So I am in the process of buying my first house.  First deposit is in, we are locked in on our rate.  Now i hear from so many friends and family, that the builder is not giving us enough "free" stuff.  I have never bought a house, so i am not sure how pushy we should be with them.  Some say just be a jerk and threaten to cancel the deal if x isn't met, but that seems a bit weird to me, or is that the only way one can get anything out of them.   For the next phase, home prices have been upped and the 5K incentive has been dropped.  (we currently have a 5K towards anything incentive).  i don't want to ask for much, but may just get them to do my backyard, so i wont have to look at dirt for a while.  I tried to bring up the conversation today, but i think i usually create a situation where the builder easily just says no and i will shut up.

Has anyone had a lot experience with negotiating with builders and how would you approach that?  Our builder is Standard PAcific in Southern California and so far the experience has been ok.  

Any comment is greatly appreciated. Thanks

There's a lot of homes for sale in CA. (whether S Cal.N Cal. etc) You're the driver. I know of svereal N Cal. Builders offering incentives and rate in the 4's---- drive it like you own it----or drive it like like it's a rental!

In our area for existing inventory (been on the market a long time) the builders will do lots of negotiating and the lenders that provided the construction financing are offering rates below 4%.  However, if it's a home just being built they are not as liberal with the incentives because they have adjusted what they are building to the market.  It just depends on the local market.