Home buyers who are buying a newly constructed home have a great opportunity to customize many aspects of the new house and make decisions from the ground up. One practical thing to consider is to request that the builder pre-pipe the house for natural gas. Even if the appliances that you will be bringing in to the new house are not natural gas appliances, you will have left yourself with the option to consider a natural gas appliance as a replacement should that need arise. Think about where you would like the hook up locations to be in and around the house - the laundry room, the basement, the kitchen, the living room (for a fireplace) and possibly in the rear of the house for a barbeque are some considerations.
The up front cost associated with adding the piping will be lower than if you were to wait until the house is complete – this is because in addition to the cost of the installation, which is billed per hook-up location, there will be the costs associated with repairing or replacing the walls that will be damaged during the process. Consult with your builder and review your contract to ensure that it reflects your understanding of what you want.
During the process of selecting finishings and features make sure that you consider the future value that pre-piping your new home can bring – that value may offset the initial cost.
Rachel Loizos is an associate lawyer at Sotos LLP in Toronto. She practices in the area of real estate law.
Email Rachel
Subscribe to Move Smartly by Email