What is included in the base price of a new home?

The answer is in one document: the specifications schedule attached to your agreement of purchase and sale. Not the model home, not the brochure, not what the sales representative said.

The model home is a marketing instrument. It is routinely built with most upgrades selected, and the signage disclosing that is routinely small.

Generally included

• The structure, roof, exterior finish as specified
• Windows and exterior doors
• Furnace and ductwork, hot water tank (frequently rental, check)
• Basic electrical and plumbing to code
• Standard-grade flooring, cabinets and counters from the builder’s base selections
• Standard bathroom fixtures
• Basic light fixtures, often minimal
• Base-grade trim, interior doors and hardware
• Rough grading and basic sod, eventually. Timing
• Driveway base paving

Frequently excluded

• Appliances. Often not included in low-rise base pricing at all.
• Window coverings. Essentially never included. Budget $3,000–$10,000.
• Central air conditioning. Sometimes an upgrade, sometimes included, verify.
• Finished basement. Almost always extra. Often a very large extra.
• Deck, porch railings beyond code, patio.
• Fencing. Usually yours, and sometimes required by the municipality.
• Landscaping beyond basic front sod. Rear sod is sometimes excluded.
• Garage door opener.
• Pot lights, upgraded fixtures, under-cabinet lighting.
• Backsplash.
• Water softener, central vac, security system.
• Mirrors and some bathroom accessories.
• Painted or finished garage.

The budget gap

The exclusions add up far beyond what buyers expect. On a new freehold home, appliances, window coverings, a fence, a deck and basic rear landscaping commonly total $25,000 to $60,000, before anyone thinks about finishing the basement.

Combined with closing costs of $30,000 to $45,000, the real cash requirement after your deposit is considerably larger than the purchase price suggests. This is the single most common budgeting error in new low-rise.

Questions to ask, and get answered in writing

1. Are appliances included? Which ones, what grade, which models.
2. Is central air included or an upgrade?
3. Is the hot water tank owned or rented? A rental is a contract you inherit.
4. Is rear sod included, or only front?
5. Is fencing included? Is it required by the municipality?
6. What grade are the base flooring, cabinets and counters, and can I see actual samples rather than a photograph?
7. Is the garage door opener included?

Verify at the PDI

Take the specifications schedule and your upgrade selections to the pre-delivery inspection and check the house against them line by line. Substituted or missing items are exactly what the PDI form exists to record, and an unauthorised substitution is a warranty matter.

Let’s go through the specifications before you sign.