Often, when buying a new home, you’ll deal with a builder/contractor. If you’re buying a resale home, however, you’ll probably encounter a realtor. Below are some tips and advice for finding a reputable realtor or builder.

How to Find a Builder

Most homes in Canada are built by professional builders, and unless you plan to build a house yourself, you’ll need to rely on these people to build your future home.

Unlike a resale property, with new homes you have more say in what the final product looks like. You can opt for a custom builder, which will build one-of-a-kind model for you, or you can buy a property built by a new home builder. That said, there are several things to keep in mind when looking for a builder, such as:

• What is the builder’s reputation?
• How long have they been in business?
• Is the company a member of an industry organization or association (such as the Canadian Home Builder’s Association)?
• Are they licensed in the province where you intend to live?
• Do they have other developments that you can look at?
• Do they have a list of previous clients for you to contact?
• Do they offer warranty? If so, what does their record look like?
• How much say do you have on how your home ultimately looks?
• How much do they charge for extras?

Some of these questions will be easily answered by the builder. Others, like a company’s warranty record, might require some search on your part through provincial new home warranty organizations. Many offer a free warranty reports service on builders, by providing the frequency and dollar value of recent home warranty claims.

 

How to Find a Realtor

You’ll typically rely on a realtor to help you through the purchase process on the resale market. Since home buying is complicated, realtors can help guide you through much of the paperwork, particularly around initiating and completing a purchase. Your realtor can show you various types of properties for sale on the resale market.

When dealing with realtors, homebuyers do not incur additional costs beyond the purchase price of the home. Home sellers, however, pay a commission to a realtor whenever a sale is made.

Please contact us today to get yourself pre-qualified before you talk to either of these professionals (250) 862 1806 or visit our website.