First of all I finally have pics up of the completed home. You can go here to see them: http://picasaweb.google.com/derrick.hanna/CompletedHouse. You can see the kitchen, family room, and master bath. The rest of the house is not fit for photography as of yet. Boxes everwhere!!! Check out that cool ceiling fan I put up.
Secondly, moving into a house means spending alot of money. Now I could do the responsible thing and take my time. But then you look around the house knowing you have about 100 things to do. So I am trying my best to get the house to a reasonable state of function in the short-term. Let's see, what have a bought for the house: 4 ceiling fans, an outdoor fireplace, TV stand, desk, sectional couch with chaise, washer and dryer, fridge, 12 faux wood blinds of various sizes, bed, dresser, mop, broom, pots and pans, glasses, plates, area rug, light switch, door stopper, garage door opener, HDTV, 3 sets of door locks, tool set, and sprinklers. If I remember anything else, I will add it to this entry. I saved up enough money to pay for it all, but dayum my bank account has been hit and hit hard recently. Just means that I will have less to spend in the future, right? Well that is what I keep telling myself anyway.
Showing posts with label advice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label advice. Show all posts
Monday, March 9, 2009
Home Building pt. 3
This is the 3rd part of my saga. It is about the 2nd most frustrating part of the entire process. I have heard that closing is the most frustrating part, and seeing how I am not getting ANY communication from them even when I attempt to talk to the loan people, I believe them. The issue is that you make the decision to put yourself in debt, you get excited about the prospect of living in your own home, you think about the new life you will have for yourself, buy furniture and appliances and then you have wait. Then wait, and wait and wait again. This is a wait for the construction to start. This wait could be really hard. Especially when you see other homes going up or finishing.
It is a hard time. Now, I have had a situation that wasn't exactly the way the builder intended. There is a position that is called the "Superintendent" in the construction. Basically he makes sure everything is going smoothly, gets contractors at the location, and deals with any problems. Well, the guy I had was extremely lazy and didn't do much. So my house sat for weeks at a time with no activity. This has been corrected recently, so things are on track, but the house will be about a month late from when it was supposed to be done. No big deal as I have gotten a few upgrades for my troubles. But let's talk about how things should be done and most likely done in your case.
The first thing you must understand, no matter what builder it is, they are using contracted work. Workers that are getting paid not by the hour, but by the job. So their main objective is to hurry and move to the next house. There is a seperate crew for pretty much every step of the way. I mean, a crew for framing, a crew for the roof, a crew for the landscaping, etc. So what you have to do is inspect their work as much as possible. Not that they don't care about doing a good job, but this is the place YOU will be living for years to come. You will be a bit more pikcy about things than them. So take time to actually be involved in the construction. I don't mean pick up a hammer and go to town, but go see how things are being done. Not only to catch potential problems, but also you can educate yourself to what is going on behind the walls. It wil make a difference when/if something goes wrong. I suggest you take plenty of pics as well. Not only for the nostalgia of remembering the construction process, but also you can see how wires/pipes were run in the house if you plan on doing some renovations. With the way camera prices have come down in recent years, it is alot easier to buy a camera for this one purpose.
With a big builder as I used, the building process is quick in comparison to how it could to be. You can go literally from a piece of land to a house in 62 days. Of course that is if there are no bad weather days and if the crews worked 7 days a week. That usually doesn't happen, but still things do move fast. There are plenty of critics of this approach. Many believe that is entirely too fast of a process. I am not in that camp. The only real difference in this approach is the fact that the frame comes to the worksite pre-assembled. In other constructions the frame is actually built on site. Other than that, there is not much of a difference. The bricks are laid the same way, the same plumbing, the same A/C units. The same contractors as well.
Either way, this process has been alot of waiting for the house to be done and walking through the house as it is getting built. It has been interesting, I have learned alot about the building of a house, seeing what is behind walls and actually gaining some real knowledge. I have actually caught some issues and got them fixed during this process. I am glad that I wasn't an "absentee homeowner" and just showing up when the house is complete. Of course soon comes the part that I have to pay for this house...but that is in the next installment.
It is a hard time. Now, I have had a situation that wasn't exactly the way the builder intended. There is a position that is called the "Superintendent" in the construction. Basically he makes sure everything is going smoothly, gets contractors at the location, and deals with any problems. Well, the guy I had was extremely lazy and didn't do much. So my house sat for weeks at a time with no activity. This has been corrected recently, so things are on track, but the house will be about a month late from when it was supposed to be done. No big deal as I have gotten a few upgrades for my troubles. But let's talk about how things should be done and most likely done in your case.
The first thing you must understand, no matter what builder it is, they are using contracted work. Workers that are getting paid not by the hour, but by the job. So their main objective is to hurry and move to the next house. There is a seperate crew for pretty much every step of the way. I mean, a crew for framing, a crew for the roof, a crew for the landscaping, etc. So what you have to do is inspect their work as much as possible. Not that they don't care about doing a good job, but this is the place YOU will be living for years to come. You will be a bit more pikcy about things than them. So take time to actually be involved in the construction. I don't mean pick up a hammer and go to town, but go see how things are being done. Not only to catch potential problems, but also you can educate yourself to what is going on behind the walls. It wil make a difference when/if something goes wrong. I suggest you take plenty of pics as well. Not only for the nostalgia of remembering the construction process, but also you can see how wires/pipes were run in the house if you plan on doing some renovations. With the way camera prices have come down in recent years, it is alot easier to buy a camera for this one purpose.
With a big builder as I used, the building process is quick in comparison to how it could to be. You can go literally from a piece of land to a house in 62 days. Of course that is if there are no bad weather days and if the crews worked 7 days a week. That usually doesn't happen, but still things do move fast. There are plenty of critics of this approach. Many believe that is entirely too fast of a process. I am not in that camp. The only real difference in this approach is the fact that the frame comes to the worksite pre-assembled. In other constructions the frame is actually built on site. Other than that, there is not much of a difference. The bricks are laid the same way, the same plumbing, the same A/C units. The same contractors as well.
Either way, this process has been alot of waiting for the house to be done and walking through the house as it is getting built. It has been interesting, I have learned alot about the building of a house, seeing what is behind walls and actually gaining some real knowledge. I have actually caught some issues and got them fixed during this process. I am glad that I wasn't an "absentee homeowner" and just showing up when the house is complete. Of course soon comes the part that I have to pay for this house...but that is in the next installment.
Home Building pt. 2
So I have decided what home I wanted. The floorplan was large enough for all my stuff, with plenty of room for me to acquire new things. The floorplan is a really open concept. At this point, I checked out my credit report. You want to look and see what the loan company will see before you are asked about it. Also if there are any errors, you want to clear them up. I met a sales guy at the neighborhood. I told him what house I wanted and I wanted it as soon as possible. At this point I gave the company permission to view my credit report. Later, a representative from the loan company called to verify all the information I gave them in the forms. I shortly received a letter in the mail saying I was pre-approved for the amount of the home plus upgrades.
Now at this point I was approved for any home the builder I selected builds. Meaning, I could have picked any house in any neighborhood to build. I chose to stick with my choice. At this point I met with my salesman to pick my street and lot. Picking where your house will be is kind of nerve-racking. You basically go out to a field where some houses are going to be one day and pick where you want your house to be. Now, there are rules to this. You can't be within 2 homes or across the street from a home with your same floorplan and elevation (the look of the front of the house), also homes next door to you cannot have the same brick. I was told that my home was the most popular floorplan so that limited my choices of lot location to by a large degree. Take your time while doing this. Sure, it was 92 degrees outside that day I did this, but take your time because after the process you can't change your mind without paying a penalty. I was looking across the street, seeing what would be my backyard, etc. I made my choice and went to the sales office to sign my life away. About 60 times I signed my name and initials to various legal documents. Mostly saying I was aware that I can't change my mind about the location of the house and that I understand the home-buying process. The salesman advised me that I would recieve a call to go to the Home Design Center where I would pick out my options.
About 2 weeks later I get a call from the Home Design Center asking when I would like to come by for orientation. At the orientation, they introduce you to the Design Center. You choose everything in the house at the Design Center. Door knobs, carpet, tile, windows, doors, islands, countertops, cabinets, everything in the house is picked out there. It can be a big task, so the orientation lasts about 2 hours, taking you through all the departments and telling you your options. Depending on your floorplan, you have different options. At the end of the orientation you set a date for your appointment to make your actual decisions. It is recommended you go there a few times before the final date so that you can have all your decisions already made. I didn't do that, lol. My salesman and several people at the Center recommended you go with the structural upgrades, for example: covered patios, islands, larger cabinets, seperate shower and tub, etc. It can get very pricey there, so you might want to think twice about the gold plated faucet in the kitchen. You will be paying for these items every month. The more you spend at the Design Center, the more you will spend every month. I think I showed some restraint in my choices, but I did get upgrades that I would be happy with while living in the house. The highlights were: Covered patio, huge kitchen island, 42" cabinets instead of the normal 30", changing a bedroom to a study, and tile on my master bathroom floor. After making the decisions on options and upgrades, you play the waiting game. Waiting on constuction to begin. The wait can seem like forever. But to keep you company the loan company will send you an estimate of your loan agreement. Mine was hastily put together and plenty of errors in it. It didn't give much of an estimate of what I would be paying per month and the closing costs because there were so many errors. I guess that is why it is an ESTIMATE.
Then the wait begins on the construction. More about that later.
Now at this point I was approved for any home the builder I selected builds. Meaning, I could have picked any house in any neighborhood to build. I chose to stick with my choice. At this point I met with my salesman to pick my street and lot. Picking where your house will be is kind of nerve-racking. You basically go out to a field where some houses are going to be one day and pick where you want your house to be. Now, there are rules to this. You can't be within 2 homes or across the street from a home with your same floorplan and elevation (the look of the front of the house), also homes next door to you cannot have the same brick. I was told that my home was the most popular floorplan so that limited my choices of lot location to by a large degree. Take your time while doing this. Sure, it was 92 degrees outside that day I did this, but take your time because after the process you can't change your mind without paying a penalty. I was looking across the street, seeing what would be my backyard, etc. I made my choice and went to the sales office to sign my life away. About 60 times I signed my name and initials to various legal documents. Mostly saying I was aware that I can't change my mind about the location of the house and that I understand the home-buying process. The salesman advised me that I would recieve a call to go to the Home Design Center where I would pick out my options.
About 2 weeks later I get a call from the Home Design Center asking when I would like to come by for orientation. At the orientation, they introduce you to the Design Center. You choose everything in the house at the Design Center. Door knobs, carpet, tile, windows, doors, islands, countertops, cabinets, everything in the house is picked out there. It can be a big task, so the orientation lasts about 2 hours, taking you through all the departments and telling you your options. Depending on your floorplan, you have different options. At the end of the orientation you set a date for your appointment to make your actual decisions. It is recommended you go there a few times before the final date so that you can have all your decisions already made. I didn't do that, lol. My salesman and several people at the Center recommended you go with the structural upgrades, for example: covered patios, islands, larger cabinets, seperate shower and tub, etc. It can get very pricey there, so you might want to think twice about the gold plated faucet in the kitchen. You will be paying for these items every month. The more you spend at the Design Center, the more you will spend every month. I think I showed some restraint in my choices, but I did get upgrades that I would be happy with while living in the house. The highlights were: Covered patio, huge kitchen island, 42" cabinets instead of the normal 30", changing a bedroom to a study, and tile on my master bathroom floor. After making the decisions on options and upgrades, you play the waiting game. Waiting on constuction to begin. The wait can seem like forever. But to keep you company the loan company will send you an estimate of your loan agreement. Mine was hastily put together and plenty of errors in it. It didn't give much of an estimate of what I would be paying per month and the closing costs because there were so many errors. I guess that is why it is an ESTIMATE.
Then the wait begins on the construction. More about that later.
Home Building pt.1
Some of you may have noticed some interesting pictures over on the left side of my page. Some pictures of house construction. Well, I am building a home up in Spring, Texas. I know a few people thinking about taking the plunge into homeownership, so I thought putting the steps on how I got to this moment might be beneficial. Actually when I was trying to decide if I would buy or build or continue to rent, I couldn't find any blogs or articles on the subject. So maybe my writings will help some I don't even know.
Like most young adults in the US, the landing pad from the leap out of the nest was an apartment. Actually, I lived in 3 apartment complexes. 4 years at one, 2 and another and 1 at the last. Apartment living is the new "starter home". You pay an amazing amount of money per month, you learn how to budget, you make all your mistakes there. In many ways it is better than a starter home because any mistakes you make, you can walk away from in 6 months or a year. But I did get tired of moving (and so did the people who helped me move). I got tired of being at the mercy of my neighbors on all sides. Got tired of trying to find a parking spot at night. Got tired of the guy with a new Harley who wanted to show off his new pipes at 3AM. Got tired of rent that increased everytime the lease was up, yet the complex had no improvements to justify the increase.
So then I got a roommate who lived in a house. Having a driveway instead of a parking lot was quite refreshing. Having a backyard was nice too. Having a fridge and washer and dryer that was not the cheapest money can buy was convenient. Seeing electric bills that were not $200+ for a 750 sq ft. apartment was nice. That was the thing that really got me. The electric bill at the house was less than what I was paying for a place that was more than twice the space!!! I enjoyed living in a house again. So I started thinking about getting a home for myself.
So I started looking. Started off with trying to find a place in a particular part of town. I looked for used homes first. They were priced more than what I wanted to pay for a used home. Honestly, adding $10k more could get me a new home. So at that point, I started looking at homes in mid-construction that I could get on the cheap. After 3 months of looking, I couldn't find a house that I liked in that condition. So my search moved out of that area. Just too much money for not enough house out there. A little further out I found a floorplan that I totally fell for. The place was spacious and I could afford it! Similiar floorplans in my desired area were $30k more.
The next installment will go through the process of buying a house.
Like most young adults in the US, the landing pad from the leap out of the nest was an apartment. Actually, I lived in 3 apartment complexes. 4 years at one, 2 and another and 1 at the last. Apartment living is the new "starter home". You pay an amazing amount of money per month, you learn how to budget, you make all your mistakes there. In many ways it is better than a starter home because any mistakes you make, you can walk away from in 6 months or a year. But I did get tired of moving (and so did the people who helped me move). I got tired of being at the mercy of my neighbors on all sides. Got tired of trying to find a parking spot at night. Got tired of the guy with a new Harley who wanted to show off his new pipes at 3AM. Got tired of rent that increased everytime the lease was up, yet the complex had no improvements to justify the increase.
So then I got a roommate who lived in a house. Having a driveway instead of a parking lot was quite refreshing. Having a backyard was nice too. Having a fridge and washer and dryer that was not the cheapest money can buy was convenient. Seeing electric bills that were not $200+ for a 750 sq ft. apartment was nice. That was the thing that really got me. The electric bill at the house was less than what I was paying for a place that was more than twice the space!!! I enjoyed living in a house again. So I started thinking about getting a home for myself.
So I started looking. Started off with trying to find a place in a particular part of town. I looked for used homes first. They were priced more than what I wanted to pay for a used home. Honestly, adding $10k more could get me a new home. So at that point, I started looking at homes in mid-construction that I could get on the cheap. After 3 months of looking, I couldn't find a house that I liked in that condition. So my search moved out of that area. Just too much money for not enough house out there. A little further out I found a floorplan that I totally fell for. The place was spacious and I could afford it! Similiar floorplans in my desired area were $30k more.
The next installment will go through the process of buying a house.
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