For all the homebuyers who have had a hard time finding a place to settle down in Delaware, you might want to consider building your dream home from scratch instead.
Finding a house these days can be a hassle, and a big strain on your wallet, due to low inventory and increases in housing costs.
While it might be hard to believe, buying a home in Delaware can be a bigger investment than opting to build your own pad, according to a recent study.
StorageCafe marks Delaware as one of the states that favors building a home the most, ranking No. 6 as the most cost-effective state for homebuilding within the U.S.
On average, home hunters in Delawareans could save $96,000 if they choose to build a home rather than buy one.
The median land price of $176,000 per acre, applied to a median lot-size of 0.22 acres, results in a home building cost of $394,000 – including land, construction and other costs – compared to the median single-family home listing-price of $490,000, according to the report.
This means that homebuilders in the First State could save $96,000, an advantage that is lost in plenty of other states.
More:The cost of newly built homes in Delaware is falling. 5 tips to find the best deal.
Nationwide, building a home costs $421,000 on average, while buying one is $6,000 cheaper at $415,000.
Other places in the U.S. where it is cheaper to build rather than buy include Hawaii, California, Colorado, Utah and Virginia, among others.
Western and South-Atlantic states prove to be the best places to build instead of buy, whereas Midwestern, southern and northeast states have lower house prices that tend to make purchasing a home more cost-effective.
Pennsylvania leads the charge of states where it is cheaper to buy a home instead of building one. Total building costs for the state are $528,000 while the median listing-price of a single-family home is $345,000.
Top states following this trend include Ohio, with $178,000 in savings when opting to buy; Illinois, with $166,000 in savings; Maine, with $164,000 in savings; and Iowa, with $161,000 in savings.
Got a tip or a story idea? Contact Krys’tal Griffin at kgriffin@delawareonline.com.
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