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Wednesday, November 13, 2002 Custom homes give buyers what they want
Some people just can't find the kind of house they're looking for amid the hundreds being built in this area at any given time. Sometimes, they have a lot of their own ideas that they want to incorporate into the building process, and have a finished product that they can call their very own. That's where custom home builders come in. A lot of local residents are spending some extra time and money to get exactly what they want in a home, and there are builders and real estate professionals out there to help them do just that. It's not surprising that Fayette County is a good market for this type of home, since Fayette's home prices are on the high end of the scale for metro Atlanta. Because of price, most custom home buyers have already bought a home or two and know what they are looking for in their next move. "They've lived in another home, saved their pennies and want to do it their way this time," according to Patti Ellis of Patti Ellis Realty, who deals in custom home sales in Fayette and Coweta counties. Her husband Jeff, a builder with Parklane Homes, also does a considerable amount of custom home work. Home buyers who want a custom home are not only going to spend more money than they might on a home already built, but they will also be more involved during the building process itself to make sure they are satisfied. "You need to be able to work with the builder from the ground up," said Ms. Ellis. "It can be a lot of fun, really, if you've got the right builder." The right builder, in nearly every case, is going to be someone who can take what the buyer wants and make it even better than what the buyer could have imagined. "If you're going to call yourself a custom builder, you've got to be able to listen and hear what they're [buyers are] wanting," said Ellis, who added that good builders then utilize their own experience and creativity to improve upon the buyers' wants and needs. "That's why they come to a builder," she continued. "They know the concept they want, but they need the help of experts." A builder can see "fatal flaws" in a plan for a house, Ellis said. An inexperienced person may have what seems like the perfect home now, but it may not seem that way five or 10 years from now. "Some things you want to be timeless," said Ellis. "That's part of what makes it interesting." She points to her own home as a prime example. Thanks to her husband's experience, their 17-year-old home seems much newer to most people who visit it for the first time, she said. Custom lots are typically on larger lots than other homes, even those in subdivisions, which is another reason Fayette is a good spot for them. "It's more the move-up market, and higher," said Ellis. Realtors come in handy during the process by helping buyers identify the best place to build the home. "It's always a struggle to find the right place," said Ellis. "You need the right neighborhood." But the average home buyer today is much better informed than in years gone by, she added, especially since much more information is available around the clock. "Buyers spend a lot more time investigating in advance," said Ellis. That pays off in the finished product. "When you get through with it, you've got something that makes you feel good when you walk through the door," she added. A number of custom homes, including one with two master suites, have been built in Horseman's Run, off Goza Road a few miles south of Fayetteville. Some lots are still available there, as well as in many other locations in Fayette County.
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