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| Many years ago I used to read this forum because my husband and I planned on building upon our move to the Carolinas. However, we ended up buying a house and have been in it for four years. We are now once again entertaining the idea of building a house, and are seriously interested in Schumacher Homes. We toured one of their model homes and love the floorplan (The Sonoma). We think we may be able to start the process of building by Summer 2012.
We will be building in the Charlotte metro area, and I wonder if anyone has experience with the Schumacher offices in the NC/SC area? Or even Schumacher in general? I know there was a thread on here many years ago when we were first looking into building, but I'd love to hear more recent feedback as well as from those who have been in their Schumacher homes for a while now. Some details: we own 1/2 an acre of land already, and it will require a septic tank system since there is no sewer available. Natural gas is available. The lot is slightly sloped to the back of the property line. We plan on building a crawlspace foundation. Thanks in advance for any responses! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| I have 2 friends who built Schmacher homes here in Ohio. IMHO, they both turned out OK, and they were built really fast, but they nickel-and-dimed them on everything. The upgrade costs of flooring, fixtures, lights, etc are where I think they make all the money. I remember it was some outrageous cost they add for each different interior paint color. Before you decide, do yourself a favor and talk to a local custom builder. You may be surprised at what they can offer. |
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- Posted by krycek1984 (My Page) on Tue, Mar 22, 11 at 20:18
| I know a couple people with Schumacher Homes. I don't know them well enough that I felt comfortable asking how their experience was and the kind of costs that they endured, but I do have to say that the details in those homes were better than a Wayne Home we toured once. It appears that they offer much more customization than Wayne, K Hovnanian, etc. |
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| We live just across the river in Belmont. I would NOT use them. I've seen too many houses built by the big track builders for over 20 yrs in this area. Yes, they make them look good and they do pass code.....the code is the absolutely lowest construction you can build something!!. They will use the cheapest material they can get their hands on. |
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- Posted by krycek1984 (My Page) on Wed, Mar 23, 11 at 20:01
| Schumacher doesn't build tracts...they are a custom home builder for people who want to build a lot on a house. Although their quality can be questionable. It would be interesting if anyone here has any experience with them. |
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- Posted by crazy_in_mason (My Page) on Wed, Mar 23, 11 at 20:21
| My parents built with Schumacher Homes 3 years ago and have had numerous problems with the house since then. The air conditioner did not work the first summer. One of their floor joists broke and had to be braced. They had a cold spot by an interior wall. They had an energy audit done and the builder had left the top sill of the wall off with no insulation above. The cold air just ran down the wall. They had ice dams on the roof this year letting me know the insulation was not adequate in that area. This is in Ohio so I am not sure how it would affect you. |
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- Posted by mydreamhome (My Page) on Wed, Mar 23, 11 at 23:19
| We are also getting ready to build with Schumacher in the Greensboro, NC area. Yes, they nickel & dime you, but even still, they are coming in WAAAAY less than the custom builders in our area. Two different custom builders wanted $150+ per square foot & 1 one of them went on and on about all the places they cut corners and when we toured 2 of the houses they built you could tell. Maybe it's just me, but in this economy for $150 sq ft on a 2300sq ft house in my area, I should have an unfinished basement, a finished bonus room, granite, tile, hardwoods, really nice carpet in bedrooms, nice stainless appliance package, aluminum clad wood windows and by golly I should have Baldwin doorknobs on every door in the house not the $15.00 KMart special the builder was talking about. We already own our lot too, the well is in, the power is run, the lot is cleared, the driveway (all 1,000 feet of it) is in. $150+ is highway robbery. So with Schumacher, we're coming in around $126 sq ft including lots of upgrades + grading & backfill (you have to ask for that-it's not standard by the way). They have also been surprisingly flexible with alot of our wants--like a true custom home builder. Did you know you're not limited to the plans in their plan collection? They will build whatever plan you bring them. I have googled for reviews on Schumacher, and found that in Ohio, they have had alot of problems. I have not found any similar reviews anywhere else in the country for them. Since they use local subs & have national materials contracts (that's where the low price comes in), it would make sense that one office could have problems but not the other offices scattered around the nation. Depending on your local office, you may be able to have other vendors do some of the work. Say you want site finished hardwood flooring-Schumacher only does prefinished, so they can give you a credit for the flooring in the areas where you want those hardwoods & you can specify a particular hardwood flooring company for that--you can pay the flooring company out of pocket yourself or have Schumacher put in an allowance specifying who will be doing the work & they will pay the flooring company. Maybe you want Cambria countertops--Schumacher doesn't offer it, so they can again credit you for standard countertops & you can have another company come in and do the countertops. Maybe you don't like the Merillat cabinets they use or you want a glaze--same thing. (Our office recommended Marsh Kitchens in High Point, NC--shockingly great price & furniture quality cabinets--they're a division of Marsh Furniture). Just make sure as Schumacher nickels & dimes you, you nickel & dime them back with those credits--make sure you get every credit you're owed. On the Sonoma plan-did you tour the house in Greenville, SC? Is it the model home where they have their office? We toured the 'Beverly B' in Greensboro, and were wondering about the Sonoma and where we could tour it. Definitely keep us posted if you find any other reviews in the NC area. Will keep you posted as we move further along as well. Good luck! |
Here is a link that might be useful: Marsh Kitchens
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| betaiota: My husband and I always planned on doing pre-shopping before we build. We plan on purchasing a lot of those things (faucets, fixtures, lighting, etc.) over the next year and just storing it to be put in the new house. This way we don't need to worry about their pricing AND we'll have stuff we truly want in the house. We are going to do that regardless of who we build with. Mydreamhome - Yes, we toured the Sonoma in Greenville. We contacted Schumacher last week and have arranged to meet with them in late May to discuss a price out of the home as we'd want it built. We definitely want to try and get our own vendors where possible. We recently replaced the roof on our existing house and they were AMAZING. Even though it cost a bit more, we know they did a great job, and so we'd like to use them as the roofers when we build. We do plan on "nickel and diming" Schumacher. I received an email from one person that built with Schumacher in Ohio who said he was quoted one number for free upgrades when he first met with them, then given an additional 50% above that when he agreed to *sign* the contract, and then he scored another 50% above THAT when sitting at the table. And this was during a seller�s market! So, knowing that it�s a buyer�s market right now (and should still be next spring/summer), I�m reasonably confident that we�ll be able to negotiate for a lot of upgrades by the time we sign on the dotted line. We�re still not 100% sold on Schumacher, but after our meeting with them in May we should know more. Keep the feedback coming, though! Every little bit helps! |
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- Posted by newbuilder13 (My Page) on Tue, Mar 29, 11 at 14:06
| We just finished building our new home with Schumachers. Nothing really negative to say. They beat all custom builders ~ but ~ you get what you pay for too. If you buy the lost cost standard home with standard features, that's what you get. When you upgrade items, you pay for it, just as you would a customn builder. Can't get granite when you pay for formica! Their upgrades are a little costly but they are in it for a profit, it's a business. Custom builders will charge you for upgrades too. With Schumacher, you know line for line what you are getting before the first dig. We upgraded alot. We knew this added to price of home and were willing to pay for what we wanted. You expect to get a 3000 sq ft home for $200,000 and have granite, upgraded carpet, hardwood floors, etc. |
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| nb....are you saying they built you a house for less than $67/sf?? What kind of siding do you have? Where are you in the country? |
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- Posted by newbuilder13 (My Page) on Wed, Mar 30, 11 at 8:31
| I guess I should have re-read my post...I meant you can't expect to build a 3000/sq ft home for $200,000 with granite, etc. We built for approx. $100/sq. ft with many many upgrades....extra I beams, granite, glazed kitchen cabinets, upgraded carpeting, porcelein tile, 3 oversized car garage, raised hearth fireplace, pocket doors, etc. etc..... Going with a local custom builder is great but with the larger builders you get more for your buck since they purchase supplies in mass quantities ~ not like a custom builder who maybe will build only 4 or 5 houses per year. In the end it's a personal decision and each individual needs to weigh the pros and cons of diff. builders. |
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- Posted by newbuilder13 (My Page) on Wed, Mar 30, 11 at 10:52
| Oh~ we are in Ohio and bricked our home. The original plan only had brick front so that was another upgrade. |
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| The Sonoma starts at $100/sq ft for the standard model and goes up from there (the home is approximately 2400 square feet and the base price for the standard home in our area is $239K and change. We're presuming we can negotiate in this market for quite a few free upgrades and then pay for the rest that we want. |
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| That makes more since nb.....:) jaynee...when do you plan on building? |
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| robin0919: Summer 2012 is what we hope for, but Spring/Summer of 2013 is probably the reality. We have to have every single duck in a row to be able to build, and we're not sure we'll be able to do that by next summer, as much as we'd like it to. We're confident we can sell our house when the time comes, since we're in a sought-after neighborhood in our town, but there are other factors, such as the amount of cash we can have on hand when the time comes as well as getting our land re-assessed to find out the true value (it hasn't been assessed in the four years since we bought it). That land value will be used as our initial collateral on the construction loan, so the valuation will be very important for our home-building budget. As I said in an earlier post, we'll know more in May once we meet with Schumacher - both whether we want to build with them, and whether the house as we want it is even within our reach. |
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| So the time has come - my husband and I are heading to Schumacher this weekend to meet with them to get an extensive quote for building the Sonoma floor plan. As the weeks have passed since my OP, we've come up with a huge list of questions covering their building practices, their upgrade practices, their financing practices, as well as potential minor changes we have to the floorplan. I plan on taking a notebook to take copious notes during the meeting. We've been told we'll take home with us an extensive price quote detailing everything discussed during the meeting. At that point my husband and I will pour over that thing for the next several weeks, until we end up with a house we can agree on, for a price we can afford. Then we spend the next year getting our current house cleaned up and ready to go on the market, saving as much cash as we can, and continuing to pay down our debt (should be done with this by August/September). I don't know that we're definitely going with Schumacher to build, but this meeting will absolutely help us decide whether they'll remain in the running or whether we'll need to contact a few custom builders in our area during the next year or so. |
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| Thought I'd come back with my feedback on our first meeting with Schumacher, for others who might come searching for info. One thing I loved: the rep did not mind my bajillion questions. And yes, there were about a bajillion. He laughed when he saw my papers in my hand, but he patiently answered every one of them. In many instances he answered them before I got a chance to ask. Once I was done with all my questions, we moved on to the specifics of the floorplan. And here's where I decided I love Schumacher: I LOVE knowing the exact price we'll pay for anything we want. Want to take out the oversized bathtub? No problem - we'll credit you $2700. Want to skip the five decorative columns throughout the house? You'll save another $1000. How about the fireplace? No? No problem - $3200 taken right off in the blink of an eye. I loved that. Yes, there's that sense of "you get what you pay for," but there's also great satisfaction in spending 3 hours with the rep and walking away with a hard number on what it'll cost for us to build the house we want, and knowing that it can be completed four months after we sign the contract. We had to cut our meeting short - we got there an hour late because of an accident on the highway, and his next appointment showed up just as we were getting into the nitty-gritty. But we still walked away with some basic numbers, and feel like we have a really good handle on what we'll be able to afford. And so now my husband and I can move forward with the rest. Continuing the debate over whether or not to buy the lot next to ours. Making sure we have enough cash on hand to get the project started (clearing the lot and grading) when the time comes. Improving our house over the next two years to get it ready for sale. For now, Schumacher remains on our list of potential builders, but we'll still contact a couple local custom builders sometime between now and next summer. They won't be able to build the Schumacher floorplan we love, but we found a very similar one online that we can always buy for a couple hundred bucks to supply to bidders. |
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| The prices of things can change dramatically in two years time... |
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| nycefarm - sad, but true. I actually have a price quote from 2008 that a former GardenWeb member sent me when I first discovered Schumacher. Prices have gone up even in the past couple years - the 2008 quote he got lists a rinse tub in the laundry room for about $400. The quote we got on Saturday was for $800. This build hinges on a LOT of things - not just the price to build. It also depends on what we can get for our house, what the land appraises for, and how much cash we have on hand. It's quite possible that none of those four things will be in our favor in 2013 when we're (hopefully) ready to build. I'm prepared for that possibility. If that becomes the case, we'll reassess and figure out what we can do to make it happen - even if it means NOT building the Sonoma at all. |
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| Thanks for keeping us posted on your process. Just a few more thoughts. I still suggest you take the same questions to a few local builders and shop them. You seem to know what you want and even are going to shop for some of the upgrades yourself. Schumacher comes off to me as a convenient option if you DON'T know what you want, or want to limit/narrow down all the endless possibilities that building a house entails. I think it would be unfair to not bring you long list of questions to a local custom builder. If he can't answer them, then that'll make your decision easier. |
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- Posted by mullins(mullins365@hotmail.com) onThu, Jun 2, 11 at 8:37
| Jaynees, your postings have been great since I'm considering going with Schumacher here in Ohio. I was wondering what kind of questions should i ask them during my quote since you seemed to be loaded with them. Also, does Schumacher go into great detail with their quote, like all the way down to the smallest door knob? |
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| Betaiota: We do plan on approaching a couple local builders about building a similar house. We have identified at least 2 local builders and will be taking a very similar floor plan to them (since Schumacher's plans are proprietary - however, there's another stock plan we've found online which is very close to the Schumacher plan). We'll probably do that at the beginning of next year. Mullins: This is my list of Schumacher-specific questions that I asked our local rep. I removed the ones that were specific to our land and how Schumacher would approach the build: 1. How do structural modifications to the floor plan effect the cost to build? What if modifications don�t affect the original footprint of the house? As for their pricing, yes, they can give you a detailed quote down to the doorknobs of your choice. Would they do that in an initial meeting? That's doubtful. But he was completely open about pricing of basic things we knew we wanted (such as rinse sinks, coffered ceilings, expanded spaces, no fireplace, shower instead of bath, etc. But we didn't get down to the nitty-gritty of pricing out everything because 1) we ran out of time before his next appointment and 2) there's no sense into going into that kind of detail when we're not building for at least 1 year, probably 2. But if you get to a point where Schumacher is the choice you are going with, then yes, when the time comes, you'll get a VERY detailed quote of everything you select to put in your house. |
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- Posted by brownsfan1999 (My Page) on Tue, Feb 28, 12 at 19:47
| i to built with schumacher homes of ravenna ohio it was the worst time of my life good luck you will need it |
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| We looked at Schumacher before we decided to GC it ourselves. They do nickel and dime you. Every bedroom does not come with a ceiling light-- cost extra, they are built on 2x4 exterior walls -- we preferred 2x6-- that would cost extra. The home we had looked at was the Olivia--- priced as the one that is a model was $280k and I hated thier kitchen cabinets and counertops. Would have cost more to change that out. Don't like that they build on block not concrete walls. If there are any Amish near your area--- They build a lot cheaper and better. We had bids for our framing for $40k --Amish framed and dried in for $14k. We just didn't like what was to offer for the price. You only get 1 color for your interior paint. You then have to paint whatever colors you want different. If I'm paying that much to have it built, I shouldn't have to pay someone when it's done to repaint my interior. Good luck |
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- Posted by poodlegal78 (My Page) on Tue, Nov 20, 12 at 18:43
| New builder: Are you still happy with your Schumacher home? Have you had any problems? |
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- Posted by sharonannec (My Page) on Sun, Mar 24, 13 at 13:54
| Recent experiences anyone in North Carolina? |
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