Rachel Cruze on Buying vs. Building a Home: 4 Factors To Assess

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While the current housing market is challenging for many Americans, a Gallup poll from May 2025 showed that 30% of aspiring homeowners felt they were still likely to buy a place within five years. When your time comes, an important decision will be whether to buy an existing house on the market, or potentially build your dream home.

Money expert Rachel Cruze has experience as a homebuyer on both sides, and encourages carefully looking at your family’s needs. In a recent YouTube video, she broke down several pros and cons of building versus buying. Here are four key factors to consider.

Home Price

Cruze said, “On average, it costs $150,000 more to build a new house.”

A January 2025 report from the National Association of Home Builders listed a $665,298 average sales price for building a single-family home. For comparison, the average sales price of an existing home was a lower $579,900 in June 2025, per the National Association of Realtors.

This price difference shows that buying an existing home is often the better choice based on cost, though you should still check home prices in the area you’re interested in. Also, Cruze advised considering that upgrades can further increase the cost of a new build, and that you’ll have much more room to negotiate if you buy an existing home.

Property Options

Your decision to build or buy impacts your property options, including the features and location.

Cruze discussed how building a house is great if you’re interested in customization, which could mean anything from picking from a few builder floor plans to designing everything yourself on a lot you purchase. You’re also more likely to get energy-efficient features that cut your utility bills. 

While updating an existing home is possible, it’s typically more work and will still add to your costs. Cruze also explained that you need to be more willing to compromise when exploring homes to buy since there’s less control over what you get. However, a good side of buying is that you might have more neighborhood options due to less expensive home prices.

Maintenance and Repairs

According to Fannie Mae, homeowners can expect annual maintenance costs to be 1% to 4% of the property’s value. But your costs will likely be on the lower end if you build a home with everything new. Cruze also said you might go several years without major expenses.

Despite paying a lower sales price for an existing home, you could face high maintenance costs as the systems, roof, windows and other components get older. The home may also have unwanted surprises that you’ll want to uncover before proceeding with the purchase.

Cruze explained, “We have seen with older homes, you have to be on the lookout for mold, lead paint, like all of that, so just being aware. But your inspection hopefully will cover most of that.”

Homebuying Process

How quickly you need to move is another important factor that will determine whether building or buying a house is better for your family.

Cruze described the potential year-long process of having a home built, which involves several steps and red tape like approvals. If you’re someone who needs to quickly relocate for work or to be close to family, you might not be in a position to wait.

Cruze mentioned that existing home purchases typically have just a 30- to 60-day closing timeline. Once you find the right property, you can get the purchase paperwork completed, close on your mortgage and move in rather quickly. You also won’t have the hassles of planning everything for a new build.

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