Quality costs. Quality products cost more than cheaply made products, and quality installation requires spending enough time to finesse the finished product. And, spending the necessary time to get it right is the antithesis of production building.

Everyone wants Michaelangello for $5.00/hour. Well, Michaelangello costs more, because he is capable of delivering the goods, and won't work for $5.00/hour. That's why he has very few clients, but, the ones he has usually call him back for more of the same quality, and are willing to refer him to their friends.

While I respect the fact that people have limited resources to pour into their homes, and, usually, a tight budget, just like I do, I try to educate my clients as to what to expect from the money and effort they are willing to expend, and, at times, have to steer them away from what they want, so that they can afford what they need.

Does the average consumer even know what quality is? The average homeowner always tells me something like, "I like the quality windows, cabinets, carpet, etc." and they are invariably just an average type for an average house. Does a homeowner know that there should be blocks where the curtain rods go or that studs should be straightened before sheetrock is installed. Hell, many builders don't know that, and if they do they won't spend the few hours to make it so. Is quality a well built structurally sound building, or is it expensive mechanical components or maybe expensive niceities? What sense having a great HVAC system when the house creaks and the roof leaks and the insulation levels are low! Maybe we need something like the numbering system that is used for insulation value of a home to denote quality. Would people pay the extra amount for quality? Don't custom homes address this, where a homeowner can get anything that they want?

Regards

This article was very interesting and long overdue in my opinion.I have always believed that quality construction and energy efficiency are far more important than cosmetics and expense. People who plan to stay in one location and raise a family want a home that will last. Little details, going the "extra" mile really does matter over the long term. Finding craftsman who believe this and who really take pride in their work is rare these days. I do believe that with patience and hard work, the consumer can find both quality and cost effectiveness!!

Yes, I believe you can get quality at an affordable price, but it would require the building trades become much more efficient.

I am a home stager and technical service operations manager for a manufacturer of fireplace/hearth products. My husband work in the commercial construction field. There is so much waste in construction that ultimately cost home buyers. Poor planning, missed deadlines that mount on the next contractor, mistakes and poor quality cost money.

As a homeowner, I desire quality and good looks combined. Many of us are fooled by the cover ups of cheap construction by granite and marble finishes when we shop for an existing home. But when selecting construction elements, we look for the length of time it will take to see a return on our investment. For example, if better insulation will pay for itself in 20 years, but we only plan to be in the house for 7-10 years, then that investment doesn't make sense for us. Similarly, in floor heat that will cut down on forced air sources of allergic reactions will save us our health and visits to the doctor. That investment makes sense for our family.
The bottom line is this: we don't plan on living in any house forever, and the house doesn't have to stand for hundreds of years after we die. We appreciate construction quality when it improves the quality of our lives without becoming a financial loss.

I believe Lou Martin is at least partially correct in his assessment of what buyers want in a home - or any other purchase. People are not really concerned with quality, they cannot even define "quality". People buy whatever they perceive their neighbors and friends will envy them for having - and they are willing to pay through the nose for it! They don't care if they have 1/2" subfloors on 2x6 joists if the floors somehow "feel" good. They don't care how much their countertops cost or how much maintenence they require if the neighbors say "ooh and ahh" over them. Some of the laminate countertops, properly installed, will be in fine shape long after the granite or concrete surfaces are scratched and stained. The comments are "That is so last year" or "That is so 80's". Words like quality and durability are lost from builder's vocabularies because the consumer has demanded that they talk a different language. It is high time that "serviceability" and "durability" returned to home building and "stylish" and "modern" take second place.

As the owner of a 40-year-old semi-custom house that exhibits top of the line equipment and details, I cringe when my children speak of their brand new houses with "contractor-grade" everything. It's pathetic....having to replace plumbing, appliances, hardware, etc. within the first two or three years of ownership. We're talking expensive California Market housing purposely using bottom line supplies. Why is our society allowing these standards? Who are we fooling? Why does this market exist??? Even the lowest quality bathroom faucets are too expensive today. What happened to pride in quality?

My husband and I have built homes in 2 different markets in the Midwest and our experience is similar to Lou's. We also built the homes with the best quality that we could get and still keep the price at a reasonable level. We had high end moldings and foam insulation, green built standards, good goods all the way through. We truly built these homes as if we were building for ourselves. We carefully thought through the orientation of the windows to get the best lighting, the livability of the floor plan, curb appeal etc. and noticed that our homes were some of the only ones that were on the market that had these features. We received raves from "lookers" but no buyers. In both cases we ended up taking a huge loss because people seem not to care whether their home is built to last for a decade or a century since they only plan on being in it for a couple years. We've given up in frustration and no longer build new.

Most homeowners do not know quality if it smash them in the head, and they shouldn't, that is not their area of expertise. It is incumbent upon the builder/realtor to educate the homeowner about quality vs. cheap and the benefits of quality.
In todays market enviroment quality will win over cheap. I also live in a cheap built house and by far the worst I have ever lived in. I knowingly purchased this cheap home for temporary living because I plan to build as soon as I find an honest & consiencious builder who does not equate true custom building and quality with over charging..that's a challange in it self and another subject.
So, I for one want quality and that is because I plan to die in this house. There is a segment of the population that wants cheap production houses because they do not plan to stay for a long time or do not have the means to pay for it. The way to aproach this dilema is to have builders build to the homeowners expectations and, again, the difference between quality vs cheap must be made clear and understandable to the homeowner. That will leave all of the cookie-cutter builders out in the cold, this only apply to true custom builders!

The area in which you choose to live dictates the type of home you are looking for. You have first time home buyers who are looking to just get into a home as an investment, with the opportunity to move up. Half of the problem these days would be people wanting 'exceptional' quality on an income that does not dictate - the very best - Each builder must conform to the inspectors before a home is finishd and delivered to a homebuyer. Their is not a viable builder out there who does not take pride in delivering the best home they can for the buyer, period. The problem tends to be the consumer wanting more than they can afford. Once they come back down to earth, learn how to actually own a home, make their payments timely can they expect more on their next property.

I for one want QUALITY. Almost 12 months ago I & my husband started looking at a particular home to build. We sent in 2 pages of questions (custom items we wanted and were willing to pay for out of our pocket) to the builder, it took 2 weeks to get some of the questions answered and were told we couldn't do any of the things we wanted...until the house was ours. Only because this house had the lay-out, room sizes, etc. that we had been looking for (we'd spent 2 yrs looking) we decided to go ahead with the building of this home. We moved in December 31, 2007. Since then I've written down 2 pages - front/back - of things that need to be fixed. Yes we did a walk thru and we did a whole house inspection; however.....I've put in the required request form for the items I've found so far to be fixed. Anyway you look at it, the qualify of workmanship in this home is no where close to what you would expect for a home selling for $500,000+. Another issue we had was that the builder did not want us at the house at all during the building process. Thank GOD the person who represented the builder is a licensed r.e. agent & very much liked us thus allowing us to get the key for the home once the building crew started locking the home up. Had we not made weekly visits and I not taken pictures we would have had tremendous problems 24 hours prior to closing. PEOPLE...VISIT YOUR HOME DURING CONSTRUCTION ON THE WEEKENDS, MAKE NOTES, CALL YOUR COUNTY INSPECTION OFFICE AND QUESTION ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING. SCREW YOUR BUILDER AS YOU ARE THE ONE PAYING FOR THIS NEW HOME!!!!

All the viewpoints are most interesting and right on. We do architecture and interior design. From over 80 years of combined experience from the 2 of us, we have come to the conclusion that people are basically greedy and into one upmanship. They love "showy display". They want the best look for the cheapest price with no consideration for the long haul. When the junky McMansion begins to go bad, they bail and sell it to some unsuspecting other greedy gut.