Update

Yes, I’m still here. My last entry was mid-January and we are in April now and my head hangs from embarrassment. Much has happened including a trip to Las Vegas, the death of a dear friend and a trip to NC for my 56th birthday.

Things have been… well… challenging. Many of the problems are due to the custom nature of our home. Selecting custom cabinetry meant many items that are “standard” are not necessarily standard in custom cabinetry. Custom lighting solutions required special orders that simply took far longer than usual to arrive (I think much is because I wanted a black finish on items that were not available in the standard time frame). Custom flooring without buying pre-finished requires several stages. Wood has to be dry enough to go down, sanded several times and finished.

We had had such a good experience through January, I was hesitant to write until my nerves had calmed down a little. I did not want my mood to come through until I had a chance to know final resolutions to problems. I will tell you the problems because I know the resolution to these issues is helpful but also proves they all indeed had a solution.

I am happier now. The house is not perfect, but I never expected that. I am happy to live with compromises I had to make and thankfully, many of them could be changed down the road if I am really unhappy with them. I don’t think that will be necessary, but living in this house (If we ever get to) will uncover even newer issues I didn’t think about in design (like where to put trash cans in the bathrooms and why didn’t I put a switch to control that light from over here?). All the planning in the world will only produce an even more expensive home.  Perfection at a price is not perfection… It’s a different kind of compromise – one of long term cost.

Big red flags that stand out right now for anyone starting to build a house.

1. Be conscious that the more you spend in the structure (when you think you have the money), the less you will have left to cover items you will actually SEE.
2. Have a significant contingency budget to take care of wishlist items you forgot about.
3. Be sure to budget for all new furniture! A few pieces you have will be worth taking. Others… not so much.
4. Order all light fixtures and plumbing fixtures as soon as you are certain you want them. There is no need to risk them not being available when your subcontractor is available. You need to grab these guys when they are available.
5. Trust your instincts. If something does not feel right, it probably is not. Next steps may be expensive or even irreversible. The sooner you identify a problem and begin the fix, the less money you will spend.
6. If a problem makes you sick to your stomach, you HAVE to fix it. Trying to live with something that makes you ill is not worth taking to completion.

The above list gives you some indication of what has been going on. I will elaborate in a future entry.

Where we are now? We have everything complete except the final finish on the floors and the base trim.

I’m beside myself with excitement because I have no idea what the house will look like with finished floors!

Our loan seems to be simply waiting on our certificate of occupancy which should come within days of completing the floor. End of this week??? April 15/16? Fingers crossed… again!

Stay tuned.