The Sacramento housing market is booming as interest rates reach historic lows and inventory remains tight. Home builders are offering a relief valve as they build new homes throughout the Greater Sacramento region.
SAFE Credit Union (SAFE) is proud to work directly with several premier home builders as their preferred lender, connecting their buyers with our quality loan products and expert mortgage officers. These builders choose SAFE to provide the home financing for their buyers because they trust SAFE’s history of providing exceptional interest rates, loan programs, and customer service.
During my time working with builders, I’ve compiled a list of the benefits of buying a newly constructed home that I’d like to share with you.
Community amenities
Developers do more than build homes: they build communities that foster stronger ties among neighbors. They incorporate common areas such as pocket parks, walking trails, sports courts, clubhouses, and pools.
Tim Lewis Communities lives up to its name by creating inclusive neighborhoods. Their Sutter Park community in East Sacramento won the BIA Neighborhood of the Year in 2020 for its purposeful ties to the history of the surrounding community through design and style. The community reflects the friendly vibe of the eclectic area and is within walking and biking distance to numerous farm-to-fork restaurants, coffee shops, and art galleries.
For those looking for a more rural lifestyle, explore Tim Lewis Communities’ Zinfandel Ridge, a celebration of the sophistication of the “New Napa” in Plymouth, in the Shenandoah Valley wine country. This community features large, single-story homes situated on unique lots nestled among the rolling Sierra Foothills landscape. A park sits at the heart of the development, promising warm connections.
Latest modern features
New-home construction reflects the changes in our lives and how we use our homes. Gone are the days of formal living rooms. Now we’re looking for multi-purpose great rooms, entertainment rooms wired for smart TVs and surround sound systems, home office space, and more open floor plans for easier living. Builders deliver on those needs in flexible ways, such as offering options of turning bedrooms into home offices and adding second suites for multi-generational living.
Through its Performance Home program, New Faze builds their homes pre-wired for smart devices and data, as well as an expandable security system. Their homes also include home management centers to better control smart home functions. New Faze also finds innovative ways to bring people home. Its Urbane 30 infill development, now under construction, features seven homes with modern design and innovative amenities in the heart of Sacramento.
Ponderosa Homes has embraced this forward-future style by incorporating options such as junior suites and teen rooms in their floorplans so you have the flexibility to build the home that is right for your family. You can use their interactive floorplans to see how various options will be configured. Want a den instead of a formal dining room? Just click a button and see how that will look!
New home construction in California features solar energy, the latest in energy-efficient windows, HVAC systems, and insulation. Other options include low-maintenance landscaping and water-efficient systems. Some builders construct to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards to ensure homes incorporate ample natural air and light, built with safe materials; and highly energy efficient. New homes may also be equipped with technology primed to use smart-home features including security systems, thermostats, and internet-connected appliances.
For instance, Elliott Homes builds their new homes with Energy Star light fixtures and appliances, as well as energy efficient lighting, occupancy sensors and dimmer switches. You can learn more about how Elliott Homes incorporates the latest in efficiency at their developments Veranda at River Oaks, Saratoga Estates, and Turkey Creek Estates.
Designed the way YOU like it
While some new homes are ready to move in, many buyers like to start the process from scratch and choose flooring, cabinets, finishes, and all those extra touches to make the house truly their home. With new home construction, you get to move into the home the way you want it!
Richmond American Homes has interactive brochures and helpful guides to get you started on choosing everything from paint color and flooring to cabinets, window treatments, and faucets. Photo galleries showcase the many ways you can design your home to your vision.
Is now the right time to buy for you?
Ready to shop for your new home?
SAFE’s Mortgage Officers are ready to help you every step of the way on your mortgage journey. Whether you’re ready to buy now or thinking of buying in a year or two, our Mortgage Officers will provide you with a complimentary, in-depth consultation on your next steps to prepare for your home-buying experience.
Explore how SAFE is ready to help YOU
- Connect with a SAFE Mortgage Officer.
- Attend a no-cost home-buying webinar hosted by a SAFE mortgage expert.
- Sign up for HomeAdvantage® to connect with experienced real estate professionals and earn cash rewards on closing.*
- Check out SAFE’s purchase and refinance rates
* The HomeAdvantage program is made available to you through a relationship between SAFE Credit Union and HomeAdvantage. Program Cash Rewards are awarded by HomeAdvantage to buyers and sellers who select and use a real estate agent in the HomeAdvantage network. Home buyers or sellers are not eligible for Cash Rewards if they use an agent outside this network. Using SAFE Credit Union for a mortgage is not a requirement to earn Cash Rewards. Cash Rewards amounts are dependent on the commissions paid to the agent. SAFE Credit Union may have specific rules on how your Cash Rewards will be paid out. Cash Rewards incentives are available in most states; however, are void where prohibited by law or by the lender. Please consult with your credit union to get details that may affect you.
