Showing posts with label pre construction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pre construction. Show all posts

Saturday, November 22, 2014

We have stakes!

I decided to drive by our lot today. Okay, so since the new home is about 30 minutes away from our current home its technically not a 'drive by" but you get the point.  And it looks like they staked out the lot!  Unfortunately the forecast for rain on Monday has moved from 60% chance of rain to 80% chance of rain  :/  And maybe some snow flurries later in the week!  I hate bipolar weather




Now if look you look closely at the upper left corner, you will see that our neighbors have decided to place a playground set at the property line.  Not quite sure why they did that but I am pretty they are going to wish they hadn't. With construction starting soon and the fact that RH will have to regrade our lot, it will probably cause an issue with the setting of the play ground.  That is also the place where our sump pump will drain.  I wonder if they placed it there to help them remember the property line markings?  I will have to ask them at the next community event.  

Thursday, November 20, 2014

Pre Construction Meeting- The Results

The pre construction meeting was rather productive.  Our PM (who has done this for 10 years but our house will be his first home in this community) caught a few mistakes in the selections and layout.  We were quite surprised that our free elevation came with a bay window for the living room, yes!
Another surprise- building permits are already in hand as long as it doesn't rain on Monday, we will be breaking ground on November 24th!  I was quite prepared to wait another 2 weeks.  No turning back now  :)
Settlement is projected to be at the end of March.  I need to ask if that pushes our first mortgage payment out to June. 

Kitchen

-how big is the island? We have a morning room hoping that the standard island will be on the larger side Resolved- change order for gourmet island submitted and accepted
how big is the refrigerator cabinet? trying to buy the largest refrigerator that can easily fit in this area 
The space for the refrigerator is 40- 41 inches wide, Plenty of room
50/50 or 60/40 sink Neither- 70/30 with the garbage disposal on the smaller sink
what is the model of the appliances? GE Profile- mid level
Do the cabinets come with sliding shelves?  Noticed this all the models have this feature would like to know if this comes standard with the cabinets YES!

Mudroom

can we have the light switch on the inside of the mudroom No need, 2 three way switches installed, one on the inside of the mud room and one on the garage side
is the bead board included over the bench? Didn't ask

Family room
where are the outlets located Every 12 feet with a little wiggle room
does the family room have recessed lights NO

Owner's Bedroom
can we put an outlet with a dedicated switch on the tray ceiling ledge Maybe- ask again when the electrician begins work
Are there recessed lights in the hallway/ archway? Yes
Can we move an outlet to the master closet? Possible- ask again with electrician
are there lights in the walk in closet? Yes
We are planning on installing a closet system- will this be a problem for our 10 month  drywall inspection? No problem

Bathrooms
does the towel bars come in the bathrooms? Where are they located? Didn't ask
Where is the toilet paper holder located? Didn't ask
Is there a shower rod in the hall bath? Yes

Exterior
How wide is the driveway 18 feet
Where are the hose bibs located Chose location while at the meeting (my husband picked the spots)
Where will the egress window be placed, Had egress location moved to were a walk out door would normally be
Placement of the basement windows in relation to the deck Only one additional window with no option to add others  :(
How big is the buffer- how much yard will it take up? 25 feet- we have a walking trail in our community and our lot is right beside it.  The buffer is trees that Ryan will plant and take care of on our property 

Laundry Room

How big is the laundry space?  What size washer and dryer can I feasibly fit into this space? 
Would the laundry door to swing OUT- so the door will not have to be closed while doing laundry
How high are the vents and the water valves placed (I'm short)
Mixed bag on this one, the door is 28 inches, we can not move the valves to a different height and they will not change the door so that it will swing out.  I will ask again about the door- makes no sense to say no. 
Dining Room
Is the tray ceiling included? No and no option to add, previously a standard  but was removed
Is the columns between the living room and the dining included Yes, currently a standard in the CG

How will the tile in the bathroom be laid?  Can we get the tile in the hall bath to be laid at a diagonal?  This would add interest to all the white tile we placed in there  Grid style, diagonal request should have been made with flooring and tile selection

Starting to look at furniture purchases.  How wide is the door frame with the door in place? Is it easy to remove and replace the door if we have to? 36 inches, Mud room is 28 inches and basement door is 26 inches!

What exactly is included in Trim Package #3?  Does it comes with the wainscoting in the dining room and up the steps?  Easy fix if it doesn't 2 piece crown molding through, chair rail throughout, paneling in the dining room

How far in advance do you schedule pre drywall and pre settlement meetings?  I need to be able to time the arrival our own inspectors.  Will call us to let us know when we can schedule

Which rooms get locks? Didn't ask

As for any left over tiling and flooring (handy for decorating,paint choices and repairs) Yes

The CG model in DE had storage under the basement stairs- will we also have that? No- will not pass inspection if it is not dry wall and it is not an option in the home.  I think I will bring the contractors a case of beer. 

How big are the ledges in the shower?  The ones we saw in the model in MD was rather small.  Can we make them bigger? Very small, intended for a foot not for a butt, cannot make them bigger.

Where is the access door  to the attic located?  Can it be moved to the laundry? Located in front bedroom

We are considering installing our under cabinet lights- can an outlet be moved into inside a cabinet to hide the wires? No

Dehumidifier- yay or nay?  What size and brand is best to accommodate the size of our basement? No to dehumidifier but recommends whole house humidifier for wood floors and some of the hand made furniture.  Recommends Aprilaire

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Pre Construction Questions

We have constructed a list of specific questions for our pre construction meeting.  Some of these we have gleaned from viewing other blogs and homes.  What questions did you ask  or will you ask at your pre construction meeting? 


Kitchen

-how big is the island? We have a morning room hoping that the standard island will be on the larger side
how big is the refrigerator cabinet? trying to buy the largest refrigerator that can easily fit in this area
50/50 or 60/40 sink
what is the model of the appliances? 
Do the cabinets come with sliding shelves?  Noticed this all the models have this feature would like to know if this comes standard with the cabinets

Mudroom

can we have the light switch on the inside of the mudroom 
is the bead board included over the bench?

Family room
where are the outlets located
does the family room have recessed lights

Owner's Bedroom
can we put an outlet with a dedicated switch on the tray ceiling ledge
Are there recessed lights in the hallway/ archway?
Can we move an outlet to the master closet?
are there lights in the walk in closet?
We are planning on installing a closet system- will this be a problem for our 10 month  drywall inspection?

Bathrooms
does the towel bars come in the bathrooms? Where are they located?
Where is the toilet paper holder located?
Is there a shower rod in the hall bath? 

Exterior
How wide is the driveway
Where are the hose bibs located
Where will the egress window be placed, 
Placement of the basement windows in relation to the deck
How big is the buffer- how much yard will it take up? 

Laundry Room

How big is the laundry space?  What size washer and dryer can I feasibly fit into this space? 
Would the laundry door to swing OUT- so the door will not have to be closed while doing laundry
How high are the vents and the water valves placed (I'm short)

Dining Room
Is the tray ceiling included?
Is the columns between the living room and the dining included

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

A Pre Construction Meeting Date and Amerihome Update

After my kindly worded letter to latest person who was scheduled to handle our loan I was kindly invited to call the new processor to discuss my concerns.  I took her up on her offer.  S he patiently went through all the reasons she needed her long list of items and explained she just got my file this past Monday, about 3 weeks after my last contact with loan officer assistant.  She also promised to be a lot more responsive than her predecessors- I will hold her to that.

But on to more exciting news:  My pre construction meeting has finally been scheduled! We had been working on a list of questions but soon stopped because we were driving ourselves crazy.   Now with 2 weeks to go I guess we will begin to hone in our pre construction questions.  There are definitely more questions that have come up.  Lately, I have been absorbing myself in the grading of the lot.  I have read so many disaster stories that it has me a little concerned.

Crossing my fingers and hoping that all goes well.