Dallas-Fort Worth home builder promises buyers it won’t raise prices like others have
Winifred King was worried that she might have to walk away from her dream home, which is under construction in Mansfield.
She read several news reports about North Texas builders abruptly raising the price of homes under contract by tens of thousands of dollars — and telling buyers, many of whom were just weeks from closing on their homes, they can take it or leave it.
But then she got an email from her builder that changed everything.
Her builder, Bloomfield Homes, which is based in Southlake and builds homes throughout the region, promised clients it would honor the prices in all of the company’s signed contracts.
“This is the first time I’ve ever built a home but I’ve been terrified in the last few months at the prospect I might have to walk away from my dream home because of extravagant material costs,” King, who is a senior vice president in the Cook Children’s Health Care System, said in an email to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
The Bloomfield Homes email features an image of two shaking hands. It reads: “Even if construction costs rise during the building process, Bloomfield Homes will respect the Contract Price because we believe a deal is a deal!”
Don Dykstra, chief executive officer at Bloomfield Homes, said in a phone interview he decided to send the email after hearing concerns from his clients about the situation.
“We’re not perfect, but we try hard, and it just seemed like the right thing to do,” Dykstra said.
Dykstra said the rising costs of materials has eliminated much of the usual profits he would be making from some of his company’s homes that are already under construction. But, he said, sending the email was a way to protect his company’s reputation — at a time when many other builders are under fire for the way they have handled the historically hot housing market — which he believes is better for business long-term.
Plus, Dykstra said, the company can still make plenty of profits on homes yet to be placed under contract, which likely will be priced higher than they were a few months ago.
“Bloomfield Homes is only able to do this because of longstanding relationships with suppliers, subcontractors and trade partners,” the company email read. “We thank them for their support.”
Bloomfield Homes is building in several locations on the western side of the Metroplex, including Fort Worth, Crowley, Justin Mansfield and Godley.
It’s not clear how many other builders are offering their clients a guaranteed price. The Star-Telegram contacted a handful of builders in the North Texas area by phone and email, but didn’t get a response. Those builders included DR Horton, First Texas Homes and Lennar.
A spokeswoman from David Weekley Homes responded to an email, but declined to answer questions about the issue of home prices for buyers under contract.
This story was originally published July 14, 2021 at 5:15 AM.
