June 23, 2003
House Hunting Update
Well after two solid Saturdays (plus some Sundays) of house hunting, with about 15 houses visited, we are this close to being officially done. We signed a purchase and sale agreement earlier today. I say only this close because technically we still have a 5-day backout period per the contract, but as far as we are concerned, we're done.
We decided to go for a new development in Stratham. The lot sizes are small, and there are only five pre-designed floorplans to choose from, but it fits with our requirements (as previously mentioned) pretty well. The house should be done in November -- that's the artist's conception you see above.
We went today for what we thought would be a quick lunch meeting to sign the contract, but turned into a four hour which-looks-better-this-or-that session as we picked out the base options that the sales rep needed to start the process: house/door/shutter colors, kitchen cabinets, counter tops, tile... I know, this is the fun part, but I have a low tolerance for it. When in doubt I say, "Just do it like the model house." At least we know a professional designer picked out those colors.
The rest of this week we get to go through the fun relationship strengthening exercise of picking out all the little customizations and upgrades. Hard wood floor where? What type of carpet? Extra lights where? And then we get the final price. And then we start crossing things off the list.
Congrats! Have fun with the fun stuff!
Is it just me, or does that drawing look haunted ;-)
1. yes the drawing sort of looks haunted. 2. i had very low tolerance for all the choices too, especially when you find out how much things cost, you quickly zero out your 'allowances'. i don't know anything about convection ovens, but Randy's mom is a good cook and has one and i think she uses it A LOT. the only advice i have, if you want it is: choose hardwood when/where you can, it is sooo much easier to keep clean and it will keep the dust down in the house. if you have to do carpet, do berber. I love mine and especially in high traffic areas. it will hold up better over time. in rooms that you won't use much (spare bedrooms) choose cheap carpet in a relatively innocuous color. for fixtures like toilets and sinks, go white. we did the bisque in all our bathrooms and regret it. All colors go with white, some don't look so good against bisque. Kitchen counters, what looks good or what you like on a little square, might not end up being your favorite when it's all laid out. I'm not a big fan of my big blue countertops, again, think fairly neutral vs. bold, because unless you win the lottery you will be living with your choices for at least 10 years. Good luck and have fun!
http://www.stabilecompanies.com/
wow.. this house is so great! im macri from Philippines, im 13 year old and im searching some houses..why? because someday i want to be a professional architect. and also if i see some houses, a beautiful houses.. i can apply my skills through drawing. lol.thats all