God is awesome!

So we were FINALLY told how much to bring to closing, and the number was $1000 less than we thought it would be :) YAY! We had been over estimating the closing costs.

So, of course, we had to buy something for the house... so here is the new dining room light fixture from one of my favorite stores, CB2. Much better then the porcelain socket that is currently in the dining room.







Just about there!!!

We are set to close on Thursday! (that is, if they will ever tell us how much we need to get a cashier's check for)

So I thought I would take this post to talk about the choices we made for the house. Once we move in, and are there for a while, I will post whether or not they were worth it, or if I wish we would have done things differently.

Upgrades we chose:
We chose to do mainly structural upgrades, because we figure we can change just about anything else later for a lot less money then the builder would charge.

1. Vaulted ceilings in the kitchen and living room. The model had these, and it just opened the entire house up.

2. Move the kitchen from the front of the house to the middle. This seemed to be a much less awkward floor plan. It also allowed for a kitchen island.

3. Additional window in the living room.

4. Elevation B. I had to have a front porch, it was my one requirement I was not willing to give up.

Elevation A:


Elevation B:


5. Brushed nickel doorknobs and hinges. They overcharged us on this, considering that brass and brushed nickel cost the same, but I would have cost us more to change this later.

6. Overhang on the kitchen island. This would have been a lot of work to do ourselves.



7. A better oven. For $95 we could upgrade to an oven that had a window in the door, and a light! OOOOhhhh

Things we didn't upgrade:
1. floors- we hope to put in hardwood later
2. cabinets- eventually some Ikea ones would be great!
3. No fireplace- but it would be great eventually.
4. No coach lights- Josh will be putting those in.
5. No dead bolts- again Josh will do that
6. No ice maker line


I think that is it!
--Cara

Our builder and chapter 11 bankruptcy

So it took about 5 days for the news stations to start reporting that Whitaker went into chapter 11 bankruptcy. (we have known since Thursday) So, in case you saw it, I just wanted to let everyone know that we already know, and we aren't concerned. It's chapter 11, not chapter 7, so they aren't closing or anything. They are just restructuring their debts. All of the money we pay at closing will go right to the suppliers and subcontractors, so we are not worried about liens.

--Cara

Breaking into our own house

Today, we went by to take a look at the house and, we got in. I won't say how we got in but, since we were in there, I took some pictures. I will give you a little tour.

This is from towards the front of the house looking to the back. On the left is the dining room, kitchen and living room. On the right is the garage, steps to the basement, and the hallway leading to the bedrooms.

Here is a picture from the entryway looking into the kitchen. The dining room is on the left and the living room is on the right.
This is from the living room looking back at the entry way. This one really shows the vaulted ceilings.
And, this is my basement
-- Josh

Lots of Progress

I went by the house yesterday after work to find that on Monday and Tuesday, they finished putting in all the cabinets and counters, put in all the outlets and switches, installed the gutters, put in the forms for the driveway and patio, had the appliances delivered and it looks like they are working on the ducts in the basement.

I if the weather holds out, we may have a driveway and patio by the end of the day.

The list of things yet to be done is getting really short!

-- Josh

Another Siding pic


We were able to lock in our interest rate today, so we are happy. Next step is appraisal then underwriting. The vinyl flooring is is, as well as the baseboard. Hopefully we will be able to take some interior pictures this weekend.

--Cara

Siding and a closing date...

Well, it seems like October 31st is a good day for us. Three years ago on Halloween we got engaged, and this coming Halloween we will be moving into our first house!

Our closing date is set for October 29th, and move in day is set for the next Saturday (Halloween).

Today, there were a ton of people working on the house. Most of the siding is finished, and the interior has been painted. Josh peered through the windows and it looks like some flooring will be going in tomorrow.



Now we are praying everything goes ok with the loan!!


By the way, have you ever tried Starbucks instant coffee??? Josh got a free sample today, and it tastes exactly like real coffee.


-Cara