diff --git a/abuild.in b/abuild.in
index e49956b..f56ac03 100644
--- a/abuild.in
+++ b/abuild.in
@@ -565,10 +565,10 @@ have_patches() {
 
 default_prepare() {
 	local i
+	cd "$builddir" || { error "Is \$builddir set correctly?"; return 1; }
 	if ! have_patches; then
 		return 0
 	fi
-	cd "$builddir" || { error "Is \$builddir set correctly?"; return 1; }
 	for i in $source; do
 		case $i in
 			*.patch)