Having house built by betterhomes??

[MISSBEHAVIN]

Hi, I looked online for some homes being built by betterhomes. I see land portion about $35,000 and houses from $65,00 and up. I was told the house price is pre-construction. What does that mean? are there many more fee's involved ? charges for tile/doors/cabinets,etc...?

[arubapiggy]

They are developing land that they already purchased and planning on building houses on the land. Most construction companies will offer lower prices on house or condos before they start building in order to build up capital to keep the project moving and lessen their borrowing cost. Once the project is completed they can sell for market price.

If you were to buy your own land and then find a builder the cost would most likely be higher since it is one house as opposed to a company building multiple house were they will receive bulk discounts on the building materials

Hope this helps

[mamalee]

First do not use BetterHomes. If you would like details contact me on private message or check with the FCCA in Aruba.
Second make sure it is property land and that you physically see it first. Some land is really not livable.
Third do consider not using a developer. Building quality and control are everything. Development builders cannot control (even though they say they do) the building of a home and tend to hire unskilled (sometimes illegal) cheap labor from Peru or other South American Countries. Interview some private builders, research government offices, check with construction supply stores, etc...It's you money and you want to get the best you can for it.

Take your time and do it right...

Good luck....

[DougAruba]

I am looking right now and have a deposit with them by The Washinton School. Please e-mail me dougpozniak@netscape.net We close on it next week

[Retagger]

Hello Doug,

I am currently building a home with Better Homes and I am having a "Positive" experience with them. The construction started in May of this year and our home will be completed in January.

Refer to my other posts regarding BH and your building contract. Such as this post http://www.aruba.com/forum/f34/buyin...74/index4.html

and here Buying/ building information

During your closing next week, you will be presented a contract regarding your land. The contract will state that you cannot use another builder other than Better Homes. (This is now their standard contract for the land.) Tell them that clause is not acceptable and you want it excluded form the contract. Be persistant, and they will agree. This clause did not matter to us, as we had already decided to use BH to build our home.

Regards,
David

[bjny]

Originally Posted by Retagger

The construction started in May of this year and our home will be completed in January.

Retagger: How has it been going? Could you please update us on your experience with your house?

[tom and pam]

DO NOT HAVE BETTER HOMES BUILD YOUR HOUSE. . . . . We did a complete package with Better Homes and it was not pretty. It started out great and after more than a year, it turned to a fight to get things done. We moved into the house in Dec 2007 while still battling with them. We are still fighting to get a spillway repaired next to the house that Better Homes messed up. The neighborhood was going to take Better Homes to court for breach of terms by putting an additional road into the existing neighborhood. We fought it and won. There are numerous complaints and law suits pending against them. They are not as nice to deal with as they put forward. I would say to buy the land but that's all. . . . . Find another contractor to build your home and stay away from Better Homes. . . . .

Tom and Pam

[bjny]

We are just looking into buying land from Better Homes. They seem to tie the land purchase to having only them build the house on it. Did you have such a restriction in your contract, too?
Thanks!

[Retagger]

Hello Bjny,

Our home is now completed and we could not be happier with the experience we had with Better Homes. Our house was completed on time and we are extremely pleased with the quality of the construction. We did not have to fight Better Homes for anything as we had excellent communication with them (Kenny & Erik) throughout the project. (Refer to my other posts for additional details.)

To make up your own mind as to their quality workmanship, go to www.casadearuba.com to see photographs of our completed home. (I am not trying to advertise our home, I just want you to see the photos.)

You can also see additional photos here at http://www.flickr.com/photos/oldworl...7613484437557/

Make up your own mind. As you can tell from the post from Tom & Pam, they had a totally different experience with Better Homes than we did and I hope that it all works out for them.

As far as their land contract is concerned, we also had the clause in our contract restricting us from using several builders. We did not care about that clause because we had planned on using Better Homes for our builder anyway.

The bottom line is - I would highly recommend Better Homes build your house as long as you modify the contract to benefit you. Do not accept their contract as the final - it is just a beginning phase. They will give resistance in changing the contract but fight back and stand your ground. It took many, many emails for us over the course of one month until they accepted our modified contract that benefits us and not them. (Refer to my other posts for modifications and additions to the contract.)

Lastly, I have received several private emails from members of this site accusing me of working for Better Homes or being a “Mole” because I had a different experience than they did. They find it hard to believe that anyone could have a positive experience with them, as we had. Let me assure you, I do not and have never worked for Better Homes. I have nothing to gain by stating that we had a positive experience with them because we did and that is the truth.

Regards,

[bjny]

Retagger: very nice pics! Great job with the interior. Congrats to your new beautiful home on the island.
Do you pay a management company to take care of the rentals/maintenance/cleanup?