How to reduce costs and risks when buying a new house.

There's something appealing about a brand new house -- you get to pick out the carpet, drapes, and appliances, and have everything designed just the way you want it. New houses often come with more space and better appliances, require less immediate fix-up work, and are more energy-efficient. New houses are also sometimes priced more reasonably than comparable old ones. To get a good sense of the new house development in your area, visit http://www.homebuilder.com.

But, there's a downside. Too often, the advantages of new houses are overshadowed by problems such as shoddy construction and lengthy construction delays. Here are some suggestions on how to avoid problems.

Choose the Developer, Then the House

The most important factor in buying a new house is not what you buy (that is, the particular model), but rather who you buy it from. A responsible builder understands that he or she has a reputation to protect, constructs homes that live up to their promises, and remains available should issues arise. More than a few builders, however, take your money, throw together a house that starts falling apart on day one, and then stop returning phone calls. The message is, don't buy a house -- buy its builder.

To check out a builder, contact:

• owners who live in the development you're considering, if possible. If the development is run by a homeowners' association, talk to the association members and the board of directors. If nothing has been built yet, talk to owners in a recently completed development by the same builder.

• county planning or building department staff who deal with local developers. For the best results, ask your questions positively. "Do Brady and Jones finish their projects on time, with few complaints?" will probably be answered candidly, but "Is it true Brady and Jones is a real schlock outfit?" might not be.
• real estate agents who've worked in the area for some time. Agents won't usually deal directly with new house sales, but they may have handled the resale of houses built by developers and may know their reputations.
• the state or local licensing or consumer protection agency that oversees contractors, and the local Better Business Bureau. Ask whether any complaints have been filed against the developer.
• other homeowners, via homeowner-run websites such as http://www.hadd.com (Homeowners Against Deficient Dwellings) and http://www.hobb.org (Homeowners for Better Building).