re: Builder Asking About Budget on House?

Honestly, time is money. I grew up in a contracting family. Most established contracting businesses are there not because of screwing their customers, but by taking good care of their customers. If your contractor/developer is well established, has a nice portfolio and you can drive through an area and see the quality of their construction, then they deserve to make a profit for providing you with a partnership in the process. A good contractor will work with you and help you come up with the best value for your money and will be able to help you not make poor decisions.

A good contractor wants to insure that 5, 10, 20 years down the road, your property is retaining substantial value.

If you are soliciting quotes, and don't have experience in determining the best quote (not the least expensive, but you can sometimes be surprised), there are people who can advise you. Contact the local office of the Home Builder's Association and request referrals for a qualified appraisal of the quotes. Good builders do all the right things and marginal builders skip small details, use cheaper materials and cover up mistakes instead if doing things over to be done correctly.

Tell the potential builder your budget. It helps them to know if they can reasonably meet that budget and provide you with a quality end result. You should do your homework in advance to find out if the builder has a good reputation and to view some previous properties they've built to see how they're holding up. If you get good reports on the builder, don't sweat the price. A good contractor is worth the price they quote you, as long as they can stay in your budget.