Moving in to a New Development

After months or years of waiting to move into the beautiful new home that was pictured in the architectural renderings, the construction is finally complete. You are one step closer to moving into the brand-new, state-of-the-art Hawaii home. However, there still are a few more steps until you can relax on the couch gazing out the streak-less windows, cooking in the sparkling kitchen or swimming in the pristine pool.

Before you can enjoy living in your new home – or renting or reselling it – an inspection, a final closing with signing, receiving of the keys and scheduled move in will need to take place. You are almost there!

Walk through and inspect your new development home.

When construction is complete – and usually a couple of months before the final closing date – the new development homebuyer will have an opportunity to walk-through the unit and inspect it. The developer typically notifies homebuyers of the scheduled date and time for the walk through about a month before the closing date. If you are off-island during your scheduled inspection time, you can have your real estate agent or another representative (including hiring an inspector) walk through your newly constructed unit for you. Either way, it is very important to have someone who knows what to look for. Do they know how completed construction should look? Do they know where to look? This is very important, as this scheduled walk-through is usually the buyer’s one and only chance to address any issues with the developer.

During the inspection, common construction issues that Hawaii new development buyers often sight are painting smears or incompleteness, cracking drywall, unfinished caulking or bathroom/tile grout, scratches in the finishes (such as on countertops, windows, cabinets or appliances) and other usually minor cosmetic issues. While the developer and contractor do their very best to build outstanding new homes, realize they are building many new homes, and these homes are built by humans. Therefore, minor mistakes do sometimes occur; that is why the final inspection of the new development home is important.

The person inspecting the new unit should keep a written list of any found issues, noting where and what it looks like, as well as taking pictures. Then, send these pictures and written documentation to the developer, who will work with the contractor to ensure everything is fixed. Usually, Hawaii developers have been known to correct any apparent issues or repairs homebuyers’ find during the inspection. When can a homebuyer expect to see the final repairs on issues found during the inspection? In most Hawaii developments, the opportunity to see the repairs to the issues found during the walk-through does not happen until after the final closing.

Many good real estate agents, who specialize in new development purchases, will accompany the homebuyer during this inspection – and even offer to document any construction defects and work with the developer to ensure the repairs. And, some of these real estate agents do this final new home inspection on a complimentary basis.

Sign the final closing documents and fully finance the purchase.

Usually around two months before the final closing and key pick-up date, the new development homebuyer in Hawaii will sign all the final closing documents and pay for the entirety of the new home. If you are working with a lender, the lender will fully finance the escrow account, and since financing a home months before moving in is unique to a new home development, this is why it is often easier (and often more economical in the long run) to work with the developers pre-approved preferred lenders. If you are a cash buyer or putting down additional funds, a cashier’s check in the exactly amount should be brought to this lender/escrow/title signing scheduled meeting.

Note that during this signing, you will need to decide how to hold the title – and this can typically be held in a trust, an LLC, as a married couple or as in individual.

Pick up the keys and paperwork.

After many months – or even years – and many steps, the day is finally here when your new development home keys can be in your hand. A scheduled date will be communicated to the homeowner to pick up the keys. During this key pick-up time, a packet of paperwork is also usually given to the new homeowner. This paperwork will typically include information about utilities, the development and any appliance warranties, and some of the paperwork will need to be completed and sent to an address or submitted to the developer.

Move in to your new Hawaii home!

The keys are in your hands, and your moving truck(s) may be packed. However, a little more patience before you’re gazing out the glossy new windows on your comfortable couch might be required, as developers often stagger the specifically scheduled move-in dates for large furniture – especially in the new high-rise condos. This is because there is a limited number of elevators, and the building’s management wants to ensure all the residents’ paperwork is complete.

Therefore, some new development buildings will require all paperwork to be submitted (that was given during the key pick-up) before a new homeowner can reserve the elevator to move in. For some new homeowners, scheduling of the official move-in date could take weeks – or even months – as there often are hundreds of other new homeowners, as well.

When you finally move in to your unit, you should note that all the issues that you saw during the inspection were repaired. If you find any issues after moving in, you can communicate with the developer and contractor. However, typically the contractor or developer is not obligated to fix these cosmetic issues – but reputable developers will often try to make any issues right. Note that many of the appliances have manufacturer’s warranties, and other warranties differ from developer to developer.

And now, after many months – and even years – of waiting, you can relax and enjoy your newly constructed Hawaii home and all its many benefits – like the latest construction features and designs, incredible amenities and future appreciation. Many new development homeowners do, indeed, say after moving in to a new development that it was worth the wait and extra steps – and a knowledgeable real estate agent can help to make the process seamless and stressless.