Freeze Frame

So much progress! We've finally been able to walk through the house, although always by odd routes. We had to go in through the garage and then through the powder room walls. Then to get upstairs it was easier to walk through the walls to the neighbors and up their stairs. It's definitely starting to look more like a house, but still hard to orient yourself inside, everything still kind of runs together. Here are the last couple weeks of progress on the framing!

I got really excited about seeing doors! 

Living room looking looking at the fireplace.

2nd floor minus the bonus room

Back

TIME WARP.....1 week later

It looks like a house!

Looking toward the powder room...I think.

Looking into the kitchen (left) and the front door (right)

Checking out the hall closet. There was a "rolling" change that made the closet smaller. We requested it stay the original larger size and they're going to adjust it.

Roof trusses

Overhang for the covered porch. Found out those columns will be wrapped in stone which will look awesome!

We Have Walls!

We had our weekly PM meeting on Thursday and they were working on the floor. All the walls for the basement had been moved down there and it looked like at least the outside walls were in place with the inner walls to come later. At this point, they're trying to get the house under roof as quickly as possible, so they'll finish up the basement later. As of Thursday, they had planned on trying to get some of the walls up later that day. My parent rode by today and saw they've already made a lot of progress on the first floor. According to the PM, he hopes the framing will be done by next weekend and the roofers will be out right after that.

While this blog is about building our new home, we're also in the process of selling our old home which is proving to just as difficult as I feared and it's not even on the market yet! With our full time schedules and now all the holiday festivities we're so behind and now it's definitely looking like we won't have it sold by the time we need to close on the new one. Fortunately, we have other financial arrangements if that's the case, but it would have been better to not have to mess with all that. On the positive side, it's highly unlikely that we'll have to be out of this house before the new one is ready. That was probably the thing I was worried the most about, aside from actually selling the darn thing. Hopefully someone out there is house shopping in the next 2 months...

Front. No garage walls yet.

Side

Back

What would Mr. Woodchuck say?

Is that house made of.........wood?!

Stopped by today not expecting much progress. The foundation and garage floors are done, the support columns for our covered porch were built and there was wood everywhere! That first delivery is a doozy!

Basement floor and garage floor to the right

Pre-built walls

That's us!

Basement walls

Porch supports

Ahhh...The Smell of Dirt

We broke ground on schedule. I stopped by and immediately recognized the dirt smell. It brought me back to when my parents built their home while I was in middle school. Luckily we were able to stop by almost daily to watch the progress and I remember it being such a cool experience which is probably one of the reasons I will probably never buy a home that isn't new construction. That and I'm way to picky, so the customization part of it is a MUST!

Anywho...lots of progress since then. The footers were poured that same week and a little less than a week later the foundation was poured. We actually just happened to stop by right when they started pouring which was cool to see. Cement trucks everywhere!

Stopped by yesterday and the forms where already off, a lot of the dirt had been pushed back and they're prepping to do the basement (basement may already be done, couldn't tell as it was covered in plastic) and garage floors.

Lot's of exciting progress and supposedly lumber may start being delivered today and we may have some framing done by our standing PM appointment next Thursday! They certainly don't waste any time.

Here's a few pics of the progress thus far. Apologies for the darkness, most the time I can't get over there until after work and this time of year it gets dark waaaaay to early.

Oh, and Happy Turkey Day!!!

Hole!

Footers

Pouring the foundation

Forms removed

Basement

Back wall with egress window. Line where black waterproofing is where the grade will be. Not sure about this random wall to the right...

Pre-construction Meeting & Lot Photos

We had our pre-construction meeting yesterday. I came in with a list of questions (see below) and was happy that most of them were answered throughout the meeting without me even having to ask. Our project manager was very nice and knowledgeable. We were both very pleased as it seems many of the troubles people have with Ryan tends to all revolve around the PM.

The meeting went surprisingly quick. We were told to expect 1-1.5 hours and we took off work for 2 since most of our previous meetings had run over. We were out of there in a little over an hour. We looked over the plot map.

We confirmed the location of utilities on the inside and outside, electrical blueprints, our selections as far as wood here, tile there, etc. Pay close attention here as we had an issue with two rooms with tile being marked wrong. Discussed our timeline and what to expect and to give the PM a call if we want to come up and look at the progress. We walked the lot which had been staked and spray painted. We signed a change order adding an additional outlet in the tray ceiling in the master (special thanks for them letting us do that at this stage of the game) and clarifications for the flooring mistakes. And that was pretty much it!

Q & A

General
Q: Can additional wires be run to the thermostat location for humidifier control (installed later)?
A: PM thinks the wires they run will include additional wires that can be used for this.

Q: What type of light bulbs are provided?
A: Compact Florescent

Q: Is there a deadbolt on garage door?
A: No, you can add one later.

Kitchen

Q: Can you lightly attach the counter tops for easy removal since we will be replacing quickly after moving in?
A: They can help us out there, it should come off easily. PM also offered up the name of his granite guy.

Dining

Q: Can we ensure no light switches are in the middle of the wall where we will be putting a china cabinet?
A: Yes, they can ensure all switches are moved to the sides.

Q: What is the location of light box (for a chandelier) since we are eliminating the two included can lights?
A: Same location as model (seems to be the same location as one of the can lights).

Living Room

Q: Confirm lower placement of fireplace?
A: Confirmed.

Q: Can we put or do we need re-enforcement above fireplace for mounting at TV?
A: There should be plenty of studs to screw into, but they will add a couple extra blocks.

Master

Q: What is the molding location in tray ceiling? Can we place it at the bottom?
A: They will put the molding at the bottom, but it sounded like standard is to put it at the top.

Q: If yes to the above, can we add a switched outlet in the tray?
A: Yes. (*Had to get approval and sign a change order.)

Q: Can the closet door open out into the bathroom instead of into the closet?
A: The doors come pre-hinged, so we can probably flip it, it will open out toward the linen closet. Had it been the other direction, it likely would have been an issue opening into the shower door.

Q: Will there be a moisture issue with the only exhaust fan being in the water closet?

A: There is space under the door to allow the fan to pull enough moisture. We shouldn't have to open the window.

Q: Confirm request to add additional outlet under window in bathroom?
A: Yes, will need to be sideways and smaller molding put under the window.

Bathrooms

Q: Will there be any shelves, soap dishes or towel bars in showers and bathtubs?

A: There will be a soap dish in the master shower. Nothing in bathroom 2 with the tile surround.

Q: Can the included chrome towel bars and paper holders not be installed (we're replacing later)?
A: Yes. Common request. They will leave them in the boxes in the basement.

2nd Floor

Q: Does the light at the bottom of the stairs have to be on the sloped part of the ceiling?
A: Yes, not enough room on the flat side.

Q: Are attics shared between units?
A: No. The firewall goes all the way to the roof.

Basement

Q: Can the exercise room doors be flipped to open out into the recreation room?
A: No. Inspector won't allow doors to block light switches.

Q: Can the light switch for the exercise room be moved into the room?
A: No. Same reason as above.

Q: Where can we put the additional outlet for a deep freezer in storage area?
A: Best location is on the front wall. Will be dedicated since it's being used for a freezer.

Q: How will the can lights be placed in the recreation and exercise room since we are moving the wall back 6.5 feet?
A: 2 of the 6 cans will move to the recreation room. The remaining 4 will be centered within the smaller exercise room.

Q: What will be the location of the sump pump?
A: We don't need one!

Q: What will be the location of the water shutoff and cleanout?
A: The water shutoff will be in the storage area (Yay! Otherwise an access panel is needed in the exercise room.) The cleanout will be in the exercise room but will be a chrome plate on the floor.

Porch

Q: Will there be stairs from the covered porch since it is elevated?
A: Yes, will likely come down towards the higher grade on the back wall.

Q: Will there be a railing around covered porch? What will it look like?
A: Yes, due to the elevation, one is required. It will be white (and sounds like it may be some sort of plastic or metal as it probably won't require maintenance like the deck will).

Other Fun Facts:

• The paint color in the model is not Sherwin Williams "Evening Shadow" which is the color we picked from Ryan's options. It's wicked close, but the evening shadow is a touch darker and not quite as blue.
• We don't need a sump pump! Apparently, since our neighbors both have walk-outs and the land is graded a certain way anyway, we can let gravity do the work. Yay for more storage space and not having to worry if the power goes out!
• Our egress window will probably be completely above grade. Yay natural light!
• The driveway, sidewalks, grass and landscaping won't be done until the weather warms up. We knew this already since Ryan prefers to wait to ensure the life and look of the concrete. They will put in a compacted gravel temporary driveway until the real one is poured. The fun fact here is that it could be anywhere between March and June before they get around to it. Yeaks! Apparently, it has a lot to do with our location as there aren't requirements for it to be completed by a certain time so we tend to get bumped to the bottom of the list. Oh well. As long as I can get in garage, I'm more concerned with the inside anyway.
• While we didn't have the option to add a wet bar, we were able to add a rough-in. We were also allowed to pick the location of the rough-in. We chose the wall opposite the exposed railing at the bottom of the stairs. We also requested it be hidden in the wall behind an access panel as we won't be installing right away.
• We opted not have them install cabinet hardware as the only option was little brushed nickel knobs and not only did I want long handles, I didn't trust them to put them on straight. Anywho...it's hilarious how much they warned us about not having hardware put on the cabinets because they're flat front or whatever, you basically can't open them without hardware.

Pics of Lot

Standing in the front corner (garage) looking back

Standing in the front corner (garage) looking left toward the other units and front door

Looking right (what we will see out our side windows) and example of similar elevation

Standing in the far left corner (master bedroom) looking out onto the lot (note this will actually be about 7ft above the current grade

Outline of far left corner (master bedroom)

Standing where the front porch will be looking towards the front of the lot. Our garage outlined on the left, neighbors garage outlined on the right

Standing in the garage facing the front

Standing "in the basement" where the garage will be up on the higher grade.

Things are happening!

Stopped by today to turn in the rest of our 5% down and check out a few Calvert's that are closing soon. We wanted to see what it looked like with some of the options we selected, like the luxury master, no morning and room and flipped floorplan. I'm super excited about the master upgrade. The bathroom is awesome and the tray ceiling is surprisingly grand. They put the molding around the bottom of the tray with an outlet so lights could be installed to light up the tray. We think that could be a cool idea, especially with using Philip's Hue, but it could get pricy. The other thing I was curious about was how the double shower head in the master shower was dealt with. There are separate valves for each shower head. I think we're going to install a hand shower for the other side. Sorry there are no pics, I got so excited to see I totally forgot (doink!)

We found out we should know our dig date tomorrow and will be setting up our pre-construction meeting! FINALLY!

There was even a little bit of progress on our lot. It was staked out and there are utility meters!

A Quick Non-Update

The last several weeks have certainly been a test of patience. Which I have none of.

All our paperwork is done. Our mortgage has been sent to underwriting at NVR (anyone know how long that takes?).  All three units in our building have been sold, so they're wrapping up that paperwork. I know we're next to be built, but would love to know when they're going to get started. This radio silence is killing me!

Could also use a good kick in the butt to get our current house on the market, hard to stay motivated when everything seems so up in the air, not to mention I don't want to move twice - but maybe not as much as I don't want to sell our home in time. Anyone looking to move to Northern Kentucky??

#whowantstobuymyhouse

Appliances

Had some time to kill this evening before meeting family for dinner so we did some refrigerator research. We considered buying through Ryan, but it was way overpriced. Originally I had planned on getting a GE Profile with the cool slide out shelf and Auto and Precise Fill functions. Looking at different brands and models tonight though, we really like the layout and look of a Samsung. My concern is what if Samsung's stainless is different than GE's stainless and the fridge clashes with the other appliances that are all GE. Anyone have this combo and know it matches?

Here is the one we liked: Samsung RF28HFEDBSR/AA

Here is the GE I originally thought I wanted: GE Profile PFE28RSHSS

GE Appliances we're getting through Ryan:

RANGE: GE PROFILE™ SERIES 30" FREE-STANDING DOUBLE OVEN RANGE WITH CONVECTION PB950SFSS

MICROWAVE:
GE PROFILE SERIES OVER-THE-RANGE OVEN WITH ADVANTIUM® TECHNOLOGY PSA9120SFSS

DISHWASHER: GE® STAINLESS STEEL INTERIOR DISHWASHER WITH HIDDEN CONTROLS GDT580SSFSS

Super excited for the double oven and a dishwasher that might actually clean dishes! The microwave is a bit much with the Advantium stuff, but the hubby likes it and it ended up being a really good deal. Adding all the appliances to my cart on bestbuy.com including the hoses and cords and stuff you're required to get, it was much more expensive than the upgrade price. I believe it was $3000 for the appliance upgrades with a $600 credit for the standard ones you receive.

Guardian

Right after our meeting with NVR we met with Guardian. Guy was very nice and walked us through their services. Home security is their bread and butter, or Life Safety as they like to call it. Sounded like a nice system. Talked us into the extra fire protection. Then dropped the $45 a month for 60 months bomb on us. Bleck. He did mention that if we moved during that time, they'd install a new system for free in the new house - guess that's an okay deal.

Went into home automation, all the data ports, surround sound etc. Poor guy didn't know what he was getting into with my husband and I being tech savvy and already having a pretty good idea of what we wanted and how we wanted it to work. Data ports were fine. We pretty much put one in every room and did the mounted TV stuff above the fireplace and in the Master bedroom. We added some sort of wireless thing in the upstairs hallway (I must have zoned out during this conversation, but apparently I said we agreed we should do it and it was supposed to be an extra $200 or so).

Added the surround sound, which was like an extra $2,300 but weren't positive where we wanted to put it in the basement - not sure how we're placing furniture yet. Did not go with the home automation as you have them install the equipment into your Life Safety system to control from the app (which didn't look too bad) and bumped the cost up anther $5 a month. Didn't do the whole home audio, didn't even price it out as we required it could handle streaming Google Music from our phones and it could not. Not worth it when there are so many wireless systems out there these days I think.

TIP: Get an itemized list of everything you added and what it costs before you sign, after you sign, and before you finalize with Ryan.

We ended up with a lot of questions and the Guardian guy was very responsive as we had three days to cancel. I never felt comfortable with the $45 a month contract. We wanted to do some cool home automation stuff ourselves with Smartthings and discovered it would not integrate with their system, so we decided to go with that exclusively and drop the Life Safety from Guardian. We considered letting them install the system and canceling the contract later and just using it as a passive system. The guy had originally told us, if we did that, we'd only have to pay the $200-ish install cost and like 10-20% of our remaining contract. I could stomach that, but when I asked for that in writing, all they could come up with was we'd have to pay the entire install cost $1000+ and 20% of our contract. Not taking that risk.

We ended up also canceling the surround sound. Found a sweet Sony sound bar at Best Buy and I'd feel better about something like that than the full loudness of a regular system in a townhome. I want to be a good neighbor.

So we ended up just doing the data and cable wiring and that stupid wireless thing that ended up costing over double what he quoted, but we only realized after we signed all the paperwork since that's when we finally received an itemized list. (See tip above).

We ordered our Smartthings hub (on backorder) and a sensor to start playing with it. Plus, the hubby wanted an Amazon Echo so until we get the other stuff hooked up, Alexa is just playing music and reading us the news until she can turn the lights on and off.

NVR

Had our first meeting with NVR last week. I have to say, the gentleman we've been working with has been very nice and accommodating. I feel bad for giving him a bit of a hard time. Unfortunately, anyone in that industry, anyone taking that much money from you, and the comments I've read about NVR have my guard up. But, like I said, so far, so good. Fortunately, I think we're a pretty easy situation, traditional 15 year mortgage with 20% down and good credit.

Took an hour or two gathering all our paperwork. Pays tubs, W2's etc. In the process we realized somehow one of my W2's (changed jobs mid year) went missing and the income never got reported. It was a crazy year.

I was able to track down a copy as NVR caught it immediately and needed verification of my employment. We also had to send a letter in regarding a business charge card we have and waiting for a gift letter to be signed in case our current home does't sell in time, we can still put down the 20%.

Sounds like they're working on wrapping that up and then hopefully we'll hear something soon!

Couple of to-do's for us to look into still:

• Homeowners insurance. So far we've not gotten a straight answer if our townhome is they where you own only the inside or everything. We also currently have KY Farm Bureau so no matter what, we have to find a different company (bummer).
• Title Company and Insurance. This one is all new to me. I think we may do some shopping around on this one. Seems like NVR gouges you a bit. Not to mention I hate the type of insurance you have to get for the very rare, but just in case's. Like when you by a TV or a car...ugh. 
• Comparison Shop. We're working with our current bank on getting a quote. They're actually coming in slightly more expensive than NVR, but it would be way more convenient if we could end up going with them.

Grateful

I wanted to pause for a moment to set the record straight. We've made it through the flooring together and still have to walk through the Guardian (wiring) and floorplan selections. There will be some gripes there too. I always say, nothing great comes easy. I'm super excited for our new home. I think it's going to be amazing and I can't wait. Overall, I don't have an awful opinion of Ryan Homes (just have to get to know 'em). We all know this isn't an easy process, and I just want to highlight some of the challenges we've come across, and will work on doing a better job of highlighting the positives as well. Is it time to close yet?

So Many Choices (but not really)

One of the main differences between Ryan and M/I has been choices. M/I's mantra is, if we have it, you can pick it. If we don't you can pay for it. Ryan's way is, here's what you get, that's it, except in this room.

Going into our flooring appointment I knew a few things: Gray. Dark Wood. White Tile. What we ended up with was mostly that. Wood floors were easy. I knew we wanted dark, wide plank, solid hardwood. There was only one choice that mostly matched the description.

Cabinets were easy too. Knew we wanted the dark modern ones. Countertops, not so much. Nine granite choices. That's it. None of which were what I was looking for, but was willing to settle with one of them. We ended up dropping the granite for the standard laminate (we'll get into that later).

Granite Choices (We were going to go with the one in the upper left...I think)

Let's see, what was next. Railing, easy. Dark stain.

Carpet, not as easy as I expected. Gray is harder than it looks. There are many tones and I didn't want the house to look cold. I also wanted a shaggier carpet since it just looks plush and comfy to me. All of the speckled shaggy carpets were brown or tan. I also heard this might be going out of style as well. We found a moderately shaggy carpet in a grey that felt warm and coordinated well with the wall color and wood floors. We also upgraded the carpet pad one level to an 8 lb. pad. Fairy inexpensive and makes a difference.

Now, dum dum dum... Tile. White tile and a gray color scheme. Sounds easy-peasy right? Let's just say the brown/tans again made themselves known amongst 80% of the choices. We found about three tile "packages" (floor, wall and accent) that could fit. We also found a strip of accent tile that we really liked and asked if we could switch it out. Big 'ole NO there. We somewhat settled on a gray tile floor, white tiles on the wall with a tanish-gray accent strip. We chose the same gray tile for the floor in the laundry room and the upstairs bath. We're just going to do the standard white tiles in the upstairs bath since I dislike those fiberglass inserts. Final question, what about our grout colors? This is when we were told there was only one color that everyone gets, Haystack. Just by the name I'm sure you can imaging what color it is. Tan. And not a nice tan, like dark tanny tan. Bleck. Well there was no way in heck that was going to fly. Let operation grout change begin!

Another flooring meeting, a week and apparently quite a hoopla on Ryan's end later we came to conclusion that the Haystack rule was wrong. Grout choices pre-selected for each tile and will match accordingly. Now, I have to say, that's a relief, but now I have to trust someone else picked the right color? I understand why Ryan has so many restrictions. They try to make it easier, and for those out there who struggle to make these decisions, I understand, its harder than it looks, I'm sure it helps. But I think they've surpassed the point where its become less helpful and more complicated.

Speaking of complicated, while finalizing our selections, we found out that the gray tile we selected for the master bath, laundry and upstairs bath could not be put in the upstairs bath. Wait, what? Like I said, beyond helpful... We ended up picking just a white tile, keep it neutral I suppose. We also found out that the grout chosen for the gray tile in the laundry room is different from the grout chosen to for the SAME gray tile in the master bathroom. Again, WHAT?? At this point, I surrendered.

We also switched our accent tile to a black, white and gray glass tile. Felt it was more modern and less tan. Almost put some pretty gray wide planked LVT in the "exercise room" but decided against it when we found out the price (which had to be custom quoted since the only option in that room was carpet).

Here is what we ended up with. Details below.

Our selections minus the accent tiles and LVT

Accent tile we actually picked

Hardwood

Kitchen, Powder Room, Dining Room, Living Room
Bruce Red Oak - Espresso - Dundee Plank 3 1/4"

Tile

Laundry Room
Floor: Parkway 13x13 with Oyster Gray grout

Master Bathroom
Floor: Parkway 13x13 with Winter Gray grout (double checking this one)
Walls: White (details to come) with White grout
Accent: Colorwave Evening Mixer Brick Joint Mosaic with White grout

Bathroom 2 (Upstairs)
Floor: White (details to come) with White grout
Walls: White (details to come) with White grout

Carpet
Master Bedroom, Stairs and Hall, Bedroom 2, Bedroom 3, Recreation Room, Exercise Room
Shaw Simple Times City Line
8 lb. carpet pad

Cabinets
Timberlake Portfolio Sonoma Maple Espresso Square

Countertop
Laminate (details to come)

R&R

Even when we picked our lot, there was a question of some parking spaces in the back corner that were part of the existing neighborhood (we're in the last section of the community). I think we all had hoped since they would technically be on our property that they were going to be torn out. Our sales rep. did her best to get an answer for us before we signed. We decided to go ahead with that lot, with the option to move to the other end should the spaces be staying. There was also a mention that we would be able to switch lots for no extra cost (the other one was a little more expensive since it had a walkout).

Two days into our vacation we got some more info. Parking spaces are staying (don't get me started, I don't even see how its legal). Our sales rep did everything she could to stake out our lot to give us an idea of how close they would be to the back of our home and sent pics. She also must have spoke too soon as we were also told if we wanted to switch lots, we would have to pay the difference and needed to make a decision as soon as possible. (Tip: get everything they tell you in writing!)

After several days of deliberation and the advice of Mickey Mouse himself, we decided to stick with our lot. I still think there's no way those spaces can stay, so we'll see when they actually go to build (fingers crossed).

Aside from that, we were able to enjoy our vacation and not worry about finalizing everything until we got back.

Never Going to Happen

Yeah....so....we made it happen. We walked through pricing, added just about every upgrade we could (Tip: add everything and take away later, it's easier than going back and adding more). I wanted to make sure our flooring/tile options were to my liking so we scheduled an appointment to see the options at the flooring design center. I also made an appointment to have a real estate agent come to our home to do an evaluation and tell me what I can sell for this fall.

The day before we left for vacation, we met with the sales rep. to answer some final questions and pick out a lot. Ran some final numbers and the stars aligned. We signed the purchase agreement...

...and less than 24 hours later were on a plane for some R&R. (lolz)

From the Beginning...

I've given in. Couldn't help myself. I've found such value in the other blogs and following their builds with Ryan Homes. I can only hope that mine would do the same.

At this point we're a good ways into the process already. We're in that terrible waiting period after we've signed off on everything and are waiting for them to break ground. So since I have some free time on my hands (not really, I need to get my current home on the market), let's do this!

Long story short, we were going to build a home with M/I Homes down the road, but adding options (pretty much the same things we added with this house) got out of control and fast. They weren't willing to negotiate with us, so we had to look for other options.

My husband, being the financially smart one, has always said he would like to do a 15 year mortgage so less money would go to interest and more to principle. After running the numbers, I was convinced finding a more affordable home was a financially smart move. The search was on!!

I came across this community a few months prior and loved the price point, but wrote it off as it seemed too small and didn't offer everything on our wish list. Looking at it again a bit later with a different perspective, the price was too good not to check it out. So one evening after work, I was just going to do the 'ole drive-by. While I was there, I saw the model was open and thought, "what the heck". Little did I know what I was getting into!

I was greeting by the sales representative and since we both had some time, she showed me around and gave me more information about the community, floorplans and Ryan Homes. I was pleasantly surprised at how nice the model looked (very high-end) and how big it felt. I couldn't wait to get my husband up there to see it!

In this neighborhood there are two available floorplans. The Rosecliff and the Calvert. Originally, I was leaning more towards the Rosecliff for the following reasons:

• More traditional layout
• Some room sizes were larger (master specifically)
• Lot's of master closet space (option to have two closets!)
• Tub in the master bath
• 2nd floor laundry
• Lot choices (could have been on a lake)

The things I didn't like about the Rosecliff were:

• 2nd floor master (with 8ft ceilings)
• Kitchen seemed small and had a bar instead of a flat island
• Basement was small and would have had even less storage space when partly finished

Now for the important part, what we love (and kinda don't love as much) about the Calvert

• 1st floor master (with 9ft ceilings)
• Covered porch option
• Larger finished area and storage space in the basement

And for the not so much's:

• Master closet space
• No bathtub in master
• Living room is somewhat narrow
• Laundry room is smaller and is off the kitchen
• Lot location (not on a lake)

Now, just by the number of items on each list, it looks like we should have chosen the Rosecliff, but honestly, the pro's for the Calvert carried more weight and we felt it was a better fit for us overall. Of course, I'm always "sold" by the model and wish we could have walked through a finished Rosecliff.

Anywho, brought my husband to see. He like it, and liked the price even more. At this point we were a little less than two weeks away from a weeklong vacation at Walt Disney World (my consolation prize from having to walk away from our M/I dream home). We were told August was slow and there was a very aggressive incentive we could take advantage of if we signed before the end of August. I said straight up, that was crazy and was never going to happen....