What are the best upgrades when buying a new home?

Ummm....unless we know what the home includes as standard equipment, it's hard to tell you what makes sense in upgrades.....

That's a tough one. Your best bet is probably to make sure the builder you use has a good solid reputation and is the kind of person who will explain why certain things are good value and suitable for use. So many of the things that go into quality construction are things you never see unless you're right there while they build it. Most of us with jobs can't do that, and most of us are never going to spend enough time on a construction site to know poor building from good at a glance. If you're having a new home built, it's best to get anything you want installed at the time it's built. It will never be cheaper than it is during construction. Retrofitting almost always costs more than installing the first time, but if a home is built properly at the basic structure level, then you won't find yourself replacing rotten walls in 20 years. Watch home renovation shows like Holmes on Homes and This Old House. Visit as many houses as you can, even ones way over your budget. Go to a lot of open houses. It's kind of like expensive clothes compared to stuff from Wal-mart. If you see enough of the very expensive ones, you learn what makes the difference between the cheap stuff and the very best and you can spot it from across the street. And learn to ignore many of the things that house sellers use to dazzle buyers. What colour the kitchen cabinets and drapes are is completely unimportant. Design is important, though. Some designs are more suitable to some climates than others. Learn what that is where you live. I live in BC where we get a lot of rain, and there have been a lot of houses built here that are better designs for California. They look snazzy, but shallow roofs and lack of eaves almost guarantee water problems down the road.

As others have said, definitely kitchen upgrades such as the counter tops and tile or hardwood on the floor.

Hardwood is also a good way to go for upgrade.

I'd personally have to see the list b/c my brain isn't working atm heh. But yeah, as someone else has said. Anything that would cost more to do on your own would be the way to go.

We bought a home that was built for someone else but they couldn't close on it for some reason. They got alot of upgrades in the home as well. Nothing fantastic, but enough to make it their own. Such as the kitchen cabinets, extra cable outlits, a glass door for the front, etc. Biggest upgrade they got was a sunroom. Cost was 9k for it, and I'm sure if they had waited to do it on their own would've cost them triple that amount.

Just do some research and think about that. Would soandso cost us more to upgrade later on than if we just got it right now?

Kitchen upgrades are very important. Bathrooms will also increase the resale value. You might also consider a fireplace.

Appliance, bathrooms, and kitchen upgrades improve the resale value

definitely in the kitchen, if you can get granite in the kitchen its a huge plus the price of the house goes up but i would definitely do the upgrades in the kitchen its the most used room in the house so definitely go all the way with the stainless steal and make it look nice!

Anything that will cost you MORE to do later.

Examples are:

Hardwood floors...b/c the furniture has to be moved, and they charge big bucks for that.

42" cabinets or the color you like...b/c painting them always looks like crap and new cabinets are expensive.

Get any and all electrical upgrades having anything to do with wiring...they are ALWAYS cheaper with the builder...get anything that you even THINK you might want. Examples are 220 exterior outlets for a hot tub or freezer outlets.

Tile...another thing that is more expensive to do later.

Patio expansions...esp if it's on a slab.