Having a house built (update- one year later!)

[luvflorida]

We sold our house in Maine a few months ago and are now embarking on the next phase of our lives. After a lot of thought, we've decided to go with new construction rather than an existing house. Since my husband and I are in our mid-fifties and have relocated to sunny Arizona, we are calling this our retirement home.

We are looking forward to seeing the house take shape from beginning to end and excited to be part of the process. Over the years, we've bought and sold several houses, but have never had one built. Our last house was only a year old when we bought it, but we didn't have any input into the design or interior fixtures.

After weekends of visting new home developments, we found a building lot that we both really like...and it is now ours! Building should begin some time next month.

Now, here is where I could use help from the rest of you! Later this week, we have a 6 hour session at the builder's home gallery where we will decide on tons of options and upgrades...appliances, cabinets, countertops, flooring, carpeting, bathroom fixtures, paint, lighting, and so on and so on. We even have some structural options.

So...I would LOVE to get some feedback/input from others:

What changes would you make in your kitchen, or other rooms in your house, if you had the chance? What do you like or dislike about the way your house functions?

Any thoughts on French doors as opposed to sliding doors going out to a patio?

Anything about the building process or about the interior of your house that you'd like to share? I'm open for suggestions, tips, anything! Thanks so much!!

 

[mdsoccermom]

Structural options are probably the most important thing to pay attention to. You want to put your money in the options that you will not be able to do once the house is built.

In my house, I wish I did a couple more bumpouts on our house. Also, we have a couple of crawl spaces in our basement. Only until later on did I realize that we could have had them full excavated to make another room in the basement.

 

[luvflorida]

Just wanted to add that the REAL fun, for me anyway, will be designing and landscaping the yard! Living in southern Arizona, much of our time is spent outdoors and I really want to make the backyard functional. Love the weather out here!

 

[tlbwriter]

We concentrated on upgrades that would be difficult or very expensive to do later, and compromised on things we could easily replace ourselves. So, we got the builder grade faucets and countertops, and splurged on a whirpool tub, atrium door instead of sliders, etc.

What I would do differently is:

Put in more outlets! More more more! No matter how many you think you need, it will not be enough.

My laundry room is small and is basically the hallway to the garage. I hate that.

I'd like to have a pet door for our dogs, but the way our house is set up, it would give them free reign of the entire house. Muddy feet and all. I'd like my next house to have a mudroom area that can be easily gated off on days where I don't want the dogs to have access to the entire house.

Did I mention more outlets? We have what I call the "Christmas light outlet" under the eaves of our house. It has a switch inside the house. Love that.

If you're getting carpet, the pad is supposedly as important as the carpet itself. Don't skimp on that.

Light switches. Our master bedroom door is in the middle of the hall. The light switches are on either end of the hall. Guess how convenient that is.

During the building process, we visited a LOT. I heard of a couple who built a house and never visited at all and after closing, they realized the builder had forgotten to put a closet in the bathroom, even though it was on the plans. True? Who knows. But stupid things happen, and it's good to catch them early.

Oh, and add more electrical outlets.

 

[asta]

Quick thoughts:

Go with the best kitchen cabinets that you can afford. This is one area that everyone always seems to want better than they have. Stretch your budget here.

I have hardwood floors in my kitchen and I love the look but our ice maker has twice developed slow leaks that seeped under the wood and caused a lot of damage. You might want to think of something different to put under the refrigerator.

I would strongly encourage you to add an indoor/outdoor room if you can. We added a sunroom and it is now our favorite room. Three walls of the room are almost all covered with very tall windows that crank out. We put French doors leading into the room so that we can have a fresh air room while the rest of the house is air-conditioned. We can also heat it in winter and use it more than just a patio or screened porch.

 

[marthachick]

1- Brick or some other finish that will NOT need painting.
2- Insulate the laundry room unless it is away from the living area.
3- Like tlbwriter said, lots of outlets!
4- Start making pictures on day 1 of the whole process. Be sure the pictures are dated. You will be surprised at the progress.
5- Purchase good bathroom fans so they don't vibrate.
6- As the outside finish is completed, have the brick mason or whoever, cover up the brick or outside up a couple of feet so that in the event of rain, mud doesn't spatter all over your new house. (I know you said Arizona, but they still have some rain, right?) Our builder also covered the concrete in the garage and porches to prevent them being mud stained.

And I prefer French Doors over sliders. Over the years, some sliders get hard to move. We have had both and the French were much better.

 

[sam_gordon]

We have french doors to our back deck and I wish it was sliding. The french doors look nice when closed, but take up room into our dining area if we open the door, and we can't leave it open because of a lack of screen. I keep saying we'll put a sliding screen in but never get to it.

We also have the outlet under the eaves with an interior switch for Christmas lights. We just didn't do a good job picking where to put the switch... it's in our garage tied to the outside garage lights. In hindsight, I'd have it actually in the house.

Along with lots of outlets, make sure you have lots of cable outlets and data (ie: networking) outlets. Our builder was nice enough to let me run our cable, data, and phone outlets (having the electrician do it was going to be LOTS o'$$$). I wish I would have put more in though.

I don't think there's such an animal as a 'too big' closet... especially the master.

Make sure you get 4-5 extra tiles if you have any room tiled. If one cracks or otherwise needs replaced, you can hand the contractor a replacment that was taken from the same lot as whats on your floor.

And speaking of outlets... find somewhere you can put a counter with 4 outlets (or a power strip) for cell phones and other charging devices.

Also, ceiling fans in every bedroom! If you can't afford fans right now, see if your electrician will wire for individual switch control of fan & light plus put in the heavier box a ceiling fan requires. Yes, you can get fans with wireless control, but this way you're covered either way.

 

[Pakey]

I worked for a builder for years so my decisions were jaded due to that.

Builders have huge markups on upgrades. They sell the base house with a small margin to get the people in but the money to be made is in upgrades. So on the things we could do after the house closed, we waited on. Landscaping, garage door openers, fireplace inserts, built in bookcases, rain gutters, etc. All of those were done after we closed escrow.

We also did a lot of the electrical, finished the garage, etc after close. Much cheaper. They charge $50 for an extra electrical outlet; we had an electrician come in afterwards and we added all that we wanted, put in recessed cabinetry lighting, etc. We also went with the standard fixtures and upgraded after close. The builders get standard fixtures for next to nothing so you get very little credit if you have them upgrade and your choices are limited. So after close we upgraded all light fixtures, cabinet hardware, door hardware, plumbing fixtures, etc. We also did the custom closet work after close.

The upgrades in the house I did put at the time of building were the glass block windows, custom drywall texture, granite countertops, tile flooring throughout, and the cabinets I wanted. I didn't want to rip out too much.

This was my second home to have built (the first was our dream custom home but we sold it 10 years ago). Having gone through a custom one time, we pretty much knew everything the way we wanted this time. I can't think of anything I would do differently.

Oh and I have sliders in this home; had French doors in the custom home. The French doors look better but the sliders are more functional, especially since we have doggie doors in them.

 

[luvflorida]

In my house, I wish I did a couple more bumpouts on our house. Also, we have a couple of crawl spaces in our basement. Only until later on did I realize that we could have had them full excavated to make another room in the basement.

What is a 'bumpout"? No basement, so don't have to worry about that! Most homes in Arizona do not have basements.

What I would do differently is:

Put in more outlets! More more more! No matter how many you think you need, it will not be enough.

My laundry room is small and is basically the hallway to the garage. I hate that.

I'd like to have a pet door for our dogs, but the way our house is set up, it would give them free reign of the entire house. Muddy feet and all. I'd like my next house to have a mudroom area that can be easily gated off on days where I don't want the dogs to have access to the entire house.

Did I mention more outlets? We have what I call the "Christmas light outlet" under the eaves of our house. It has a switch inside the house. Love that.

If you're getting carpet, the pad is supposedly as important as the carpet itself. Don't skimp on that.

Light switches. Our master bedroom door is in the middle of the hall. The light switches are on either end of the hall. Guess how convenient that is.

During the building process, we visited a LOT. I heard of a couple who built a house and never visited at all and after closing, they realized the builder had forgotten to put a closet in the bathroom, even though it was on the plans. True? Who knows. But stupid things happen, and it's good to catch them early.

Oh, and add more electrical outlets.

Lots of outlets! And more outlets! The laundry room will be upstairs. We will definitely visit the building process a lot! In fact, there are certain phases of the house construction that we are required to meet with the builder so he can show us exactly what is going on.

Quick thoughts:
I would strongly encourage you to add an indoor/outdoor room if you can. We added a sunroom and it is now our favorite room. Three walls of the room are almost all covered with very tall windows that crank out. We put French doors leading into the room so that we can have a fresh air room while the rest of the house is air-conditioned. We can also heat it in winter and use it more than just a patio or screened porch.

Our last house had a similar room, but it was more of a two season room, since it was screened and we lived in Maine. We did use it all the time, though, when the weather was nice.

1- Brick or some other finish that will NOT need painting.

The outside of the house will be stucco (I think that's what it's called). It is painted, but I don't think it requires as much upkeep as wood. We do get rain in Arizona, but it is minimal.

We have french doors to our back deck and I wish it was sliding. The french doors look nice when closed, but take up room into our dining area if we open the door, and we can't leave it open because of a lack of screen. I keep saying we'll put a sliding screen in but never get to it.

Also, ceiling fans in every bedroom! If you can't afford fans right now, see if your electrician will wire for individual switch control of fan & light plus put in the heavier box a ceiling fan requires. Yes, you can get fans with wireless control, but this way you're covered either way.

That's the thing with the french doors! I love the looks of them, but I don't know if they're as practical as sliders. And yes, ceiling fans! I LOVE ceiling fans and we're putting them in every bedroom, the study(office) and the living room. The master bedroom and living room (great room) are prewired for fans, so the other rooms will be extra.

The upgrades in the house I did put at the time of building were the glass block windows, custom drywall texture, granite countertops, tile flooring throughout, and the cabinets I wanted. I didn't want to rip out too much.

Definitely going with tile and granite!


Thanks so much for everyone's input! Lots of helpful info! I agree we need to focus more on the things that will be harder to change once the house is complete. My husband really wants plantation shutters on the windows, and I like them, too. That's something we can think about afterwards, though.

 

[katesorad]

Go with French doors. I can't stand my sliding door.. it's heavy, loud, and frustrating!

I don't like carpet. It gets dirty too easily. Plus, Arizona can get hot. I'd go with all tile, and some area rugs if you can.

I agree with everyone who says outlets! Make sure there are plenty of those. And cable/internet hook-ups where you want them. I've seen some rather awkward places for those in homes.

If you have the option to make your kitchen as large as possible, do it. Go with granite counters and for your appliances go all stainless steel. I have an electric stove right now and I hate it- make sure you go gas if you can.

Do you have room/want for a pool? Obviously that can be put in later, but you might as well put one in now if you want one.

 

[tlbwriter]

We have "center swing" door, which looks like a French door but only one side opens. And it opens from the center, not out from the sides. I think this is the best of both worlds, since it's functional but attractive.

 

[Feralpeg]

I did the same basic thing when I built my retirement home in Florida. I spent about six hours at the home design center picking out everything for the interior of the house. It was an exhausting process.

My suggestion:

Find an area and designate a piece of floor for each of your rooms. Lay the samples you pick out for each room on that piece of floor so that you can see how things go together. For instance, take your floor sample and place it down along with the paint sample, tile sample, etc. It's very hard to remember everything and how it all blends.

Have the designer create a wish list for you. If you see something that you like, but think it might be too expensive, have her put it on your wish list. I felt like I was spending so much money picking things out. I was pleasantly surprised. I had set an amount I was willing to pay for upgrades. When she added it up, I was way below that amount. I went back to my wish list and added several items. I am so glad I did.

I am of the opposite camp of most. I hate sliders. I'd go for the french doors in a heartbeat, or if possible have a single door put in place instead. The original plans for my home had a slider. I had the builder add two windows and a single door instead. I love it!

Take pictures of the samples you pick out. You will not be able to remember them after the fact!

There are a couple of things I wish I had done and did not. I wish I had put an electrical outlet on top of my cupboards. I'd like to be able to put Christmas lights up there. I wish I'd had more hose bibs put on the outside of the house. Most of all, I wish I'd had a pool put in. Coming from Missouri, I didn't think it would be necessary. I'm not really a lay out and tan type of person. Now that I have been in Florida for awhile, I realize how much I would enjoy having a small pool. It is so much more expensive to add a pool after the fact.

Have fun!

 

[jen0610]

We have "center swing" door, which looks like a French door but only one side opens. And it opens from the center, not out from the sides. I think this is the best of both worlds, since it's functional but attractive.

Mom and dad have one of these in their house and mom HATES it!

She hated the slider. Really bad layout for french doors, so she thought this would be a better solution. 20 some years, later she is still bemoaning how much she hates this door.

Dad wanted another slider, argued for another slider. Over mothers dead body would she have another slider. Dad smuggly smiles at her every time she states complaining about "that door". And she will live with it until one of them dies, just so dad can't win that arguement. Dad won't just replace it, she gets to live with her bad decision. Which I think is hysterical, because whenever she complains about it around me, I always reply you know if you had listen to dad..... and that is all I get out before I am told to mind my own business. If your going to complain to me about it, your going to hear my opition about it.

While I don't mind either sliders or french doors, the size of the room, the furniture I will be putting in that room and their layout, would be the determing factors of which I would go with.

The one thing I have told DH over and over again, if we ever redo our kitchen the one must beyond lights under the cabinets and lots of outlets, I want the large storage drawers in the bottom cabinets. I perfer these over the roll out shelves.

 

[bettymae1121]

If it's going to be your "forever home", meaning you see yourself staying there well into old age, you may want to consider things that will make your life easier if mobility becomes an issue for you. Like if you can't handle stairs anymore, are you able to live only on the ground floor (bedroom, full bath?). Would you be able to maneuver a wheelchair or scooter through doorways, hallways, and in the kitchen? Would you need a ramp to get in/out of the house (and if you do, can one be easily added?). You don't need to design the place to be a nursing home, but if there are simple things you can do or change today that will make it easier to stay in your home as you age, it's best to do so now rather than have to pay a lot to retrofit or remodel later.

 

[arminnie]

Make every closet a walk-in. Make sure you have a walk-in pantry and laundry room.

Go with custom cabinetry - not the premade stuff. I did this recently to maximize space in a small condo. The cabinets look so much better than even the top of the line pre-made ones. The cost was about the same.

If you do hardwood floors have them site finished not the factory prefinished ones. They look SO much better. The surface is smooth across the boards and is harder for dirt and liquids to get in the cracks. I think the cost was even a little less.

 

[arminnie]

You can have a pet door installed in a custom window or door - much more secure than those add ons from the pet store.

It would be worth hiring a good professional decorator. I did for my small condo. There is not one decision I would have made on my own - but her suggestions were 100 times better than what I would have picked out.

Everyone has mentioned outlets - my decorator put them everywhere. Places I would not have considered - top of mantle, top of bar strip, etc.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

We sold our house in Maine a few months ago and are now embarking on the next phase of our lives. After a lot of thought, we've decided to go with new construction rather than an existing house. Since my husband and I are in our mid-fifties and have relocated to sunny Arizona, we are calling this our retirement home.

We are looking forward to seeing the house take shape from beginning to end and excited to be part of the process. Over the years, we've bought and sold several houses, but have never had one built. Our last house was only a year old when we bought it, but we didn't have any input into the design or interior fixtures.

After weekends of visting new home developments, we found a lot that we both really like...and it is now ours! Building should begin some time next month.

Now, here is where I could use help from the rest of you! Later this week, we have a 6 hour session at the builder's home gallery where we will decide on tons of options and upgrades...appliances, cabinets, countertops, flooring, carpeting, bathroom fixtures, paint, lighting, and so on and so on. We even have some structural options.

So...I would LOVE to get some feedback/input from others:

What changes would you make in your kitchen, or other rooms in your house, if you had the chance? What do you like or dislike about the way your house functions?

Any thoughts on French doors as opposed to sliding doors going out to a patio?

Anything about the building process or about the interior of your house that you'd like to share? I'm open for suggestions, tips, anything! Thanks so much!!

LOL, this is a topic DH and I beat to death. We have built 1 house, bought 1 used and 2 model homes. We plan on building our retirement home in a few yrs., pending economy of course.

I will give you my short list....

I want a gourmet kitchen. 8 burners, 2 ovens, prep table with a sink with hot water tap

Plus a breakfast bar that you can sit at like a table. I do not want a sink or stove on it.

Then I want a small cubby for my TV, video games, computer off of the kitchen that leads to the outside. Has to be cozy so I can watch TV with my girls or grandkids.

 

[tlbwriter]

Mom and dad have one of these in their house and mom HATES it!

She hated the slider. Really bad layout for french doors, so she thought this would be a better solution. 20 some years, later she is still bemoaning how much she hates this door.

What does she hate about it?

 

[luvflorida]

Do you have room/want for a pool? Obviously that can be put in later, but you might as well put one in now if you want one.

We are going back and forth on the pool idea. We had a beautiful inground pool installed in our last house, and I LOVED it. It was Maine, though, so not a lot of hot weather. In Arizona, we have an abundance of sunshine and hot weather to enjoy a pool. However, I'm afraid of the pool attracting all shapes and sizes of creepy critters. Our house lot has an "open view" fence along the back and is bordered on another side by open desert. There will be a wall on that side of the lot, also, but there are still ways for slithering, crawling or walking things to end up in the pool!

At our ages, we're considering the possibility of a spa/hot tub instead of a pool. Need to do more research. If anyone here has any experience with hot tubs in the backyard, I'd love to hear about it!

I did the same basic thing when I built my retirement home in Florida. I spent about six hours at the home design center picking out everything for the interior of the house. It was an exhausting process.

My suggestion:

Find an area and designate a piece of floor for each of your rooms. Lay the samples you pick out for each room on that piece of floor so that you can see how things go together. For instance, take your floor sample and place it down along with the paint sample, tile sample, etc. It's very hard to remember everything and how it all blends.

Have the designer create a wish list for you. If you see something that you like, but think it might be too expensive, have her put it on your wish list. I felt like I was spending so much money picking things out. I was pleasantly surprised. I had set an amount I was willing to pay for upgrades. When she added it up, I was way below that amount. I went back to my wish list and added several items. I am so glad I did.

I am of the opposite camp of most. I hate sliders. I'd go for the french doors in a heartbeat, or if possible have a single door put in place instead. The original plans for my home had a slider. I had the builder add two windows and a single door instead. I love it!

Take pictures of the samples you pick out. You will not be able to remember them after the fact!

There are a couple of things I wish I had done and did not. I wish I had put an electrical outlet on top of my cupboards. I'd like to be able to put Christmas lights up there. I wish I'd had more hose bibs put on the outside of the house. Most of all, I wish I'd had a pool put in. Coming from Missouri, I didn't think it would be necessary. I'm not really a lay out and tan type of person. Now that I have been in Florida for awhile, I realize how much I would enjoy having a small pool. It is so much more expensive to add a pool after the fact.

Have fun!

Thanks for your input! Very helpful for when we go to our home gallery session! It should be a lot of fun, but also stressful! Seems like a lot of decisions to make all at once.

 

[sam_gordon]

Thought of another one (sort of)... along with 'more outlets', don't forget the outside of the home. We have a walkout basement. Somehow, I never noticed there is no outlet on the ground level. the only outlet is up on the back deck. Aggrevating!