Buy new construction if you want a home nobody has lived in, with new systems and a builder warranty, and you're fine with the locations and lots builders have available. Buy resale if you want an established street, mature trees, a specific location, or a house you can move into without waiting on a build. Either way, bring your own agent on your first visit to a builder, because the sales rep in the model home works for the builder.
12 questions to ask the sales rep, eight builder-contract red flags, and a pre-drywall checklist you can print and take to the site.
I'm Wes Johnston, a Realtor with Trueblood Real Estate in Fishers. Before real estate I spent about ten years designing homes and managing their construction for a custom builder in Hamilton County. I drew the blueprints and ran the jobs, so I know what goes on behind the drywall and what to check before it's covered up.
Here's the thing: neither one is the smart choice for everybody. New gets you modern systems and a warranty. Resale gets you a finished neighborhood and more choice of location. What I'm looking for with every buyer is which tradeoffs you can live with.
On my New Home Builds search right now: 883 homes from 20 builders in 216 communities, 344 of them move-in ready, priced from $244,122 to $1,399,990 (builder websites, verified Oct 5, 2026).
| County | Communities | Homes listed |
|---|---|---|
| Hamilton County | 58 | 215 |
| Marion County | 30 | 158 |
| Hendricks County | 36 | 135 |
| Hancock County | 34 | 120 |
| Boone County | 25 | 57 |
| Johnson County | 24 | 74 |
| Shelby County | 5 | 26 |
| Morgan County | 4 | 13 |
Each county name links to its own page with every community and builder.
Everything is new: roof, furnace, water heater, windows. Nobody has lived in it. You get current energy code and a builder warranty. If you buy early enough, you pick the floor plan, finishes and options.
You're limited to where builders are building, which usually means newer subdivisions farther out and smaller trees. A to-be-built home takes months, and completion dates can slip. Options and upgrades add up fast. And a home nobody has lived in is exempt from Indiana's seller disclosure form, so your inspection and warranty carry more weight (see the disclosure guide).
Established streets, mature landscaping, and locations close in that builders can't offer anymore. You can usually close on the timeline in your contract instead of a construction schedule. You see exactly what you're buying, and the seller's disclosure tells you what they know about it.
Older systems and components, which means budgeting for replacements sooner. Updates you might want, like a kitchen or flooring, cost more after you move in. And you're choosing from what's for sale, not designing your own.
The builder. The person in the model home is friendly and knows the product, but their job is to sell the builder's homes on the builder's terms. They aren't there to tell you the lot backs to a future road, that an upgrade is overpriced, or that the contract favors the builder.
Register your own agent on your first visit. Builders set their own rules, and some won't work with an agent who wasn't with you, or registered, the first time you walked in. Call me before you tour a model, or bring me along. Builders usually use their own contract forms rather than the purchase agreement you'd see on a resale, so read them carefully.
From ten years of building houses, my rule is simple. Anything inside the walls, in the foundation, or hard to change later gets done during the build. Cosmetic things that are easy to swap can wait.
Structural and layout options, extra electrical outlets and circuits, wiring for lights and ceiling fans, plumbing rough-ins (like a basement bath), blocking in the walls for TVs or grab bars, insulation, and a passive radon vent if it isn't standard.
Paint colors, light fixtures, faucets and hardware, many appliances, and window treatments. You can usually do these later for less, on your own schedule.
An upgrade adds to your price, but it doesn't automatically add the same amount to the appraisal. Ask for the upgrade price list early and get every option in writing before you sign.
Yes, and ideally two. A pre-drywall inspection happens after framing, wiring, plumbing and ductwork are in but before the walls are closed. It's the one chance to see what will be hidden for the life of the house. Then a final inspection before closing checks the finished home.
City and county building inspections check code. A home inspection is a different thing, and Indiana law says a home inspection is not a code compliance inspection (IC 25-20.2-2-6). Get the builder's written OK for your own licensed inspector to visit before you sign, and schedule it with the superintendent. More in how the home inspection period works.
It depends on the builder, so read the actual warranty before you sign. Indiana's new home warranty law lays out a statutory warranty: two years against defects from faulty workmanship or defective materials, four years on the roof and roof systems, and ten years against major structural defects, all counted from the warranty date (IC 32-27-2-8). A builder who uses those warranties can disclaim the implied warranties only by following the statute's rules, including insurance behind the warranty and a separate notice you acknowledge (IC 32-27-2-9).
Some builders provide their own or a third-party warranty instead. Ask who backs it, what's excluded, and how you file a claim. Walk the house and send a written list before the first-year coverage runs out.
If location is your top priority, start with resale; builders go where the land is. If you want new systems and a warranty and you can wait or find a move-in-ready home, new construction is a strong option, as long as you bring your own agent and your own inspector. Plenty of my buyers look at both, and that's the best way to find out what you actually care about. Start with the New Home Builds search or a county page like Hamilton County or Hendricks County.
More buyer questions, answered: the steps to buying your first home, how the inspection period works, what happens if the appraisal comes in low, how earnest money works, what happens on closing day, and what to know before moving to Indianapolis. Radon comes up on new homes too; see the radon guide.
Tell me what you're weighing. I'll help you compare a builder's home against resale homes in the same price range, read the builder's contract with you, and be there for the inspections.
Call me before your first model home visit so I'm registered with the builder from day one.
Fishers-based. Ten years designing and building custom homes. Committed to your success.
Tell me your budget and where you want to live. I'll show you both sides.
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This page is general information, not legal advice. New home inventory and prices come from builder websites on the dates shown and change daily. Warranty terms and builder contracts vary; read yours and ask a real estate attorney about your specific contract.