Road Less Traveled

Is this what's going on in the county permit office?

Still no meeting with our PM. And certainly no groundbreaking news (bad pun) yet.  The reasoning for the latter is because Ryan Homes is still waiting on the road permit, in order to break ground on our portion of the phase.

Going to have to update and zoom in on this later. But we're waiting on Robert's Landing

No real updates or good news other then that. Oh, well, we did last minute decide to have the master bathroom shower tile run from floor to ceiling (an additional $420).  It seems like a nice touch, and it was my idea (yaay me!),  and one of the few design choices I thought of. So there's that.

Also, we're going sky diving this weekend. Random tidbit, but still true--weather permitting. Hopefully, I'll be around Monday to post an update on that!

Dream Deferred

Life happens. Any and every adult and especially parent, knows that. So it was of no major surprise when we arrived at the model home for our meeting with the PM and Sales Rep, only to find that the PM couldn't attend due to family emergency. He sent along his sincerest apologies and promised a reschedule. Again, no major deal, since we were able to go through the options review with the SR, and we of course added some things and noticed something missing.

Additions:

• We added an outlet to the garage for a deep freezer. This was all Ashley. I am all for an additional freezer. But just not in the garage. I like being able to get out of the car and not having to dance around bikes and big wheels and tools, and now, freezers! But she wanted, so she got it. 

What Walter wants to avoid

• Added an outlet due to Guardian, for the TV to be mounted on the wall, above the fireplace.

• We added an outlet in the master bedroom closet.

• And here's the major one. We found out that somehow, lost in translation, we didn't already have the Roman shower selected! We realized this when our SR said something about the bath tub in the master bathroom, or maybe when I asked if there was a window in there. And when she said about the tub, all came to a screeching halt! So we added it ($995) and moved on.

What Walter wanted

Closer to what Walter got

And that was about it, for the pre-construction meeting, without the PM. Again, stuff happens, so our SR said he'd call us today sometime and we could have a chat. And that we'd still have a face to face meeting. So I'm not too concerned or anything. But the meeting was somewhat, not as exciting as I had hoped for.

One other aspect that both Ashley and I are looking forward to is meeting our new neighbors. Who are these other kindred spirits who bought homes along with us? Who else saw untamed land and said "I WILL SETTLE HERE"! In a bold and brave voice? I will conquer the land. I will fight off the wild animals! I will...ok. Maybe not all of that. But still...I am anxious to see who else is taking this journey with us?!

Next-up. I'll finally speak with and meet the PM. And get some questions answered. I'm prepared to hear no quite a bit! But so long as there's a good reason, then that's OK. 

28 Days Later (+10 Days): Loan Approved!!!

It's been a scorcher summer thus far. Friday, 7/22 was no different!

This guy gets it. Drink plenty of fluids

But it was extra special. One of us celebrated a milestone birthday, and as such, was treated to a surprise dinner with tons of friends and family there to cheer them on (in case it's not clear, it wasn't me!).

Thank God for A/C!

It also was the first time we officially, spread the news of our new home purchase to family and friends. Only to wake-up Saturday morning, with an e-mail from our uber helpful loan officer stating that we were APPROVED!!! So the weekend went from good to great.

I need to post a timeline sooner then later. I'll do so eventually. But I think we first signed paperwork on June 15th. So from then until now it's been about 38 days. Which to be honest, wasn't too bad. Thanks to all the other helpful bloggers, I figured it would be between 30-45 days. And while my loan situation is relatively straightforward, I also did have to spend a little more time than I would have originally imagined collecting some documents.

This summer has been amazing so far. Excitement abounds!

Pre-Pre-Construction Meeting

So, turns out that our pre-construction meeting is scheduled for 7/25! We're still waiting on loan approval, but that seems like more of a "when" than "if". Everyone (thanks wonderful bloggers) talks about how time flies after the pre-construction meeting, so let's hope that remains the case. Our estimated closing date is in mid-November of this year. Our SR, who's worked with Ryan Homes/real estate for over 17 years, initially thought the closing date would wind up being closer to mid-December. I guess we'll see.

Hopefully, our PM meeting will go better than this

Although, it could easily go like this (not really...well, not easily!)

This meeting seems like such a crucial milestone. It's the first chance to meet the person who by all accounts, is the most critical in regards to the frustration, joy, pain, and just plain overall success of your home being built. When we first inquired about our PM with our SR a month or so ago, she said that he was effective? Took his job seriously? I don't remember exactly what! And that didn't sit extremely well with me. I wanted to hear something like "he's the best ever!" or short of that "I'd love for him to build my house". So while she lauded his ability to do his job, it just didn't sound like he was going to be flexible or a people person or any other number of "I want that! in my PM attributes".

ARE YOU SURE WE CAN'T MOVE THE HOSE BIBS?!?!

So here is the list of questions that we'd like answered. In no particular order:

Exterior/Outdoors

1. How big is our actual site?
2. Explain our plot map
3. How will our home be oriented on the site?
4. We’d like as much flat land as possible. Especially in the rear, directly behind the house and towards the (non-street) side
5. Is there a legend or someway for us to read it, so that we can figure out things for ourselves?
6. How many feet from the front/side street?
7. Where will the transformer be?
8. Will there be a cleanout valve or something, in the event of a clog in the line?
9. What has been your experience with well water and septic systems?
10. What is covered by RH and for how long?
11. What’s going on with landscaping? In terms of
1. Where will trees/bushes/mulch be relative to the house?
2. Are we getting grass or sod?
3. It’s going to be a large lot. Who’s quality control in terms of making sure it’s all seeded or sodded or whatever?
12. How far back into the tree line does our property extend?
13. How many wells? What sizes?
14. How many septic fields?
1. Are any of these shared?
15. How many sump pumps?
16. Will they pour concrete for our driveway in the winter? Or will we be left with rocks or stones until the Spring?
1. What about the walkway?
17. If we want to widen our driveway, mainly the top portion in front of the garage, who do we speak with?
1. When would we do so?
18. What are the dimensions of our porch? Will there be a roof over it?
19. Are gutter guards included?

Structural

1. Are window screens required/provided?
2. Is there a way to turn the dining room into a study? By possibly extending the walls and allowing a double door?
1. The Corsica allows for an option to turn the living room into a first floor bedroom. Is something like that within your power to do for us?
3. What causes floor creaking noise?
1. What can be done to avoid? I.e., Extra support in high traffic areas?
4. Is there a way to add extra insulation or soundproofing in certain areas?
1. For instance, around bathrooms and laundry room?
5. What is done to protect the framing from rain?
6. What concerns or potential issues does he have about building homes during MD winters?

HVAC

1. How many condenser units?
2. What’s the model/rating?

Electrical

1. How many pendant lights in the kitchen, over the island?
2. Can we add an outlet to the garage (for a deep freezer)?
3. Can we add an outlet to the master bedroom closet?
4. Will our circuit breaker box be labeled for us?
1. If not, will there be an electrical plan that we can use to label it ourselves. Rather than just trial and error.

Basement

1. Can we choose basement window locations?
1. We’d like to ensure that they aren’t covered by a future deck
2. What lighting or electrical will be installed down there?
3. Will the unfinished basement have vents?
4. How tall is the basement ceiling?

Schedule

1. What’s our build timeline from the moment you break ground?
2. With our construction going on in the fall/winter, what weather issues could or would cause stoppage/delays? Excluding acts of mother nature (tornadoes, supply shortages, snow,  etc.,)

Confirm Options

1. Looks like there’s a window in the shower for the master bedroom bathroom? True or false?
2. Are there towel racks included in all the bathrooms?
1. What material are they?
2. Are they placed in wood studs? Or just drilled into drywall?

Other

1. Who will have keys to our home?
2. How often will you be on site and personally supervising the sub-contractors?
3. What are the dimensions floor to ceiling in the family room?
4. Can we get a breakdown of the warranties?

That's revision one of the list. I've got a few days to add and subtract as I see fit. So I'll update as appropriate.

Possible sneak peek at our PM's expression?

Strength in Numbers

Still no official word on loan approval yet. Which obviously sucks. But on the positive side, our loan processor expects that once all of our paperwork reaches underwriting, we should hear back from them within 5-7 days. All parties involved, from our SR, to LO,  and even the LP, seem confident that our loan approval is just a matter of when, and not if.  At this point, it's still hurry up and wait.

A part of the appeal of building a new home for us lies within the fact that we as a neighborhood and community will all somewhat be new to one another. I think that will help with the kid transition of making new friends, along with forcing all of us to interact a little more then we might normally, if say the neighborhood was pre-existing.

We're very excited to meet some of our new neighbors. Our SR is planning on organizing a community event in August sometime. That will serve as most of the community's first opportunity to meet one another--other then those moments when you're either sitting in the SR's office at the model house and "random/strange" people come in or you visit and see strangers sitting where you usually sit!

Possible sneak peak at our inaugural community meet and greet

When pre-interviewing home inspectors, one mentioned that it would be a wise idea to start a user group or some sort of internet forum in effort to communicate with others within our new construction community and to stay on top of Ryan Homes, with respect to the inevitable issues and concerns that will arise.  A prime example can be found here: Shame on you Ryan Homes

I'm not sure if we are going to take the lead on that whole "rally the troops" and begin the aforementioned community internet user group or not. I think it's such a phenomenal idea, since it's also a means for all new comers to stay in touch over things like HOA-esque questions, or discussions on adding bus stops, trash referral pick-ups, etc., I'm not usually for being so, well, social--but the pros outweigh the cons (my comfort level), so we shall see!

Electric Slide

We haven't had our "electrical" meeting yet, and I'm unsure if adding outlets later, as in, after the 30 day window, will count towards a "order" change or not. Thus resulting in the cost of the outlet and the cost of the order change.

I was looking at the electrical plans, and trying to figure out what all of the  dotted lines and dashed lines and squiggly lines meant, in terms of will we have enough outlets and what light switches will control what, etc.,

Yes, this line means, ummm...flux capacitor?

I am (or was?) hoping that we wouldn't have to decide on how many outlets, or even ceiling fan rough-ins, until the house frame was up, and we could better visualize the room layouts. And even then, I'm hoping that it'll be the case where I/we can go to the PM and say "we would like for this switch panel to control these lights and for that switch panel to control those lights", etc.,

On top of that, I wish (wonder?), that I could give them recessed outlet plates and have the electricians install them at certain places, instead of the standard ones.

This isn't the exact plate I'd like, but it's close

I know that I want to have an outlet on each side of our kitchen island.
I want an outlet in our master bedroom closet.
I want an outlet in the garage. You know, the funky looking kind for a deep freezer.

Finally, I think I'm picky on what lights can control where from what? Yes, that was probably confusing, but you know what I mean I bet!

For instance, some switches will be tied together in a common sense way *judging by the blueprint*. Meaning, the foyer light should be able to be controlled from the top of the stairs and the bottom. Same as the basement hall light, and so on. But until I'm actually in the house and can confirm with the electrician (or PM) what light panels allow me to control which lights, then I'm kind of in the dark--literally! (See what I did there?)



So, my fiance' thinks we need to sit down with our SR now, and sort these questions out. Otherwise, we'll risk being dinged for "change orders" later. So being better safe than sorry, I'll set that meeting up ASAP.

Ballin on a Budget!

The Design Center experience is easily one of the most exciting parts of the home building process.  Perhaps, one of the main draws to building a home, versus buying a pre-existing property, is the opportunity to select/control the features and finishes in your home.

As a woman, I left all of the structural decisions to my boyfriend!  But, the interior is ALLLL mine *rubs hands together*.  We approached the process cautiously optimistic that we were/would be content with the builder selections, and with our limited budget, set on not breaking the bank to upgrade everything.

You get a car!! And you get a car!!!!!

What the heck were we thinking?!?  After spending so much money on the home of our dreams, we had to have finishes we could live with for at least the first five years of occupancy.  And, after cutting out the basement, we had a little more wiggle room for some upgrades!

Here's a snapshot of our choices:

Lower Level

Engineered Hardwood

Dark Grey color, 5-in. wide planks

Kitchen/Laundry

Cabinets - Timberlake's Portfolio Collection in "Painted Linen"

Granite - New Caledonia

Upper Level

Carpet - Shaw's Greystone HGN68 in Seattle Mist

Master Bathroom

Granite - Virginia Marble in "Burlywood" 

Tile - Painted Ceramic "Florentine" 

Ancillary Bathrooms

Upgrade Level B tile w/white trim

Upgraded 6x6 Beige wall tile in shower

Standard white counter *gag*