Recently in New House Category

Most of the paperwork is now out of the way on our new house and we can get back to our regular daily postings.

One thing they don't warn you about when you go to buy a new house is that although the base floorplan is described as a finished house you really need to spend a small fortune on options if you want the house to look better than the average rented apartment, for example:

• Kitchen Cabinet Upgrades: $4,000
• Granite Countertop: $5,000
• Upgraded Appliances: $5,000
• Recessed Lighting: $4,000
• Carpet Color other than Yellow or Pink: $1,000
• Hardwood Floors (on Ground Floor): $10,000
• Upgraded Bathroom Ceramic Tiles: $2,000
• Garage Door Openers: $1,000
• Whirlpool Tub: $2,000

And that is just the start of the list. Most of these upgrades cost more than if you were to but the items yourself and pay to have them installed but if you follow that path you then have to deal with the disruption of installation after you have moved in.

If that sounds expensive don't forget you also need closing costs for your mortgage (maybe $10,000), moving costs ($5,000), new curtains ($2,000), extra furniture to fill the extra space ($ too much), plants and flowers so you have more than just a grass lawn, and finally once you have paid all that you can start saving for the nice deck or patio you would like.

On the positive side, once we are moved in next May, we will be in a good position to start reviewing lots of cool kitchen gadgets, home automation gadgets, audio/video/HDTV gadgets and lots more.

I learnt something yesterday: There is one really important thing you need when you are looking to future-proof a new home and make it possible to easily install a home network in the future - you need a 20 foot long PVC pipe.

To be more exact, you need a 2-inch diameter pipe running from your attic to your basement, this will allow you to easily install ethernet or other cables to any room in your house without needing to struggle or badly damage your drywall.

(or you could just go wireless)

I am sorry there have been no posts the past couple of days:

My wife and I are looking to buy a house and on Sunday we drove 300 miles and visited a load of new home communities, on Monday we priced out our favorite houses with all the options we want, today (Tuesday) we finished option planning and decided on the house and lot we want, tomorrow (Wednesday) we are driving 300 miles (again) to sign contracts, and then on Thursday I should be able to start posting again a little, and then we are away doing house stuff again until the next Wednesday.

Once that is all out of the way I have to start thinking about how to wire for home theater, and Internet access: I want to have LCD TVs with Internet access in the family room, the kitchen, the master bedroom, and 2 other rooms (that will be our offices).

Most people take 3-4 months to research and choose the house they want, we are doing it in 3-4 days. Will this haste come back and bite us in the ass? .... probably.