Making a Move

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Fri May 08, 2009 3:26 am

Well we're going for it. We're building a house. Not custom, mind you, but we choose the floor plan, colors, and upgrades. Here's the floorplan we decided on:

The Washington Home Plan | 4/2 / 0 Floor Plan from $150,995 - San Antonio, Texas

The hope is that this is the dream home we stay in until we're too old to take care of it. I'll add pics and progress reports as we go.

kayleneaussie · Post by **kayleneaussie** » Fri May 08, 2009 3:30 am

wow very nice....look forward to seeing the progress pics

Snowfire · Post by **Snowfire** » Fri May 08, 2009 3:59 am

Acc, is this a self build or is it being built for you ? Does that price include the cost of the building plot ?

Its a nice design

Bez · Post by **Bez** » Fri May 08, 2009 4:13 am

Good luck with your new project.....looks and sounds great ! :-6

buttercup · Post by **buttercup** » Fri May 08, 2009 6:05 am

Snowfire;1185301 wrote: Acc, is this a self build or is it being built for you ? Does that price include the cost of the building plot ?

Its a nice design

I was kinda wondering that too when you compare what you'd get here for the same money.

Snowfire · Post by **Snowfire** » Fri May 08, 2009 6:15 am

buttercup;1185322 wrote: I was kinda wondering that too when you compare what you'd get here for the same money.

That same 4 bedroom house here - depending on the area of course - would cost considerably more. Depending on the size of the building plot, that alone could cost Â£150.000 or more

CARLA · Post by **CARLA** » Fri May 08, 2009 6:29 am

Lovely ACC sounds nice and the price is right. Boy even in these hard times a house like that would cost 3 times that in San Diego you got lucky.

Where is the driveway..!!

YZGI · Post by **YZGI** » Fri May 08, 2009 6:38 am

Nice.

Now add another garage so you have a place to store your boat.

Which bedroom is for Spot?:D

Imladris · Post by **Imladris** » Fri May 08, 2009 7:42 am

Very nice!

I like the layout inside, especially the master bedroom with en suite and a walk in closet - I'd spend my life rearranging clothes, having baths and chilling in bed!!!

G-man · Post by **G-man** » Fri May 08, 2009 9:11 am

YZGI;1185334 wrote: Which bedroom is for Spot?:D
I suspect that would be in the matching doghouse. :wah:

Congratulations Accountable! Go over everything before you build and make sure everything is just how you want it or can afford... I've yet to have a house built that I didn't have something that I'd wished I'd have changed. It's considerably more expensive to fix things after the fact. Also, don't sign the check until you're 100% satisfied with the builder's work.

flopstock · Post by **flopstock** » Fri May 08, 2009 9:42 am

when is the housewarming?

looks just beautiful! you gonna do all that fancy landscaping too?

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Fri May 08, 2009 9:50 am

Accountable;1185287 wrote: Well we're going for it. We're building a house. Not custom, mind you, but we choose the floor plan, colors, and upgrades. Here's the floorplan we decided on:

The Washington Home Plan | 4/2 / 0 Floor Plan from $150,995 - San Antonio, Texas

The hope is that this is the dream home we stay in until we're too old to take care of it. I'll add pics and progress reports as we go.

Very nice ! I really like it acc and its a smart move.

My dad did this . Cleared some trees way out in nowhere land and he actually built it from the ground up. Slab to roof. What he didnt know he learned. I think he hired out for the big pooper whatever thats called.

You should do the pooper yourself though.

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Fri May 08, 2009 9:50 am

flopstock;1185382 wrote: when is the housewarming?

looks just beautiful! you gonna do all that fancy landscaping too?

hmph.....

qsducks · Post by **qsducks** » Fri May 08, 2009 10:59 am

I'm jealous....6 peeps in my cramped twin house...hey but we're happy and not going anywhere.

chonsigirl · Post by **chonsigirl** » Fri May 08, 2009 12:41 pm

I'm so happy for you and your beloved! May it be the happiest home ever built!

Kathy Ellen · Post by **Kathy Ellen** » Fri May 08, 2009 3:33 pm

Oh Accountable:-6

That is spectacular news...Good on ya:guitarist

You know how we'd love to see your updates.

Good luck with the move:p

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Fri May 08, 2009 4:56 pm

Snowfire;1185301 wrote: Acc, is this a self build or is it being built for you ? Does that price include the cost of the building plot ?

Its a nice design

buttercup;1185322 wrote: I was kinda wondering that too when you compare what you'd get here for the same money.

Snowfire;1185325 wrote: That same 4 bedroom house here - depending on the area of course - would cost considerably more. Depending on the size of the building plot, that alone could cost Â£150.000 or more
Thanks, guys.

We have builders here that do it on a large scale. They buy huge tracts of land and build by the hundreds, so they save loads on supplies, labor, etc. KB Homes will build it. My beloved and I will decide if we want their standard amenities or pick out what we want to upgrade. For instance, the "wet areas" - kitchen, dining area, bathrooms, and laundry - are vinyl floors. We'll upgrade them to ceramic tile. We'll upgrade the carpets as well to a higher grade. We also pick siding and colors, extra wiring, gas or electric stove (gas of course!), etc etc.

We'll probably leave some things basic and upgrade them ourselves, such as faucets & doorhandles.

The price includes the house, a 50 x 120 foot lot, sod & 2 trees, and a 6-foot redwood fence around the back yard.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Fri May 08, 2009 5:02 pm

Bez;1185303 wrote: Good luck with your new project.....looks and sounds great ! :-6Thanks, dear. The doors always open for you if you decide to visit. :-6

CARLA;1185330 wrote: Lovely ACC sounds nice and the price is right. Boy even in these hard times a house like that would cost 3 times that in San Diego you got lucky.

Where is the driveway..!! :)When we lived in Vegas there were lots of people who'd sold their homes in CA & paid cash for twice the house there. We did almost the same when we sold in Vegas and moved here!

YZGI;1185334 wrote: Nice.

Now add another garage so you have a place to store your boat.I wanted that third slot, but that idea got the beloved veto! :wah:

Imladris;1185354 wrote: Very nice!

I like the layout inside, especially the master bedroom with en suite and a walk in closet - I'd spend my life rearranging clothes, having baths and chilling in bed!!! :DThanks, we were thinking the same thing.

G-man;1185372 wrote: I suspect that would be in the matching doghouse. :wah:

Congratulations Accountable! Go over everything before you build and make sure everything is just how you want it or can afford... I've yet to have a house built that I didn't have something that I'd wished I'd have changed. It's considerably more expensive to fix things after the fact. Also, don't sign the check until you're 100% satisfied with the builder's work.You've got that right! I worked for a short time for a new home builder in Las Vegas as a customer service tech. Some of the most innocent looking things seemed to cause the most major problems. I hope my construction eye is still sharp. :-3

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Fri May 08, 2009 5:06 pm

flopstock;1185382 wrote: when is the housewarming?

looks just beautiful! you gonna do all that fancy landscaping too?

Nomad;1185387 wrote: hmph.....

qsducks;1185448 wrote: I'm jealous....6 peeps in my cramped twin house...hey but we're happy and not going anywhere.

chonsigirl;1185504 wrote: I'm so happy for you and your beloved! May it be the happiest home ever built!I keep telling her that the goal is for her to be able to say "I love it!" for the next 15 years, so go for that dream kitchen, and don't settle for less than the ideal lot.

Kathy Ellen;1185597 wrote: Oh Accountable:-6

That is spectacular news...Good on ya:guitarist

You know how we'd love to see your updates.

Good luck with the move:p
Thanks everyone. The party's scheduled for October. How's Halloween sound?

qsducks · Post by **qsducks** » Fri May 08, 2009 5:06 pm

Nomad;1185386 wrote: Very nice ! I really like it acc and its a smart move.

My dad did this . Cleared some trees way out in nowhere land and he actually built it from the ground up. Slab to roof. What he didnt know he learned. I think he hired out for the big pooper whatever thats called.

You should do the pooper yourself though.

If your talking plumbing I would highly advise to get a professional. Seen this many times as hubs is always fixing peeps mistakes.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Fri May 08, 2009 5:08 pm

Nomad;1185386 wrote: Very nice ! I really like it acc and its a smart move.

My dad did this . Cleared some trees way out in nowhere land and he actually built it from the ground up. Slab to roof. What he didnt know he learned. I think he hired out for the big pooper whatever thats called.

You should do the pooper yourself though.
My dad did the same thing when he was 72 years old!

He had a little help from two of his stepsons, but they were already in their 50's so they had trouble keeping up with him. :wah:

I'd love to try the same thing, too, but not on anything this large. If I tried that, I think I'd be pooper.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Fri May 08, 2009 5:11 pm

flopstock;1185382 wrote: looks just beautiful! you gonna do all that fancy landscaping too?You know it darlin! Only this time the waterfall's going to be much bigger. The back yard's quite a bit smaller, so I might make it into one big outdoor room.

qsducks · Post by **qsducks** » Fri May 08, 2009 5:12 pm

I have the built in "doctor" so to speak. Hey, but anyways, congrats on your new house...I'm still jealous though. Enjoy it!:-6

Odie · Post by **Odie** » Fri May 08, 2009 7:48 pm

wow, that's stunning!

congrats!:guitarist:guitarist

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Wed May 20, 2009 3:00 am

UPDATE:

We've pulled the plug. Real estate prices are dropping here & we would lose if we sold our house now; we've only had it a couple of years. Plus we noticed a really big red flag in the new neighborhood. The sales agent told us they've never had anyone with such a high credit score buy from them. Okay, that's not such a bad thing, we took it as a compliment. But then she proceded to tell s that a lot of the buyers needed some kind of special assistance to qualify for the loan!

There's just too much evidence that the gov't is trying to reinflate the real estate bubble, and we could see foreclosure signs popping up all around us.

Then we did some digging. A couple of this builder's communities here have owners protesting that suddenly they started selling cheaper, smaller houses in an effort to increase sales. That kind of thing brings values down throughout the community.

We decided to keep an eye on it for the next few years and see what happens. The current house is really nice, just not ideal. We can always buy that floorplan we like from an original owner.

So instead, we're buying new carpet and doing some other renovations here at home. Lots of summer projects! :yh_dance

CARLA · Post by **CARLA** » Wed May 20, 2009 6:32 am

Sounds like a wise decision ACC glad you didn't get to far into it and couldn't back out. :-6

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Wed May 20, 2009 7:25 am

Patience is a virtue. Its easy to do something because you want it so bad and difficult to wait because its the wise thing to do. There are things we want to do too but our home value has dropped so we have to ride it out.

Do a project or two in the house. It will upgrade your value when the market stabilizes plus you will enjoy your current home that much more.

Good luck.

mominiowa · Post by **mominiowa** » Wed May 20, 2009 10:46 am

~~:(~~ The economy has limited everyone - and for such a big dream to be broken is sad...~~ I am sorry~~ Hopefully when things turn around--which we know they will...they always do---your home will be the newest and brightest on the block...

chonsigirl · Post by **chonsigirl** » Wed May 20, 2009 12:20 pm

You will spruce up the house this summer, and it will look great! Keep you busy on your time off............................:wah:

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Wed May 20, 2009 5:16 pm

mominiowa;1191759 wrote: ~~:(~~ The economy has limited everyone - and for such a big dream to be broken is sad...~~ I am sorry~~ Hopefully when things turn around--which we know they will...they always do---your home will be the newest and brightest on the block...

Nothing is broken, only delayed. It will be that much sweeter when it happens. :-6

Nomad & Chonsi, the project list has already begun. New carpet. upgrade the baseboards. new interior doors. new front door. radiant barrier in the attic. ........ :yh_sweat

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Sat May 23, 2009 8:38 am

Accountable;1191975 wrote: Nothing is broken, only delayed. It will be that much sweeter when it happens. :-6

Nomad & Chonsi, the project list has already begun. New carpet. upgrade the baseboards. new interior doors. new front door. radiant barrier in the attic. ........ :yh_sweat

When I lived in Florida everyone had tile on the floor. It seemed cooler in the house. You guys dont do that ?

I have plenty of other ideas about the direction you should be taking.

I assume an Asian influence already exists ? Id like to see a Japanese garden in your backyard and we can build from there.

Odie · Post by **Odie** » Sat May 23, 2009 8:50 am

Accountable;1191578 wrote: UPDATE:

We've pulled the plug. Real estate prices are dropping here & we would lose if we sold our house now; we've only had it a couple of years. Plus we noticed a really big red flag in the new neighborhood. The sales agent told us they've never had anyone with such a high credit score buy from them. Okay, that's not such a bad thing, we took it as a compliment. But then she proceded to tell s that a lot of the buyers needed some kind of special assistance to qualify for the loan!

There's just too much evidence that the gov't is trying to reinflate the real estate bubble, and we could see foreclosure signs popping up all around us.

Then we did some digging. A couple of this builder's communities here have owners protesting that suddenly they started selling cheaper, smaller houses in an effort to increase sales. That kind of thing brings values down throughout the community.

We decided to keep an eye on it for the next few years and see what happens. The current house is really nice, just not ideal. We can always buy that floorplan we like from an original owner.

So instead, we're buying new carpet and doing some other renovations here at home. Lots of summer projects! :yh_dance

that sounds like a very wise decision right now.

new carpet and reno's will help your home sell for more money, plus its nice for you.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun May 24, 2009 4:26 am

Nomad;1193235 wrote: When I lived in Florida everyone had tile on the floor. It seemed cooler in the house. You guys dont do that ?

I have plenty of other ideas about the direction you should be taking.

I assume an Asian influence already exists ? Id like to see a Japanese garden in your backyard and we can build from there.
We have tile throughout the house except in the bedrooms. Bedrooms need carpet.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun May 24, 2009 4:31 am

Odie;1193239 wrote: that sounds like a very wise decision right now.

new carpet and reno's will help your home sell for more money, plus its nice for you.
We've ordered the carpet but delayed the installation until after school's out. Bought a new door handle for the front door and new faucets for the bathrooms. The little details really make a place look new. :-6

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Sun May 24, 2009 8:02 am

Accountable;1193547 wrote: We have tile throughout the house except in the bedrooms. Bedrooms need carpet.

I agree. What color are we going with ?

Berber or pile ? Padding is important, dont skimp on the padding. You can get a cheaper carpet but with good padding it will feel plush and last longer. 8 lb 1/2" is really good support. Maybe we should go with a berber acc.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun May 24, 2009 8:59 am

Nomad;1193592 wrote: I agree. What color are we going with ?

Berber or pile ? Padding is important, dont skimp on the padding. You can get a cheaper carpet but with good padding it will feel plush and last longer. 8 lb 1/2" is really good support. Maybe we should go with a berber acc.
Definitely went with the high-end pad. The carpet is a type of shag ("twist") but it's very dense. We tried to find one that was very light with speckles that complement the dark chocolate tile, but had to settle on a solid - kind of light butterscotch. It's definitely a carpet to take a nap on. :-6

chonsigirl · Post by **chonsigirl** » Sun May 24, 2009 9:00 am

Bean bags chairs, in front of the TV set........

Oh, it sounds like your house is going to look so cool!

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Sun May 24, 2009 9:01 am

Accountable;1193609 wrote: Definitely went with the high-end pad. The carpet is a type of shag ("twist") but it's very dense. We tried to find one that was very light with speckles that complement the dark chocolate tile, but had to settle on a solid - kind of light butterscotch. It's definitely a carpet to take a nap on. :-6

We have the same speckled type carpet in one room. Good choice. I guess youll be ok on your own then. Carry on soldier.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun May 24, 2009 9:19 am

Nomad;1193615 wrote: We have the same speckled type carpet in one room. Good choice. I guess youll be ok on your own then. Carry on soldier.
Aye eye, Kippin!