In almost every industry, there are words that seem easy for those within that discipline to throw around. Lenders definitely have their own terminology. When loan agents realize that many of us don't understand the difference between a cap, an index, and an amortization schedule, they are happy to take a few steps back and try to put things into words and phrases we can relate to.

The builder's brochure is replete with elegantly-worded lists of amenities buyers may or may not be clear on, depending on the way the builders use these words to market their homes. Here, then, are some phrases and words that you may hear bantered about within a new homebuilder's sales office or see in a builder's brochure that occasionally raise questions by buyers as to their official translation.

Included Feature: Formerly referred to as "standard", whatever is labeled this way within a model home or sales brochure is included in the base price of that particular floor plan. Many production homebuilders consider their included features a point of pride and feature nearly all them somewhere within their model homes. Others will only mention them in their sales brochures and will display mostly upgrades in their models, making it difficult for buyers to understand just what the base price of the homes really means.

Optional Opportunity/Feature: A nice way of saying upgrade, or extra (not included in the base price of the house). To distinguish between what items are upgraded and what is included in a particular floor plan, you may find it necessary to have the salesperson take you on a personally guided tour and point them out. Confident sales people do this without even being asked to do so.

Decorator Item: This is a disclaimer type sticker or plaque to let you know that whatever it refers to is available only through an interior decorator, and not through the builder. In other words, it's not available at all.

Radius Corner Walls: Builders curve corner wall edges to soften them, as opposed to the knife-edging them. They must apply a special flashing before applying drywall to get this effect.

Coffered Ceilings: Usually used in formal areas like living rooms or dining rooms, these are ceilings that are "stepped" or boxed to add a custom touch to the ceiling area of a room. Coffering can utilize one to several steps of the ceiling cascading down the walls in various configurations.

Vaulted/High Volume Ceilings: Ceilings that are vaulted are usually expanded inside to roof level, with pitched, angled features. In contrast, high volume ceilings are usually tall, flat ceilings, nine to ten feet in height in production homes. Higher ceilings can give the feeling of more volume even in smaller homes. Many homebuyers who see vaulted varieties as a waste of utility bills have welcomed the high-volume changeover many builders have now adopted.

Media/Art Niche: Some homebuilders now designate a wall meant for entertainment and tend locate cable TV or extra electrical outlets there, usually in the family room or great room (one large living area). Media niches built in by the builder can offer raised wall platform areas for television sets or monitors and even extra cubbyholes for stereo components. Art niches are recessed areas in wall designed to feature objets d'art. Sometimes they contain directional wall lighting for better art display effect.

Pre-wired/pre-plumbed for . . . : The house is "prepared to receive" an upgrade, such as a ceiling fan, Jacuzzi tub, security system, or central vaccuum. Be careful that these "pre-" anythings are not designed to receive only the builder's upgraded items (at their design center) making it impossible to add your own systems later on, or they may not be worth any extra money you are asked to invest.

Full fascia gutters: Gutters hung on the roof entirely around the home's perimeter. Check to see where and how many downspouts are added, how long they are and how they drain to avoid soil erosion near your home's foundation.

Den/Study/Office: Usually the size of a bedroom, but not containing a closet. This room is not meant for beds and will not be appraised as such if you go to sell the home unless a closet is added. (Note: To retain the value bedrooms add to your home, keep the closet doors stored in your garage if using a bedroom as a home office or any other non-sleeping use.)

Loft: A second-story, door-less area that is open, lacking walls on some sides, is commonly referred to as a loft. It is meant to be an extra living or recreation area, but many builders offer an enclosure to create another bedroom as an option. Or they can reverse that, offering a bedroom conversion to a loft as an option. Some loft areas have banisters overlooking the ground level, adding drama and architectural charm.

Elevation: The exterior variety of styles offered by the builder for a particular floor plan. Elevations are usually in alpha-order. When you view the builder's sales office renderings (drawings of the home facades), you can notice the differences. Sometimes exterior treatments, such as siding, stucco, or masonry delineate the variations. Window shapes and sizes, roof gables, color combinations, and pop-outs are also popular variations builder use to make houses along a street look less cookie-cutter and more interesting.

Powder Rooms/Half Baths: Powder rooms contain only a commode and a sink and can also be referred to as a half-bath. A ¾ bath can have a shower stall included, but usually lacks a tub.

HVAC: Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning unit or system

Sheer Walls: Load-bearing walls. Without these the house would "tweak" and not be structurally sound. When scanning blueprints, take note of sheer wall locations, since these are walls that can never be removed or altered for building onto the house or remodeling.

Cooktop/Slide-in Range: A cooktop is a built-in burner unit set into a kitchen countertop. Cabinets support it, and ovens are placed in a separate cabinet. In the past, cooktops have been considered more costly and "custom" than slide-in ranges, which are self-contained units including stoves. The current upscale trend, however, is for oversized restaurant-style ranges in stainless steel, now offered by most major brands.

These are but a few of the terms used by builders and their sales and building personnel. Whenever you see a term that puzzles you, no matter how simple it sounds, don't hesitate to ask the sales consultant to explain just what that particular builder means when using it. Semantics in homebuilding can differ from builder to builder. For instance, "energy efficient windows" to one builder may merely refer to the fact that all their windows are dual-paned. To another, it may mean that they are not only dual paned, but they are Low-E Squared glass and have vinyl frames, making their r-values (energy efficiency ratings) higher.

As I have mentioned in previous articles, builder sales people are there to explain only what is positive about their builders' homes, so the terminology they use will be flavored to reflect that, which is only fair to their employer. Curiosity about the use of the builder's vocabulary is usually welcomed, offering them an opportunity to show off their homes as well as their new home sales expertise.

Published: September 8, 2000

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A veteran of the real estate and homebuilding industries since 1986, Dena Kouremetis first joined Realty Times as a new homes writer in 1998. Since then, she has authored four books, written consumer columns on new homes issues for websites and newspapers all across the country, contributed to builder trade magazines, appeared as a guest expert on several radio shows and even created a ten-chapter podcast for LendingTree.com’s homebuilder website, iNest.com, now available on iTunes, entitled Uncharted Waters; Navigating the Purchase of a New Production Home. Kouremetis recently joined her local Folsom, CA Coldwell Banker office as a broker associate while continuing to write for the real estate industry. For the past three years, she has been training real estate agents for both the resale and new homes industries, putting her experience, research expertise and gift of expression to work to help others entering the business.