I know, I was initially heavily against Maronda… but they really have stepped up their game over the last few years.
Heartland and Ryan have very similar build quality, but heartland tends to use more high ends materials. Heartland is actually a spin off of Ryan, same family. One of the biggest differences is that Heartland gives you a lot of choices and options, which is also why their costs can go up fast.
Ryan though, also gives more choices than Maronda and you can have a nice home built. Ryan though builds a shitload of houses, and if you look at the numbers they run a good average. They also do a good job of follow up, and standing behind their warranties.
I manage a number of Ryan Homes, majority of which were built within the last 8 years. I oversaw the one year inspection and repair visit for a couple townhomes, some needed minor repairs, but nothing major.
I also manage a bunch of Maronda Townhouses that are 20-30 years old. These are a lot of the houses that gave them their reputation. Some of the repairs that I coordinate stem from original build and materials used. For example, Maronda and number of other builders of the time used a low grade copper back in the day. Every once in a while they develop pinholes and get mysterious leaks which involve cutting open drywall and patching sections of pipe. One of their biggest trademarks is having rooms with no ceiling lights. This is because a lot of pepple didn’t opt for them. It’s actually an option.
Maronda has been busting it’s ass to change peoples opinions and improve their quality. They build by code, and keep their costs down by keeping everything pretty much the same, hence fewer upgrades.
Over the last few years Maronda dropped every floorplan and design they used and replaced them with a new line up. The one I’m having built is one of the newest designs.
I don’t remember the specifics, and didn’t get into them. It’s not something I can change. Really, the option list wasn’t 2 full pages. I know that the house will be up to code and “it is what it is” I do know that the cheapest I could find the same layout new was through a custom builder and I’d be looking a neighborhood in the 400 or 500’s. I’ve looked at a number of Ryan’s and they would have been 80-100K more than what I’m getting into.
I do know that the people who build my house will know me by name. I can make the time to be there everyday. I plan to over document the build with pictures. Mainly for my reference in future. For example, I plan to change the door to the office into double french door, so knowing what’s behind that wall will be helpfull. I know enough about houses to understand what’s happening and stay on top of it.
anyways, I’m rambling on… The wife’s happy, the layout is perfect for our family (minus the garage being on the small side) and it’s on a good lot.
Thanks for the congrats from everyone, next on the list is getting this house ready for the market…
