Should I buy a KB Home in Jacksonville, FL? or look for a different builder? I'm a first time home buyer?

Question

I'm a first time home buyer and I live in Jacksonville FL. We have a few different builders in the other but I keep seeing KB Homes name on everything from billboards to bus stops. I'm wondering about buying a KB Home. I have heard nothing but bad things about them but their prices are so low that I almost feel like I would be a fool not to buy a KB Home. Does anyone have any advice? And if you have positive or negative things to say about them please back it up with FACTS. There are a few other builders in the area but none that are as cheap as KB Home so I am drawn to their pricing. Plus it seems like or the most part all these builders are building the same size homes in similar neighborhoods so I think KB is just trying to charge less to sell more which is fine by me. Please let me know. Thank you in advance. Also, I want a new home and not a resale or a foreclosure home. I have rented homes of people that bought these types of homes and god only knows what happens in them before you get them. I want to be the first owner.

Answer 1

Your right, KB homes does have a bad rep. Mostly for doing shoddy work - especially in Nevada, Arizona, Florida and California. Do you homework and investigate them on line and you'll find countless complaints. You get what you pay for ... and that also applies to new homes.There are other builders as well that have had similar complaints because they were all building like crazy and hiring anyone with a hammer. Also, they have been in trouble for lack of disclosures required by federal law.

Answer 2

Bailey,

Great question. I would have to say DO NOT BUY A KB HOME. First off, I am not a part of any of the builders I mention. But I will tell you why you should not buy a KB Home.

To start, KB Home is in fact a low priced home builder. They have low BASE prices. The key word is BASE price. This means you will get the "included" features of the home and that is it. Their included features are: carpet throughout the home, vinyl in the wet areas like the entrance, kitchen, bathroom, and laundry room, laminate countertops, a white dishwasher, and a white coil stove and the best part is that it doesn't even have a window to view into the oven.

Now, the base price is low but you are also not getting very much. no washer or dryer, no fridge, not even a microwave. These are at their "Studio". If you bought a home for the base price of say 149,990 you would not have a ready to move into home. You would still need to purchase the fridge and washer and dryer and microwave. When you view their models you can find a list near the door of all the "upgrades" that model has. You will notice that the ENTIRE home is an upgrade. Some of the models have laminate countertops and vinyl floors in some areas but not even those are the included laminate and vinyl. You need to ask yourself if you are willing to spend that much money to get some basic items.

You are correct in that most home builders build the same sizes and similar neighbors. In order to be a smart shopper you need to view what is included and what the FINAL price will be to have your home the way you want it. KB's motto is that you should not have to pay for items you may not use which is why they do not include them. It makes sense but then again they should lower their prices even more since for only a few thousand more other builders (such as Beazer and DR Horton) will other between 20 to 30 thousand dollars more of included items. So do you save 3 thousand dollars to miss out on 30 thousand?

Here is another thing to think about. Construction. KB Home builds with WOOD frame. NOT block construction. Jacksonville is in Florida last time I check we DO have hurricanes in Florida. Block construction is the safest and it is not currently the code in Jacksonville but if you watch the news you will see that it will be in a few months. This means that KB Home is currently building and selling homes that in a few months will be "out-dated and unsafe." KB Home as well as a few other builders that build with wood will tell you that it is more energy saving. This is NOT true. Find a vacant or abandoned block building and go into it. Even though the AC has not been on in ages the place is still cool. Do the same for a wood building and you will find it very hot. Just like how a wood shed is always hot. Wood allows heat to travel through it. They build with a vinyl siding over tyvek over a sheet of particle board over dry wall.  The vinyl siding and tyvek do not keep heat out. The wood is heated by the sun and it gets hot and transfers that heat inside your home. The dry wall is the only real barrier you have to keep your heat out. The basic fact that KB is KNOWINGLY building homes that are soon to be considered UNSAFE is unreal. How do I know that they know? Well if I know this and I am not in real estate I would have to think a builder like KB Home should already know this. Why do they build with wood? simple.... money. wood construction costs VERY LITTE. a block home can cost almost 15 thousand dollars more to build than a wood build. That would cut into their profits. I do know that Beazer builds with block.

So now you need to consider that you have a builder like Beazer (and there are others) that builds with block and they are also including a lot more features into the home than KB. They are also charging say 5 to 10 thousand dollars more for the home. Which would you pick? We already know you are getting more with the features and you are getting Block with is stronger and soon to be the ONLY way to build in Florida.

Still not sure if KB is right for you? well research the company. They have had problems with CEOs tampering stocks. They have the HIGHEST turn over rate of all florida builders. If their own employees do not want to work their, why should you want to live there? They have teamed up with Martha Stewart (who has spent time in jail) and also teamed up with CountryWide (who is one of the biggest reasons why our country is in this housing mess).

My finally reason why you should not live in a KB Home. I recently purchased one. Yes, I bought a KB Home in Jacksonville. I purchased a home for my daughter as a marriage gift to help her and her new family. What started as a $149,990 price tag ended up becoming 184 thousand dollars. My daughter did not go crazy on upgrades either. In fact many of the upgrades she went with were standard at other builders. For example, she was allowed 1 cable and 1 phone outlet. All the others had to be purchased. additional power outlets had to be purchased. These are things you would think should cost maybe 5 dollars each. NO, 75 dollars each. The standard included features are a joke. In fact they are what you find in most section 8 apartments. Finally once the home was designed it took them forever to build the home. We were told 6 months which would have been perfect for their marriage and they could of moved in just before the wedding but it ended up being 9 months. When they finally ended up getting into the home they had problem after problem. They had a leak in their second floor bathroom that damaged the ceiling in the first floor. The leak was behind the wall and a sign or poor construction. The leak was fixed but the damage it caused was not. They do give you a warranty but in truth it covers very little. They have roof leaks and a cracked irrigation that was not discovered until a 900 dollar water bill later. The pipe was cracked at install and we had to pay JEA for their mistake.

I can go on but the truth is KB Home is not a very good builder. They are a cheap but you are also getting cheap quality. I have done plenty of research on the subject and have found that I should have went with a builder like Beazer. I bought this because it was what my daughter wanted but I should have looked into it before and not after.

I would tell you that the best thing to do is view different builders in the area. Gather up all the info you can. Make a spreadsheet and put down a list of included features building material. You KB as you constant since you have an interest in them. For example if DR Horton is building next to KB and they are offering granite and tile and a fridge and washer and dryer, find out what those things would cost in the KB Home. If they cost 15 thousand dollars more to add in the kb home but the DR Horton home is only 8 thousand dollars more than you can cleary see that kb is not the better value.

the biggest reason, wood construction. You need to think ahead and think about what happens when you want to buy a different home? How are you going to be able to sell a wood home in a town that would have block as the code? Resell value is not strong with KB. Home buying is not just about getting a place to live. It is also about making a right investment with you money. Dont waste your money on something that will end up being extinct before you move into it.

Answer 3

CHEAP is the correct word when discussing KB Homes.

bottom line, KB Homes suck

Answer 4

Hi there!  I live in a KB home myself, and as an Active Realtor in Northeast Florida, I have also sold 12-15 New KB homes in the last couple years.  All of the buyers I have worked with have been very satisfied with them.  I like my house, and it met my expectations.  Remember, KB homes is a production builder, and they basically build boxes.  Not really many upgrades.  I know all KB communities very well, and you can find profiles for all of them on my website.  Don't hesitate to contact me if I can answer any other questions abou them or be of service in any way.

Mike Linkenauger

Answer 5

Take your time and do some research on the builder including BBB

Answer 6

KB home are the cheapest because they use very cheap, low quality building materials, from the foundation up.  They hire cheap labor, not knowledgeable workmen.   They look like h**l within a couple of years because of the low quality of work and materials.  

You will have an unattractive house, looking old and worn very soon, with all of the problems old cheap houses have, cracks in walls, uneven flooring, etc etc.

I live in a high quality house, built in 1941, and not only is my floor completely level, every window and door is also plumb.  This house will still be a beauty 100 years from now.    

Long term, even if that is only 5 years, you will regret a KB home, it will be nothing but trouble and very hard to resell as cheap homes stay that way, cheap.