Negotiating deal on options for new K. Hovnanian Home?

Question

I am looking to purchase a new home from the builder K. Hovnanian. They are offering a national sale for 3 days only. 72% off of all options up to $40,000. This sounds like a great deal, but EVERYTHING is an option, the base price is a bare bones price of $350,000. Does anyone work for K. Hovnanian or has anyone dealt with K. Hovnanian before that could let me know if I have any shot at getting them to discount options I purchase over the $40,000 included in the deal?
The housing market in my area (Raleigh, NC) is strong, but developments are popping up left and right and builders are starting to overbuild and are having trouble dealing their current inventory.
This development is currently offering up to $40,000 off existing inventory of houses (these houses are in the $350,000 to $450,000 range.)
If someone could give me some advice on whether they think I could get an additional amount off or advice on how to best negotiate a new yet to be built house I would appreciate it.
Thanks

Answer 1

I think you might get a better deal on a house that's already built.

Be careful with a lot of these subdivision builders - they sometimes have shoddy work and refuse to fix things that should be covered under warranty. There are lots of websites out there with complaint after complaint on some builders. I don't know about yours off the top of my head, but I'd still do some research before signing anything.

Answer 2

I would strongly suggest buying somewhere other than K. Hovnanian.



First of all, to get the incentives, you pretty much have to use their lender. They don't even try to get you good rates. We were "approved" for a rate of 6.75% on a 30 year fixed. What they came back with was an 8% loan with 3 points to get it down to 5.9% or something like that, on a 3 year interest only. That's a subprime loan, and we have over 700 credit scores, which puts you in the prime mortgage market. So, unless you are paying cash or already know FOR SURE that you have a good mortgage with them, beware!!! We ended up approved for a loan with 6.85% on 30 year fixed from an outside lender. Just goes to show....



Second, they have a tendency to drop the price of the houses when the market gets bad, so your house might not appraise by the time it's built.



If you decide to go with them, get everything in writing first, because they lie and they don't always disclose everything about the house.



Just so you know, a house in the complex we're buying in (but probably won't close on because of problems) had an open house this last weekend. There is a $15,000 flooring allowance, because the tile is cracked. Why is the tile cracked in a new home, you ask? Well, they didn't lay down something that needed to be under the tile, so it cracked, and they are now having to fix it for the seller. There is no way to know if all the houses are like that or not.

Answer 3

Hello, My name is Ray Putnam. I am the Community Manager for the Roseville Community that you visited. Actually, I met you briefly when I was at the sales office and you were negotiating with the sales person. Just before I came in the office, I received your offer asking for a price reduction from the advertised price of one of our new homes. I approved the offer. When I arrived at the office the salesperson was preparing the contract with the approved discount. After I left, I received another call saying that you did not agree with the discount and that you now wanted an additional discount. We went back and forth on the price several times and when we verbally reached an acceptable compromise, you insisted that you also wanted different flooring than what is currently installed in the home. It turned out that you were not satisfied with the price and the terms so you decided not to buy the home. It appears that there was a miscommunication regarding what you were truly looking for in your home. Additionally, you asked the sales agent about the level of diversity in the community. Subsequently, our sales agent simply told you in general that there are some very nice people that live there and how happy they are to live there. She also gave an example of some of the professions that people do in our community. I regret your bad experience and hope that you will be able to find a home that meets your needs. If there is anything further that I can do to assist you, please let me know. Sincerely, Ray Putnam Senior Community Manager K. Hovnanian

Answer 4

While I appreciate your endeavor to bargain and get a good deal, just keep in mind that every dollar you offer that is less than the asking price, makes the property you are buying worth less. So if you think you can say you bought a $400,000 house for $350,000 think again.



If you want this house, then make a fair offer. What I mean by fair offer, is do your homework on what has sold in this neighborhood. If you are not working with a Realtor, you may have made a mistake in dealing direct. You don't save money because you don't have a Realtor, they just hide it in the base.



So you offer what you think is best. But make your best offer!

Answer 5

K Hovnanian Homes Review

Answer 6

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Answer 7

K Hovnanian Ohio

Answer 8

It takes 8 seconds for the Y.A. page to open for me to be able to click on the [add your answer] button. does this mean my computer is slow?