Good News! Construction Date Upate with Scheduled Pre-Construction Meeting

Received some good news from the ASR.  She said that she talked to the costing manager and she must have pleaded our case for us.  She advised that they will have it scheduled for January 25 or sooner and will advise us of the firm date once the new assignments are set.  She hoped that we weren't upset by it.  I advised that we weren't upset, more disappointed because we weren't advised that the date was being pushed back and why from the initial date.  If we can gain a couple of weeks we will be thrilled.

Our pre-construction meeting is set for January 13th at 12:00  Can't wait!

May the Force Be With You - First Purchase for the Basement!

Went to Hobby Lobby last night for something completely unrelated. Yet, this made its way home....

Been a Star Wars fan since I can remember.  This was 50% off (what isn't 50% off at Hobby Lobby) and had to snag it.  This will make a great addition to the finished basement/entertainment area!

Quick Start, What Quick Start, Construction Date Set....

....And go the disappointment.  Quick reminder of our situation.  We are relocating from North Carolina back to Northeast Ohio.  In most situations someone would buy pre-existing and not worry about building.  However, we were advised that Ryan Homes has a Quick Start program.  It requires that the buyers make every selection needed and that changes are not allowed.  When we signed on the dotted line and gave them our down payment, in full, we were slotted for January 18th.  Not bad, we were okay with that.  We made all our choices when it comes to the kitchen, flooring, guardian, and we had our financing already lined up and submitted everything to Ryan Homes and our SR.

When our SR advised that RH had everything needed, I asked about our start date.  Then came the vague non-committal response back that they will let us know.  Our SR is on vacation till December 26th and kindly told us that her assistant will let us know as the build dates are released on Friday.

So today, as advised, the ASR emailed us with the start date.  February 8th.... ugh.  Slightly disappointed.  I know it's only two weeks further out than previously stated.  However, keep in my our relocation.  We need to be back in Ohio, ASAP.  Also, keep in mind that the "Quick Start" process gets us building quicker as RH's orders everything needed and get the process rolling.  I'm beginning to think it might have been a sales pitch.  I have scoured the interwebz looking for anyone else that used the "Quick Start" program, but have yet to find anyone that used it or was made aware of it.  Another concern is that we are building in Northeast Ohio.  The weather so far in that part of town has been great for this time of year.  However, that can change instantly with snow.  And if the last couple of years is any indication, it could be bad for us.

I sent a very polite note back to our SR and the ASR advising that we have done everything asked in a very timely manner, paid our deposit two weeks sooner than expected and have provided everything they need to financing.  RH didn't have to wait on us one time.  I have asked for an explanation as to why we were bumped.  

A Quick Note About Lenders and NVR

I mentioned in a previous post that we are not using NVR as our lender.  This because our relocation provider is also our mortgage servicer.  This is not to say that NVR is not a good option.  We actually didn't have a conversation at all with an NVR rep.

As a potential buyer looking to build, you do have options outside of NVR.  There are plenty of reviews about good experiences with NVR and there are plenty more with bad experiences.  I have some tips or thoughts to chew on for you if you are going this route.

• Have a second lender on standby.  Perhaps a lender you have used in the past or a well-known lender.  There are plenty of buyers out there in the interwebs who started the process with Ryan Homes, provided all their information, had their credit checked and debt to income ratios evaluated, etc, etc., and were advised that everything looked good.  The buyers go through the process of picking out their options, picking out flooring and meet with Guardian.  The buyers have also met with the NVR rep very early on.  However, after about 45 days or more, the potential buyer is denied financing for various reasons after a month of excitement and anticipation.  A second lender should be firm, factual, and fair in their evaluation of your ability to buy/build a home and you should demand that they be.  I have read where many buyers were told time and again that their loan approval was going to be "Good" or "no problem" only to be turned down.

• Go in with a strong, verified pre-approval.  If your SR tempts you with incentives to use NVR, don't be afraid to haggle and even look into NVR, maybe NVR can get a better rate.  But always keep that second lender on standby if you choose to go with NVR.  You never know what will happen.  This will also potentially protect you from disappointment.  Remember, when you walk into a Ryan Homes model home, you will see a SR, they will want you to build a home, they will get you excited, they will get you to love what you see and what you could potentially have.  There is nothing wrong with that.  As a buyer, you don't want to get sucked into buying more than you can afford or potentially, not able to qualify for a home loan. This is why a second opinion is always good to have.

• If you use an outside lender with Ryan Homes, be sure your outside lender knows what the SR and Ryan Homes will want so that Ryan Homes can proceed to build.  The loan process changes slightly since this isn't considered a construction loan and it is not a pre-existing home. You don't want the build process delayed because your lender doesn't know what to give Ryan Homes and Ryan Homes isn't communicating exactly what they need from your lender.  

Venice & Options, Options, Options...

I decided to start this page by putting our options at the top for a quick read. The options go into more detail later on.

• Morning Room
• Gourmet Kitchen w/Gourmet Island and Double Wall Oven 
• All Stainless Steen Appliances (Except for Refridgerator - RH does not provide refrigerators as an option.
• Granite Counter Tops
• Level 2 Cabinets w/hardware
• Finished Basement
• 5 Foot Shower in Master Bath
• Level 3 carpet in the first floor with 8# padding
• Pre-wired TV in family room over fireplace
• Surround sound in the basement
• Gas Fireplace with slate
• Ceiling fans for the:
• Family Room
• Morning Room
• All 4 Bedrooms

Lot #78

Here is our lot, #78.  It is the first house on our named street going into a culdesac.  Being on the culdesac would have been great.  But premium prices started at about $3400, up to $7000 to land in the culdesac.  The spot will be great for our son to ride is bike around the culdesac and traffic will not be bad at all.  Our given lot also has an applicable credit for elevation selection.  The lot is nice, fairly even.  It butts up to an older, established neighborhood.  I'm going to look up parcels and see where the back property line ends.  I'm not a big tree fan.  But the big tree in the back will provide some shading and coverage in the spring, summer, and fall months. Plus, it's not in the front where I need to worry about roots.  

First, if you're new to Ryan Homes, elevation means the exterior dressing or look of the house.  It has nothing to do with the sitting height of the house. Must be builders terminology.  Our lot gave us $2000 credit towards the Elevation selection.  We had originally wanted the full bath in the basement, but after talking to a home-owner who added the bath and realized it wasn't used and talking this over with my wife, we decided to eliminate the bath. Eliminating the full bath in the basement while choosing Elevation K with credit was essentially a wash.  So budget was safe!

Our color selection is very close to the model home you see below.  The one difference is shutter color.  We are going with a dark burgundy color to add some color splash to the outside.

The Kitchen & Morning Room

This is most important part of the house.  The kitchen is where people and events come together.  Part of the reason we are building is because of the kitchen and what we could get with Ryan Homes.  And on top of that, this makes for a happy wife.  

Ryan Homes takes some great photos of their model homes.  This attracts potential buyers who want many of those same amenities.  One such amenity is the morning room and that is exactly what we ordered.

     Now the kitchen.  My wife has always wanted a double wall oven.  The picture below is how our kitchen will look except for colors (I'll go over that later). This is considered the gourmet kitchen with double oven.  One drawback to keep in mind is that the pantry disappears with this option.  However, you do get the attractive cabinetry around the fridge and oven.  This is all about function.  We like to entertain and will put this kitchen and morning room to very good use.  

Gourmet Kitche with Double Wall Oven

We are going with the dark mocha cabinets with a lighter colored entry level granite counter tops that have grays and caramel colors.  This is to contrast the dark cabinets.  The picture below gives an idea of what the color options will look like.  

Flooring

I'm a huge fan of flooring, especially hardwood or elegant hand scraped engineered flooring. However, flooring is not cheap.  Keep that in mind when thinking of your options, including the model home you decide to build.  Even level one vinyl wood planking, which is very nice, is not cheap.  We decided that function over form takes priority.  This why we upgraded the kitchen, opted for the morning and are finishing the basement.  Floors are to walk on.  They look great, but they don't entertain.  Floors don't clean themselves, cook Thanksgiving dinner, or host Christmas parties or family gatherings.  For the kitchen and morning rooms, we opted for a nice linoleum that compliments the kitchen and wall color.  We did upgrade the carpet to level 3.  This comes with stain protection and I believe a 10 year wear guarantee.  We also opted for the 8-pound padding that is level 2.  There is a level-3 "memory foam" that comes with a stain protection from pet accidents, but it's the same rating of 8 pounds.  It doesn't feel any better under the feet.  This carpet is going all throughout the first floor.  The second floor and basement we opted for level one carpet and padding to save costs and stay easy on the budget.  The picture below gives an overall picture of our selected options.

Master Bath

The master bath provided in the Venice model I would not call luxurious in any way.  The master bedroom and the walk-in closet are extremely roomy and provide versatility in function and appearance.  My wife and I agree, shrinking the master bedroom a bit, to increase the square footage in the bathroom would make the Venice floorplan perfect for its entry price point.  Perhaps this is on purpose, to possibly lure buyers into the Milan.  My wife makes a very good point about the master bath, "how much time do we spend in there"?  And it's true, we don't spend a lot of time.  My concern about the master bath is that the throne is right next to the vanity.  We have a decent master bath now, and the throne has its own throne room, which depending on how much havoc the Mexican food is creating in the nether region, a separate little room would be nice and could be easily done given the alloted square footage for the entire master suite.  

Enough with the side rant on this.  There are a few options available for the master bath.  We went with the tiled five foot shower.  From what I understand, this removes the tub, but gives you a very large shower with glass doors and tile.

Guardian

Guardian is who installs cable, phone, network cabling, pre-wired TV, surround, and security.
We opted for pre-wired TV in the family room.  Surround in the basement and signed up for the security system.

In conclusion, we are very happy with our options and upgrades.  

• Morning Room
• Gourmet Kitchen w/Gourmet Island and Double Wall Oven 
• Granite Counter Tops
• Level 2 Cabinets w/hardware
• Finished Basement
• Level 3 carpet in the first floor with 8# padding
• Pre-wired TV in family room over fireplace
• Surround sound in the basement
• Gas Fireplace with slate