Buying New Construction in Central Ohio? Bring Your Own Agent.

That's not a knock on them. It's just how it works. When you buy new construction in Columbus, the builder writes the contract, sets the price and usually has its own lender down the hall. I'm the person on your side of the table, from the first model visit through the 11-month warranty check.

Before your first model visit

Call me before you walk into a model home. This is the one step people miss, and it matters more with new construction than anywhere else.

Most builders decide whether to work with your agent based on your very first visit. Some require your agent to be there in person. Some let us register ahead of time. A few won't recognize an agent at all if you've already been in on your own, even months earlier. Signing up on a builder's website or chatting with a sales rep can count too.

Here's the order I recommend:

1. Call or text me first. Tell me which builders or communities caught your eye.

2. Sign a buyer agreement. Ohio requires a written agreement before I represent you. It's short, and it spells out exactly how I'm paid.

3. I register you with the builder. I check that builder's current rules and get your registration on record.

4. We tour together. I'll be there for the first visit, so there's no question about who represents you.

Already visited a model on your own? Call me anyway. You can still hire me. What changes is whether the builder pays my fee, and we'll sort that out together before you commit to anything.

Builder incentives and the builder's lender

Builder incentives can be genuinely good. Rate buydowns, closing cost help, design credits. They can also be harder to compare than they look.

Many Central Ohio builders own a mortgage company or have a preferred lender, and their best incentives usually come through it. That's allowed, and sometimes it's the better deal. Sometimes it isn't. The only way to know is to compare.

Here's how I walk buyers through it:

1. Get two Loan Estimates. One from the builder's lender, one from an outside lender, for the same loan amount and the same day.

2. Look past the first-year rate. A temporary buydown lowers your rate for a year or two, then it goes up. Ask what the rate is for years three through 30.

3. Compare the whole package. Rate, points, lender fees, mortgage insurance and cash to close, with the incentive counted in.

4. Ask about the rate lock. If construction runs long, extending a lock can cost real money. Find out who pays.

Offers change every few weeks, so I don't list them here. For the current ones, see my latest new construction deals post.

Inspections on a brand new home

"It's new, why would I inspect it?" I hear that a lot. New homes are built by busy crews on tight schedules, and an independent inspector works for you, not the builder. City code inspections check minimum standards. They aren't the same thing.

There are three good times to bring one in:

1. Pre-drywall. After framing, plumbing, electrical and HVAC go in, but before the walls close up. It's the only time anyone can see inside them. In my experience, Central Ohio builders allow it. It just needs to be scheduled with the builder ahead of time, and I'll help coordinate it.

2. Before closing. An independent final inspection, separate from the builder's walkthrough. Schedule it early enough that repairs can be made before you close.

3. Around month 11. If your home has a one-year warranty, an inspection shortly before it ends helps you catch and report anything that's come up while there's still time to file.

Some inspectors also offer a quick insulation check after insulation goes in and before drywall. It's worth asking about when you book the pre-drywall visit.

What pre-drywall inspections catch

Here's what pre-drywall inspections commonly catch, including a few I've seen myself:

• Loose or poorly secured plumbing inside the walls

• Drain lines without enough slope

• Missing electrical work, like boxes or wiring that never got run

• Loose electrical boxes or unprotected wiring

• Windows set crooked or out of square, or missing flashing

• Gaps in the housewrap, or unsealed openings where pipes and vents pass through exterior walls

• Missing structural connectors, or framing notched too deep

• Kinked or poorly routed ductwork

• Missing fire blocking in wall cavities

• Water sitting in ductwork, or wet framing after storms hit before the roof was finished

Major mistakes aren't common, but they aren't rare either. And once drywall and finishes go up, getting them fixed is often not realistic. A final inspection before closing can only check what it can see. That's why the pre-drywall visit matters.

Small things can turn into big ones. One Columbus inspector described a home less than two years old where a water line ran without a protective plate. A nail went through it, the leak went unnoticed inside the wall, and the kitchen had to be gutted to the studs. That missing plate would have been easy to spot before drywall.

"Won't the warranty cover it?" Maybe. But nearly every buyer I've talked to who went through a warranty claim found it slow and stressful. And even a successful claim rarely puts things back the way they were. A drain without enough slope can mean tearing out flooring, cabinets or even concrete. The repair gets done, but it seldom looks like it was never touched. Catching it while the walls are open is far easier.

That's assuming the problem even shows up while the warranty is still active. I once walked through a five-year-old home before listing it and touched a basement window. It fell right out into my hands. It had never been installed: no anchors, no caulk, nothing. It had just been sitting in the opening in the poured concrete since the day the house was built. The warranty was long gone, and the owner had no idea. She'd assumed a new house would be built right. Most buyers do, and with builders stretched for skilled labor, that isn't always a safe assumption.

"Why pay for it twice?"

I hear this a lot. The city inspects it, there's a final walkthrough, and a friend skipped it and turned out fine. All fair. But the city checks minimums, and a final inspection can't see inside finished walls. Only the pre-drywall visit can.

Whether you do it doesn't change what I'm paid. I recommend it because my job is to help you avoid problems. You're putting tens of thousands into a down payment and closing costs on a new home. A few hundred dollars to check what's about to be sealed up for good is cheap insurance.

A good inspection also tells you what's done right, not just what's wrong. Most of the time, that's the peace of mind you're paying for.

Thinking about resale on day one

You'll sell this house someday. When you do, you'll be competing with the builder's newest homes down the street.

Because I sell resale homes in these communities, I see what buyers pay up for later and what they don't. A few things I watch for:

• The lot. Location within the community often matters more than any upgrade. Backing to a busy road is hard to undo.

• The floor plan. Some plans resell easily. Others sit.

• Over-upgrading. Thousands in design center extras rarely come back dollar for dollar at resale.

I'll give you my honest read on each before you commit.