner building a custom stick built home was perfect. We got exactly what we wanted, for a price we could afford. What is the best option for you?
~Farmer’s Wife
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