New Construction
The builder's agent works for the builder. Bring your own.
Central Florida's new-construction communities — especially around Lake Nona and Horizon West — can be excellent decisions. They can also be full of trade-offs the sales center will not volunteer.
What new construction offers
—Warranties on structure and systems, and several years before major maintenance.
—Current building code — which matters for insurance pricing more than most buyers realize.
—Layouts built for how people live now: open kitchens, real laundry rooms, flexible studies.
—Incentives — rate buydowns, closing credits — that can be negotiated further than advertised.
What deserves scrutiny
—Resale competition: when the builder is still selling new homes nearby, your resale competes with their incentives.
—CDD fees and HOA structures that meaningfully change the true monthly cost.
—Lot premiums, and what the empty land behind the fence is planned to become.
—Build quality that varies by trade crew, not by brochure — independent inspections still matter.