If you’re buying your first home and leaning toward new construction, you’re already doing one smart thing: choosing a home that’s (usually) lower maintenance and move-in ready. But new builds come with their own “gotchas” that don’t show up in resale homes. And most first-time buyers only learn them after a surprise bill, a rushed decision, or a contract clause they didn’t know mattered. Here are the biggest mistakes first-time buyers make in new construction and how to avoi