Buying New Construction in Seattle? Make Sure Your Realtor is Doing These 4 Important Things  

If you know you want to buy new construction, you need to make sure that you work with a real estate agent who is experienced in dealing with new construction. How do you make sure you’re working with the right agent? 

When you’re interviewing agents, here are a few questions to ask:

• What’s your process when you’re helping clients find new construction to buy?
• Once we start looking, what’s your in-contract process for new construction?
• What’s your closing process like?

We’re going to walk you through our process for working with clients who are interested in buying new construction, and we’ll also share some important things to take note of as you’re touring homes with your agent.

First and foremost…

New construction is NOT perfect.

A lot of people view new construction as being this pristine, brand new perfect thing that won’t have anything wrong with it. And a lot of times, at first glance, it can definitely appear this way. But new does not equal perfect. It’s still a handmade, customized product created by humans. 

When we’re helping a Seattle homebuyer find new construction, here’s a few things we always make sure to do:

1. Always get an inspection on new construction.

We always do this for our clients. We even do sewer scopes on new construction, because this part of the home isn’t always new. (There are some agents out there who don’t understand why we do this… it’s “new,” right? But the sewer might not be, and there could be underlying issues.)

2. Identify things about the home that need to be fixed before closing.

We call this our “Blue Tape Party”! Long, long before closing, we’ll go through the home with blue tape and mark things that need to be repaired. Does a drawer in the kitchen not quite close right? Does the bathtub need some caulking touch ups? (Read more about this process here.) 

3. Communicate early & often with the builder.

We let the builder know ASAP what repairs need to be made so they have ample time to get everything done before closing. 

4. Do a final walk-through.

Usually 5 days before closing, we’ll do a final walk through to make sure everything is taken care of.

Hopefully, everything goes smoothly and you get the repairs you need. But what if your builder isn’t making the home repairs they promised? Then you need to read this.