You know, all the chaos the past 2 months, I forgot to blog about the joys of building a new house. Actually, it's been relatively easy. There have been a few bumps but for the most part, we've have very little issues. In fact, the house is completely finished and yesterday was my first trip to Menards....to get a mailbox of all things! The builder pretty much did it all. Painted, installed floor covering, cabinets, and appliances. Even siding, sod, and a sprinkler system. Not without cost of course.
We did pick out our paint, cabinets, flooring, appliances, lights, directed where to put the plug-ins, trees and rocks. Everyone we worked with were very nice. If anyone needs referrals, I have tons!
Bumps: We didn't do our homework. We had NO idea how much things cost. When it came to our allowances, we were pretty clueless. My advice, do your homework and find out how much things cost BEFORE you sign the Purchase Agreement. You may be able to negotiate allowances up front. For example, we asked when we signed the Purchase Agreement if the "landscaping allowance" would cover the sod and two trees that were required by the city. Of course they said "yes." Nothing was put in writing other than the amount we were given. We get the estimate from the landscaper and, no, the cost doesn't cover everything that's required by the city. By over $800. This was NOT OK. After some finagling, the builder agreed to pay for it. Of course we're paying a little more for some extras, but not much.
Another bump, financing. Not that we couldn't afford it, or that we had to jump through loop holes. Have LOTS of patience and be ready to find all sorts of proof and paperwork. It's a hassle for sure, but once you get it all done, it's done. We had to proove funds in our savings were coming from a paycheck, every deposit had to be explained. Even our IRS tax credit needed proof. Seriously annoying. Also annoying, but for good reason, we had to proove we have 6 months of mortgage payments available to us before even being accepted. I know this isn't always the case, but for some reason that's what happened to us.
Smooth Sailing: Everything else. When we met with the decorator to pick colors, siding, carpet, vinyl (yes, we went vinyl because of having young kids), cabinets, drawer pulls, etc., our realtor was there to give suggestions, and the decorator was excellent at giving us ideas. Half way through I wanted to give up and let someone else do it, but we made it through. LOTS of decisions. Very hard to pick things out for a house that hasn't even broken ground yet. Lighting was pretty easy to pick out to. We did have to go back and make some changes (buyer's remorse), but even that was easy to do. The sales person was excellent about it. Even got a hug. :-) We tried to run out to the house once a week to check on progress and it seemed to click along once the walls were framed.
Compromise: We went into this with a laundry list of must haves. Ya right. We compromised on a few things (soak tub, granite, hard wood floors, 2 story) to get what was most important. A completely finished house. Because we were willing to give up a few things, we could put that money into completing the entire house. Everyone has their own room and there are plenty of bathrooms. There's lots of living and playing space. For us, it's more important to have the house finished than to have granite countertops. In reality, we can more easily put in countertops and wood flooring than to finish a basement. Seriously, plumbing, electric, drywall....ick! We opted for a split level with a large entryway versus a 2-story and in the end, we actually like it better. We're currently in a 2-story and it really stinks that when one person wakes up, everyone wakes up. The way we placed family members and their rooms will help in that aspect. It's great to walk in with a wish list and must haves, but it's super important to be willing to compromise based on the reality of your situation.
Anything else? I think that's all for now. We are very excited about his new adventure. We will miss our friends for sure.
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