<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?>
<rss version="2.0">
    <channel>
        <title>Real Estate Blog, Augusta, Martinez, Evans, GA, Georgia, Ft Gordon, Christine May</title>
        <link>http://www.augustahomestore.com/blog/tags/ft-gordon/</link>
        <description>Christine &amp; Drew May Real Estate blog for Augusta Martinez Evans Ft Gordon Georgia</description>
        <item>
            <guid>http://www.augustahomestore.com/blog/complaints-about-builders-and-poor-quality-construction.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.augustahomestore.com/blog/complaints-about-builders-and-poor-quality-construction.html</link>
            <author>broker@augustahomestore.com (Christine May)</author>
            <title>Complaints about Builders and Poor Quality Construction!</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
It seems that when buyers talk about "new construction", they often are concerned about problems related to "construction quality".  I often hear comments about they don't build like "in the good old days, etc.  Clearly, we live in a different world with many new products and workers that have different values and work ethics.  Actually, homes today are built to stricter energy standards than just a few years ago.  I also see workers on new home sites working way past what many of us consider normal hours, even framing at 7 PM on a Sunday night in the summer months.  What's really happening?  


I don’t think there is any builder that wakes up in the morning and decides “today, I’ll cut corners and build a crappy, poor quality house”.  That just doesn't make good business sense.


I would say that no matter which builder you research, there will always be someone who is unhappy with something and will blame the "builder".  Fact is, a builder hires sub-contractors that provide various services.  The builder must monitor these workers and results to insure delivery of a quality product. Supervision and monitoring is a main key to a quality result.  The builder gets all the credit both good and bad for the final result you will call home.   


Another important aspect to understand is how "production builders" operate.  Locally, it may be Crown Communities, Wilson Parker, JR Homes, Bill Beazley Homes or others.  Who is the real "builder"?  The big name is obvious however, these builders have "builders", "foremen' or "construction supervisors" on site that actually coordinate construction.  This person is "the eyes on the ground" and may only work in one of the many subdivisions under construction.    


It could happen from time to time in a neighborhood that construction is not up to the standards set by the owner of the building company.  This is no different than a cook messing up your dinner but it doesn't make the restaurant all bad.  Once problems are identified, the responsible company owner makes corrections and if appropriate may even “fire” the people who messed up and fix the problem.  Builders do realize how important a "reputation" is and at the end of the day want happy customers. 


Having personally had several houses built by local “reputable” builders (including our office), I would always suggest hiring an independent home inspector to monitor different phases of the construction.  This will help avoid missed items that can easily be corrected during the construction process.  In the event a house is already complete, an inspector can be retained prior to walkthrough and closing.  The items of concern can almost always be addressed before you go to the closing.  In Georgia, you also have a full 1 year builder warranty but it's best to have any obvious mistakes corrected before you move in your new home.  New homes today can offer great value.  Call us today to discuss your needs and see if a newly built home is best for you.    
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Wed, 16 Mar 2011 13:00:53 -0500</pubDate>
                    </item>
        <item>
            <guid>http://www.augustahomestore.com/blog/builder-wars-begin-in-ft-gordon-grovetown-georgia-area.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.augustahomestore.com/blog/builder-wars-begin-in-ft-gordon-grovetown-georgia-area.html</link>
            <author>broker@augustahomestore.com (Christine May)</author>
            <title>"Builder Wars" begin in FT Gordon &amp; Grovetown, Georgia Area</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
&quot;Builder Wars&quot; begin in FT Gordon &amp; Grovetown, Georgia Area



While Animal Planet's Whale Wars take place in the icy Antarctic waters, the builder wars are just getting heated up in Grovetown and the Augusta area overall!

Since the arrival of Crown Communities&nbsp;a.k.a. Pillon Communities about 18 months ago in Augusta our real estate market has seen dramatic changes. While Crown captured a lion's share of the new construction business, it didn't go unnoticed. Local builders have adjusted construction methods and pricing while more &quot;out of town&quot; builders mainly from the Atlanta market have arrived on the scene. It's been very interesting to watch and the competition continues to increase especially in the Grovetown area targetiing the lucrative FT Gordon VA buyers.

Word on the street has Crown seeing less traffic in their neighborhoods and the pressure to sell homes is increasing on site agents. Crown builders came in real strong at the beginning but Augusta is in fact a small market where word travels fast among real estate professionals. The continual sales site turnover also includes some quality, household name REALTORS who without apparent cause are suddenly being removed from Crown sites and replaced with less capable ones. In addition they are offering a 5% buyer's agent commission on some existing inventory while the norm is often 3%.&nbsp; This is clearly a sign that they want quick sales results and move stagnant inventory by buying traffic from buyer agents.

JR Homes of Alabama is doing well in Grovetown with a sold-out phase 1 in Indian Springs and phase 2 well under way and selling craftsman style homes at a great price. In Reynolds Pond, also in the heart of Grovetown sales are doing well.&nbsp; JR Homes had purchased the lots from the local builder Joey Brush.&nbsp; Also in Grovetown, Crown has had very good success in Pamir Place selling well in the upper 130's to 170's range. Soon, Crown will also be launching a new Grovetown neighborhood at Chamblin Road and Wrightsboro Road. 

A number of other builders are heavily targeting the Grovetown military market and additional home sites are under development all around the Grovetown area.&nbsp; The latest player, Wilson Parker Homes based in Atlanta is a killer whale sized company that could be a game changer for Greater Augusta.&nbsp; Currently Wilson Parker Homes is building in 3 states and offering almost 3 times the number of floor plans as Crown.&nbsp;&nbsp;Rumors are they&nbsp;have purchased many local lots already and building dozens of homes.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 

Grovetown currently has 240 new construction homes for sale in the Augusta MLS.&nbsp; Statistics show they have been on the market an average of 4.86 months and average $80.00 per SF.&nbsp; Considering the additional homes about to be built, 2011 will be a very interesting year.&nbsp; Some new homes have been sitting on the ground vacant for 2 years and&nbsp;are offered for sale! The real question is whether there will be enough demand from buyers to absorb all the upcoming new inventory.&nbsp;&nbsp; 

How will this&nbsp;effect existing resale home&nbsp;values as we move forward?

Many questions...............few answers............stay tuned!
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 02 Sep 2010 07:49:18 -0500</pubDate>
                    </item>
        <item>
            <guid>http://www.augustahomestore.com/blog/crown-builders-getting-more-attention-in-augusta-ga.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.augustahomestore.com/blog/crown-builders-getting-more-attention-in-augusta-ga.html</link>
            <author>broker@augustahomestore.com (Christine May)</author>
            <title>Crown Builders Getting more Attention in Augusta, GA!</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
It's been about a year since Crown Builders, aka Crown Communities and Pillon Communities, arrived in full force in the Greater Augusta, Georgia new home market.&nbsp; It's been a great ride for them so far based on sales volume and some local builders are working hard to adapt and become competitive with this product that was somewhat &quot;new&quot; to our marketplace.&nbsp; 

Locally based market leaders including Bill Beazley Homes and Keystone Homes have been reworking their product to offer better value and enhanced features to recapture lost market share.&nbsp; Bill Beazley Homes recently announced &quot;Loaded 2-Story Homes - $65 per sq. foot&quot;.&nbsp; Based on the descriptions at least, these 4-sided brick homes on spacious home sites could put Bill Beazley Homes back in the game.&nbsp; Not that long ago, Ben Brush homes were being promoted on Washington Road billboards at $80.00 per square foot and that was the lowest our market had seen for years. Crown changed all that by building &quot;big box&quot; homes in the $50's and $60's all around Augusta and even in Evans and Grovetown areas.&nbsp; In addition to the new construction builders being challenged, it's another huge story how these low priced new homes have dampened resale properties.&nbsp; These sellers had paid much higher prices and are often unable to sell and cover loan payoff amounts.&nbsp; These can result in potential short sales as well as growing numbers of local foreclosures.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 

Crown Builders has apparently ruffled some Augusta feathers as evidenced recently by the launch of a website www.crownaugustagabuilding.com .&nbsp; The site launched in late March 2010 by someone whose identity is unknown and then quickly was taken &quot;Down for maintenance&quot;.&nbsp; The site was titled &quot;The Good The Bad and The Ugly&quot;.&nbsp; It portrayed an outsider's story of the growth of Crown in Augusta including questionable dealings and business practices while taking some cheap personal shots at the builder and affiliates.&nbsp; It did give them credit for a good quality product produced by &quot;hard working Mexicans&quot;.&nbsp; These homes are in fact really packed with extras not common for the price range.&nbsp; Only time will tell where the loyalties of consumers and locals land in relation to this powerhouse &quot;Atlanta Builder&quot;....... It continues to be an interesting story unfolding in the face of a challenging local real estate market. 
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Wed, 31 Mar 2010 19:28:50 -0500</pubDate>
                    </item>
        <item>
            <guid>http://www.augustahomestore.com/blog/crown-georgia-augusta-sales-office-friday-night-62709-at-730-pm.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.augustahomestore.com/blog/crown-georgia-augusta-sales-office-friday-night-62709-at-730-pm.html</link>
            <author>broker@augustahomestore.com (Christine May)</author>
            <title>Crown Georgia Augusta Sales Office, Friday Night 6/27/09 at 7:30 PM!!</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 


Those who are familiar with the current new construction sales activity wouldn't believe it, but I Friday night at 7:30 PM these are just some of the cars outside the Crown site office in Willhaven community.&nbsp; On Friday night most realtors and builders are doing other things but this is an exception. There were well over a dozen cars, buyers and contracts being written in tours of the model home.

Crown Communities is making a big splash in the Augusta area. The homes are offering incredible value along with high-quality materials. There are currently five different developments scattered across Colombia and Richmond Counties and more to come.&nbsp; 

Augusta is on the map for new construction activity.&nbsp; In Willhaven alone, 110 homes are either under contract were already closed. Concrete was being delivered at 7 PM on a Friday night and workers were still taking advantage of the evening light. Again, this is unbelievable to those familiar with construction methods in the Augusta, GA market.&nbsp; Besides Augusta, homes are also under construction in Evans and Grovetown Georgia.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 

Marketing efforts have just launched with major advertising buys on local radio stations.&nbsp; In addition, a kickoff barbecue is taking place on Saturday the 28th with an incredible turnout. Stay tuned for more developments and watch out for major changes in the Augusta real estate market.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Sat, 27 Jun 2009 12:39:28 -0500</pubDate>
                    </item>
    </channel>
</rss>
