It is Better to Buy than to Build a House

Gone are the days when it was more rational to build than to buy a ready-made house. As the urban areas (where most people prefer to reside) are now getting more populous, the opportunity to buy land and build residential houses from scratch is becoming scarce.

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The rise in inflation rate which reflects in the cost of building materials and labour is just one out of many reasons why building is more expensive. Also, given that building takes a longer time, it is more prone to inflation. According to The Guardian newspaper, there are more completed buildings in the city of Lagos, Nigeria waiting to be purchased than the number of lands available for sale to prospective builders.

Furthermore, studies have shown that in the U.S. in year 2021, the prices of new homes cost more than existing home prices as shown in the diagram below.

Still not convinced? Here are further reasons showing why it is better to buy than to build a house.

Inflation

Because the cost of building materials keeps rising, it becomes more expensive to build. The average time it takes to build is 7 to 8 months which is long enough for prices to skyrocket. Hence, when you consider the possibility of price increase, it becomes more economical to buy an already built house at a more affordable cost.

Availability of Land

In a city like Lagos, the available plots of land are few and are mostly affordable to wealthy investors who purchase in large quantities to build for commercial purposes. When the cost of building on such land is compared to the option of buying a ready-made house (or say, a condominium), the former turns out to be more expensive. Hence, it is wiser to buy than build.

Time Factor

Buying a house also saves you the lengthy time required to build a house. Since building a house requires a longer time to complete, say 7 to 8 months, urgent home seekers can save time by purchasing the available houses for sale. Therefore, it is advisable to work towards buying rather than building.

Location

Most of the attractive locations in Lagos are dominated by completed yet vacant properties that are waiting to be purchased. Such locations are attractive because of their proximity to offices where people love to work and the social attractions. For instance, Lagos Island is a center of commercial activity where many of its people work and it is filled with vacant houses yet to be occupied by prospective buyers. So, if you would love to enjoy the local benefit of living in such areas, you would have to work towards buying instead of building a house.

I trust that with the foregoing, it is clearer why buying is a better choice than building a new house. So, if you can, save your money and work towards buying a house instead!

Kindly feel free to share your objections or agreements in the comment section.

Image source: www.norcommortgage.com