Mom and Dad are Moving In!

Increasingly, I see builders offering courtyard homes that have a separate, small guest house across the pool from the main house.

I have made jokes about banishing the husband out there, or perhaps using it as an effective place to keep a barking puppy...but the reality is, as baby boomers are faced with retirement, they are also faced with caring for their parents. Not wanting to leave them alone or put them in a care facility, the courtyard/guest house option is growing in popularity. This allows the option of having aging parents close by, but still in their own space, and independent.

I hope my daughter buys one....

New Homes in a Buyer's Market

I recently took out a client who asked me to find him a few resale homes in the $350,000 price range on Palmer Ranch. He also asked to see a certain new home community in the same area.

He was shocked to find out that the new homes were identical in price to those homes that were built 15 years ago. Try as he might, he couldn't even imagine buying a resale home when the new homes offered such quality at a comparable price.

I can't say that I blame him.

A tight market has caused builders to offer more in upgrades, better pricing and more aggressive strategies, putting them at a decided advantage over the single home seller. While touring the new homes, we learned of standard inclusions like "his and hers" bathrooms, hurricane shutters, and granite surfaces.

While there is charm to the older neighborhoods, with their mature landscaping and shady streets...now might just be the best time in years to get a brand new home loaded with upgrades - for a steal!