Buying your new build home is a very different process than buying a resale home. According to the 2006 National Association of REALTORS: 47% of buyers used a real estate agent to purchase their new build home. Don’t take risks or give up your rights as a home buyer on the largest investment of your life!

It’s a common misconception that you will save money without an agent. With any ethical, reliable and successful builder, you WILL NOT get a lower base price, and in fact, the builders count on and rely upon the Realtor population for almost 50% of their sales. As a buyer, our service is always FREE to you.

If you've ever walked into a sales office of one of the major builders in the valley, you've seen notices on the front door or side window that say something to the effect of, "If you are working with an agent, they must accompany you on your first visit to the community."  What this means is that if you walk through that sales office door, you have waived your right to builder paid representation.  The sales agent in that office does not represent you.  The agent represents the builder and you will sign a document stating so.  You are simply a customer to them.  The general thought is that you don't need realtor representation on a new build. My Arizona Home Team actually agrees with this school of thought if you are being represented by the average agent.  Most will take you to the sales office, sign you in, allow you to buy, and you will not hear from him or her again until their paycheck comes in 8 - 12 months.  My Arizona Home Team believes this is unfair and could violate agency duties to you, the client. You deserve true representation!  My Arizona Home Team will guide you through the process, assist you with design center options, and advise you on what will bring value to the home at resale versus what will simply increase your level of enjoyment of your new home.  We will also perform thorough consulting throughout every phase of construction, be present at all walkthroughs and inspections, help you prepare punch lists, and negotiate on your behalf with the builder regarding any conflicts that may arise.

You need to look no further than your recent utility bill and health insurance premiums to understand the importance of building a house as a system or a home that is energy efficient. You may not realize that the two are closely related. Indoor air quality is becoming a major issue and has been around for years, more commonly known as Sick Building Syndrome. The typical home can see air infiltration from the attic at a rate of 2000 cubic feet of air per minute (CFM) or more depending on when the home was built. In the summer time, you could be breathing 160 degree unfiltered, dirty insulation fibers every second of the day. The home building process is now seeing the opposite problem of building a home too tight with no ventilation. This means that we are using household cleaning agents, burning scented candles, spraying for insects, and many others, with no fresh air at all circulating throughout the home. With all of the building issues we are facing today, it’s the 1970’s approach of the industry as a whole that is allowing these problems to continue. The answer to all is to simply build tight and ventilate right.

At My Arizona Home Team, we are addressing this issue head on and have been for years. We have spent over 1000 hours educating our team on the benefits of building science and energy efficiency. We have been involved with the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Energy Star for Homes program since its inception in the late 1990’s and have consulted with hundreds of  home buyers and builders since then. We continue to hold onsite classes for various new home builders and teach numerous classes relating to energy efficiency, proper building techniques and overall quality control.

Buying your home is one of the most important financial decisions you will make in your lifetime.  Don't take risks.  Buying a home is not like buying a car...every home is different and every seller wants top dollar for their home.

According to the 2006 National Association of REALTORS:
85% of home buyers used a real estate agent during their home search
75% of buyers viewed the Internet as a useful tool in their home search
75% of buyers used a real estate agent to purchase their home

Your pool of possible homes is increased dramatically by using an agent.  Real estate agents have access to all available listings that match your criteria and, in some cases, information on homes that may be coming on the market but are not yet listed.