Do you know that you want a brand-new home, but can’t decide if you want one pre-designed or completely custom? When you’re ready to move into a new construction home in Utah, one of the first choices you’ll need to make is whether you want to house-hunt through spec homes or build your very own. While both options result in your very own house, they offer very different experiences.
Maybe you dream of creating a home that’s completely tailored to your lifestyle, from the layout and architectural style to the smallest design details. Maybe you want to keep it simple, and just buy a beautiful, pre-designed home without spending months making selections or overseeing construction. So, which is right for you? Well, it depends on your priorities, your timeline, and how involved you want to be.
In Salt Lake City, understanding these differences can help you make a decision confidently. Whether you’re just now looking around at land in the foothills or taking a look around downtown’s up-and-coming neighborhoods, it’s important to know what each path offers before moving forward.
Let’s take a closer look at how custom homes and spec homes compare, along with the advantages and considerations that come with each.
What Is A Custom Home?
A custom home is exactly what it sounds like: a home designed and built specifically for you. You choose your location, floorplan and every last finish inside the home, from the square footage of your living room to the crown molding style. With custom homes, there are countless benefits, but the best is that it can be whatever you want it to be. Add a dedicated personal library, finish out a basement, or design a custom kitchen: your very own home will let you do all of it. You control the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, where your laundry lives, everything down to the last detail.
Custom homes are much more flexible when it comes to style. Whether you’re drawn to mountain modern, contemporary, traditional, transitional, Scandinavian, or something completely unique, your home builder can help create a house that reflects your vision rather than adapting someone else’s design.
Another benefit of going custom: you get to select the materials that matter most to you. Flooring, cabinetry, lighting, countertops, windows, and countless other features can all be chosen based on your preferences, priorities, and lifestyle.
Don’t stress about your wallet yet, though – not every finish has to be luxurious. Building custom just means you decide where to invest. Love custom windows, but don’t care about your flooring type? Put your budget where you want it rather than conforming to someone else’s design. Maybe you want smart technology built in, or maybe you’d rather use that money on an outdoor kitchen. It’s all in your hands.
Custom homes are also more flexible when you’re trying to build in unique situations. Plenty of lots around the Salt Lake City area feature mountainous terrain, mature trees, or other irregular shapes. Rather than trying to squeeze a standard floor plan onto a challenging lot, a custom design embraces those characteristics. Windows can aim to frame surrounding scenery, outdoor spaces follow the natural contours of the landscape, and you can even orient your home to maximize daylight.
Of course, with greater flexibility comes greater involvement. You’ll have a lot of decision-making to do throughout the process. You’ll need to dedicate time to reviewing floor plans, selecting finishes, discussing details with your builder, and refining your vision before construction begins.
For many homeowners, the decisions are part of the excitement. Instead of settling for compromises, they’re creating a home they’ll enjoy for decades. Others may prefer a more streamlined experience, which is where spec homes become an appealing alternative.
What Is A Spec Home?
A spec home, short for “speculative home,” is a house built before a specific buyer has committed to purchasing it. Instead of starting with a homeowner’s individual vision, the original builder typically creates a home design based on market demand, current trends, and features projected to appeal to future buyers.
Spec homes are commonly built in new developments, established neighborhoods with available lots, and other areas where builders anticipate strong market demand. The builder typically selects the floor plan, materials, finishes, and overall design direction before a buyer enters the picture. The goal is to create an attractive, move-in ready home that appeals to a broad range of homeowners.
Unlike a custom home, the construction for a spec home is fairly straightforward. If a buyer isn’t involved yet, the builder will make all design decisions. If a buyer is involved, they’ll get to choose personalization opportunities and make choices between features that the builder has already planned for.
For example, builders might allow a buyer to choose between personalization options such as:
- Flooring material types
- Cabinet colors
- Countertop selections
- Paint colors
- Lighting fixtures
- Appliance packages – and more.
However, larger structural changes are usually limited with spec homes. Moving walls, changing the overall floor plan, adjusting ceiling heights, or redesigning room layouts isn’t usually an option.
The bottom line: one of the biggest advantages of a spec home is simplicity. Lots of homeowners appreciate having fewer decisions to make. Instead of spending months reviewing architectural plans and comparing hundreds of selections, buyers can focus on choosing from available options and preparing for move-in.
This can make spec homes especially appealing for homeowners who have a shorter timeline or who want the benefits of new construction without having to research every last detail.
Spec homes also occasionally allow buyers to see exactly what they’re purchasing. Rather than imagining how plans and renderings will eventually come together, buyers can often tour a completed home, walk through the rooms, evaluate the finishes, and understand how the space feels in person.
However, the tradeoff is that buyers generally have less control over the final result. A spec home is designed to appeal to many people, which means some homeowners may find themselves compromising on certain preferences.
Maybe the kitchen layout isn’t exactly what they imagined. Perhaps they would’ve chosen different exterior materials or a different primary suite configuration. While the home may be beautiful and functional, it wasn’t designed specifically around their family’s routines.
For many buyers, those compromises are completely acceptable. A well-designed spec home can provide an excellent balance of quality, convenience, and modern features. The key is understanding whether the home aligns with your priorities before making a decision.
What’s the Difference Between Custom And Spec?
In our opinion, the biggest difference between a custom home and a spec home comes down to who’s driving the design process.
With a custom home, the homeowner makes every major decision. The house gets carefully created around their style and long-term goals. With a spec home, the builder leads the design process based on what makes the most appealing home for the general population.
Both approaches can result in beautiful, high-quality homes, but the experience of building and buying them is very different.
Some of the biggest differences include:
- Personalization: A custom home gives you the freedom to determine how your home works for your daily life. A spec home, on the other hand, is designed with broader appeal in mind.
- Involvement: Building a custom home is a very collaborative experience. Homeowners work closely with their builder throughout design, selections, and construction. Spec homes provide a more simplified experience. Much of the planning has already been completed, so buyers can focus on evaluating the finished product and making a purchase decision.
- Construction timelines: Spec homes are often move-in ready sooner because construction may already be underway or completed before a buyer ever becomes involved. Since custom homes require design development, engineering, permitting, material selections, and detailed planning, they generally take longer from concept to completion.
- Location selection: Custom homes provide more flexibility because homeowners can often choose where they want to build. Spec homes are typically limited to the locations where builders are already active.
We will note one thing isn’t always different: quality. While that sounds counterintuitive, quality is sometimes misunderstood when comparing custom vs spec homes. A common misconception is that every custom home is automatically higher quality, or every spec home is built with lower-quality materials. In reality, quality depends heavily on lots of factors.
An experienced spec home builder can create an exceptional home, and a poorly managed custom project won’t deliver a well-crafted custom home. The most important factor in your final home’s quality is ensuring that you’ve partnered with a reputable builder who prioritizes communication, craftsmanship, and attention to detail.
Pros and Cons of Each: A Deep Dive
Choosing between a custom home and a spec home ultimately comes down to your priorities. Some homeowners value having complete creative control over every detail, while others prefer a simpler path with fewer decisions and a faster move-in timeline.
Neither option is the right choice for everyone. Understanding the advantages and potential drawbacks of each can help you determine which approach best fits your goals.
Pros of Building a Custom Home
Complete Design Freedom
The absolute greatest benefit of a custom home is the ability to make the space truly yours. You aren’t limited to a builder’s existing floor plans or some predetermined list of finishes. Instead, you work with your builder and design team to create the ideal home.
Making a home yours might mean creating an oversized kitchen designed for extended-family gatherings, or it might mean adding a private home office for remote work. You can have it all with a custom home.
Even small details can make a meaningful difference. A custom build gives you the opportunity to decide where outlets are placed, how closets are organized, where windows are positioned, and how each room connects to the rest of the home.
These details might seem pretty minor individually, but together they create a home that feels intuitive and comfortable – because it was designed specifically for you.
A Home Designed Around Your Lifestyle
Pre-existing homes require homeowners to compromise. There’s always something that could be better. Maybe the kitchen is too small, the bedrooms aren’t positioned well, or the house just lacks the space you need for everyday routines.
A custom home eliminates many of those challenges by allowing your priorities to shape the design from the beginning.
For example, an active Utah family may want a dedicated mudroom for outdoor gear after hiking or skiing trips. Someone who works from home may need multiple quiet workspaces. A homeowner planning to stay in the house long-term could want accessibility features that allow the home to adapt over time.
Because the home is designed around your needs today and your goals for the future, it can provide better long-term functionality.
Greater Flexibility With Your Location
One of the biggest advantages of building a custom home is choosing where the home will be located. Instead of searching only among currently-available homes, you have the opportunity to find land that fits your vision.
For some homeowners, that can mean building on a larger lot with privacy and outdoor space. For others, it could mean creating a home that takes advantage of mountain views, natural surroundings, or a specific neighborhood near schools, work, and community amenities.
In areas surrounding Salt Lake City, where terrain and views can vary dramatically from one property to another, a custom design can help maximize the potential of a unique lot.
Higher Level of Personal Satisfaction
Alright, we sort of implied this one already, but there’s a certain pride that comes with having a custom home. There’s definitely something special about walking into a home knowing each detail was chosen intentionally. It’s also easier to feel better about any compromises you might make with the home, because it was ultimately in your hands.
Many homeowners choose custom construction because they want more than a place to live. They want a home that tells their story and supports the way they spend their time. That emotional connection can be difficult to replicate with a spec home.
Opportunity for Better Long-Term Planning
A custom home also gives homeowners the chance to plan for future needs. Rather than making changes after moving in, you can incorporate features from the start.
If you expect your aging parents to eventually join you in your home, you might plan on building a full suite on the ground floor. If you expect to have kids, you might add an extra bathroom to the guest rooms. Maybe you’ll create a dual-purpose room to serve as both a remote workspace and a hobbyist space if you know that your career might eventually move out of the office.
Thoughtful planning during the design stage can help your home remain functional for years or even decades.
Cons of Building a Custom Home
A More Involved Process
The exact same flexibility that makes custom homes so appealing also means there’s more work involved.
During the design and construction process, homeowners will need to make choices about floor plans, materials, fixtures, finishes, appliances, and countless other details. While many people enjoy this creative process, it does require time and attention.
Working with an experienced custom home builder makes the experience much easier. A knowledgeable builder will help guide decisions, explain options, provide recommendations, and keep the project moving forward.
A Longer Timeline
Because custom homes involve more planning and personalization, they generally require more time before move-in. Design, engineering, permitting, selections, and construction all contribute to the overall timeline.
For homeowners who aren’t in a hurry, this additional build time allows the project to develop thoughtfully. However, buyers who need to move quickly may find a spec home better suited to their needs.
Finding the Right Builder Matters
Admittedly, your builder always matters. Builders determine quality and craftsmanship of your home – but that’s exactly why for custom homes especially, choosing the right builder is key.
The relationship between homeowner and builder can last many months, so communication, transparency, and trust are essential. A strong builder will not only manage construction but also help homeowners navigate decisions and avoid common challenges.
Before choosing a custom builder, homeowners should look for experience, craftsmanship, clear communication, and a portfolio that reflects the quality and style they’re hoping to achieve. The National Association of Home Builders also provides a list of questions to ask any prospective builder, if you’re not sure where to start.
Pros of Buying a Spec Home
Faster Move-In Timeline
One of the biggest benefits of a spec home is convenience. Since the home is already designed and may already be under construction, buyers can move in much sooner than they would with a custom build.
Convenience can be especially helpful for people with a deadline – if you’re relocating, selling your previous property, or have other time constraints, spec homes are a quick solution.
Instead of waiting through months of design decisions and planning, buyers can focus on preparing for their move and settling into their new home.
A Simpler Decision-Making Process
Admittedly, building a custom home can involve hundreds of decisions. You need to have opinions on everything from trim design to kitchen backsplash and bathroom mirror shapes. Some homeowners love having those choices, while others think that’s a hassle.
So, spec homes simplify the experience by narrowing selections to options already chosen by the builder. You don’t have to spend months comparing flooring samples, reviewing cabinet styles, or debating between dozens of different fixtures.
Ability to See the Finished Product
Another advantage of a spec home is that buyers often have the opportunity to see exactly what they’re getting. Usually, developing neighborhoods will have a few example houses that you can tour at your leisure.
It’ll let you walk through the rooms and experience the layout firsthand, evaluate natural lighting, and visualize daily life in the home before purchasing.
Since you’ll see the real thing right off the bat, you may have a better idea of just what you’re getting with a spec home.
Modern Features and Updated Design
Since spec homes are newly constructed, they’ll often already include current design trends and new features that today’s homeowners want.
Depending on the builder, these homes may include open-concept layouts, energy-efficient systems, contemporary kitchens, updated bathrooms, smart home features, and outdoor living areas.
A well-designed spec home can provide many of the benefits of new construction without requiring the homeowner to manage the entire building process.
Cons of Buying a Spec Home
Limited Customization
This one should be obvious, but the biggest limitation of a spec home is that you have less control over the final design.
While some builders allow certain selections during construction, the overall layout and design direction are typically already established. You may not be able to change details like room alignments or layouts.
If you have very specific requirements, such as a particular kitchen configuration, unusual room arrangement, or specialty spaces, a spec home requires some notable compromises.
It’s Less Personal
Because a spec home wasn’t designed specifically for you, it often won’t have the same personal connection and style as a custom build.
Don’t get us wrong – a spec home can still be beautiful and meet your wishlist! Spec homes tend to be made to appeal to the population at large, so they’re often a great jack-of-all-trades option. They just won’t be perfectly you.
For plenty of buyers, this isn’t a significant issue. They appreciate the convenience of a spec home, and can make smaller adjustments down the road after moving in. However, homeowners with a very specific vision often prefer the total control of a custom home.
Limited Location Availability
With a spec home, your options are generally limited to where builders are currently developing homes. You’ll need to be looking for new neighborhoods, and you might not be able to decide on things like lot sizes or footprints. You might not get to choose the exact lot, orientation, and surrounding environment the way you could with a custom house..
Ultimately, both custom homes and spec homes offer unique advantages. The best option depends on whether you value personalization and creative control or convenience and simplicity.
For many homeowners, this decision becomes clearer once they consider how they want to experience the building process, not just the finished home.
Start Your Home Journey With Truecraft Utah
Building a new home is one of the most exciting investments you can make, but choosing the right path is an important first step. Whether you’re interested in building a fully custom home or exploring the possibilities of a new construction spec home, working with an experienced builder can help ensure your vision, expectations, and goals are aligned from the beginning.
At Truecraft Utah, we understand that every homeowner has a different idea of what makes a house feel like home. Some families need a floor plan designed around their unique routines. Others want a thoughtfully built home with modern features and a smooth, straightforward process.
Our goal is to help you find the approach that makes the most sense for your lifestyle. Get in touch with us today.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I customize a spec home after buying it?
The amount of customization available for a spec home depends on when you purchase it and how far construction has progressed. If you buy early in the building process, the builder may allow certain selections, such as finishes, fixtures, flooring, or paint colors.
Once construction is complete, larger changes are usually more difficult. Homeowners can still personalize the space after moving in through renovations, furnishings, landscaping, and upgrades, but the home’s fundamental design will typically remain unchanged.
Do custom homes have better resale value?
It depends on your buyers, honestly. A custom home offers strong long-term value, especially when it’s thoughtfully designed, built with quality materials, and located in a desirable area. Bonus features that improve functionality, energy efficiency, and overall livability definitely make a home more appealing to future buyers.
However, resale value depends on many factors, including location, market conditions, design choices, and how well the home is maintained. One highly personalized feature that perfectly suits you may not appeal to every future buyer, so not every feature is guaranteed monetary return.
