Plenty of updates

Currently we are less then 2 weeks out from the house being completed. After our walk-thru, the builder will send over the ready to close form and approximately 10 days or less we will close. They tentatively have us closing on October 11th.

To get up to speed we will mention what was completed last week {9*20-9*24}

-The kitchen counter tops and sink went in on Monday.

-Plumbers were there most of the week. We have toilets, sinks and running water.

-electrician came in and finished all the hook-ups. It's neat to even see light bulbs installed!

-The lot was cleaned, leveled, yellow sand was laid (for nutrients),

irrigation was installed and landscaping started (sod and 2nd tree to follow)

-Propane tank and tank-less water heater went in and the propane take was filled.

-End of this week the flooring had begun to be installed.

The coming week will include:

-wood floors to be completed on Monday {takes 3 days to install}
-Sod and tree to also be placed on Monday

-hanging of doors and door knobs

-construction clean up

-Dry wall punch. This means the painters come back in and go over all the walls with a fine-toothed comb to ensure touch-ups are complete and there are no blemishes.

By weeks end we are to have our insurance carrier picked because carpet should be installed the following week!!!! Once Howard {builder} has a walk-thru with his boss it will then be our turn to walk-thru with him.

We're down to the wire and our inpatients is soaring high. More to follow soon!

Weeks {5} and part of {6}!!!

It's really amazing how far this house has come. Technically it is only {6} weeks old and is ALMOST ready to be lived in! {{AMAZING}}!!

A lot more has been done since the last entry. There is a roof, insulation, dry wall that has been mudded and patched, doors and windows! We try to get to the house every evening, but lately we find that waiting a day longer allows us to see a bigger difference in what has been done. It is also tough to get good light inside now that there are walls so taking pictures becomes difficult.

This coming week {9.7} they have planned to paint, pour the driveway/walkway/front porch and tile the foyer and bathrooms. We'll have a fully tiled master shower and the surrounds will be tiled in both bathtubs.

I've been having a very strong feeling of the date {9.27}. We'll see if that date has any meaning---pray it does because we'd REALLY like the tax credit which expires {9.30}

End of week {4}!!

Howard called Friday and gave us a wonderful update. His weekly calls usually go a little something like this, "XYZ was completed this week. This is the Mon-Fri schedule for the following week". I love that he gives me the following weeks schedule so then I don't have to feel redundant when I asked every. Friday, 'what's going to happen NEXT??!!'.

This week {8.23} the a/c, plumbing, electrical, windows & shingles will be worked on/installed. By weeks end there will be another inspection on the framing. The FOLLOWING week (yes, he is good, isn't he?!?) they will be hanging dry wall, stuccoing and painting. WOOHOO! Looks like a home more and more every day.

We stopped over on Sunday and were surprised to find a lot had been done on Friday--framing for the garden tub and master shower, the wall for the pocket doors, framing of the kitchen nook and sliding glass door area. Our elevation in the front is completed and they have the 'black paper' installed on the roof!!

I did grill Howard for a guesstimate on when the house would be done. He gave me a ballpark of the end of September/beginning of October. Not far away! I can see the end of the tunnel!!!

The past Two weeks

Every week something new is done to the house. Last week we watched the cinder blocks get built on Wednesday and Thursday (8.11 & 8.12) It finally LOOKED like a real house with window openings and a garage!!! Friday (8.13) there was an inspection in which we failed. We assume everything passed because this week they moved on to the roof.

Monday (8.16) nothing that we could visually see was done and the same thing for Tuesday. When we went up to the house on Tuesday evening, there was a worker there unloading wood 4x4's and he told us this week the roof, walls and windows would be going up! YAY for more visual progress!

It has been an amazing process, but it is never quick enough for me!!

Building has begun

Ground was broken for the house on Monday July 26th. They lot was cleared and flagged on Saturday July 23rd. Since the start, we have footers dug, 3 courses of block, the beginning of the 2 pillars at the entrance and by this weeks end there will be plumbing and cement poured. You can get an idea of the house layout and distinguish the garage and bedrooms. It's the "boring" part of the building process, but it is still exciting to see how it happens. Our builder, Howard, calls us every Friday to give us an update. He said by this coming Monday (8/9) the cement will be done and the 2nd inspection on the plumbing will also be completed.

Building at Last!

YAY for the builders meeting! Once you receive THAT phone call, you are guaranteed that ground breaking is imminent. We meet with the builder on Friday July 2nd. During that meeting we will go over the blue prints, place our outlets, t.v outlets and alarm pads. Once we sign off on the blue prints they will go over to the next set of hands who will then place a stamp of approval on them and order the permits. It is a lot of behind-the-scenes work and it will consume the following two weeks or so after the builders meeting. Our guess is that ground breaking will begin approximately around July 19th. Unfortunately neither one of us will be in town, but we trust that much won't happen until we return on Aug 1st. I know my plan is to race right over to the house site as soon as we hit Rt 540!!

It is going to be an exciting time for us. We won't have to visit a bare lot anymore and we will be able to physically see something happening! It is probably safe to say that we will be in the home by November 1st, which was what we were planning. Not only do we want to be settled before the holiday rush, but it also means a lot to us to be in before Alex's 8th birthday!!!

More updates (and pictures) to come.....

June Update

A lot has happened since my last entry. I'll try to remember every detail as best I can:

* The appraisal was performed in May. We received the results on June 1st and we hit value! YAY! It went a lot smoother then what we thought it would. Being that there hasn't been a house sale in our neighborhood in the past 90 days the appraiser had to go outside the neighborhood to get comparable homes. We didn't know what to expect so we held our breath and said a prayer. We were also afraid they would mention something about our upgrades, but they didn't! So onward we go.

*After the appraisal our paperwork went into underwriting. This would be approximately 2-2.5 weeks until completion.

*Heard back from the lender on June 15th. Based on the strength of our file, a commitment letter was issued to the builder! This means that everything is near completion on the lenders end and that the builder can safely add us to the list of many who are awaiting the start of their build. Southern Home is aware of the time constraint with our current living situation and they are going to do what they have to to ensure our home is started and completed on time. We can safely travel to Ohio for a month in July and not worry about getting the phone call from the builder in the middle of the trip. By the time we return on August 1st we should have received that phone call and be on our way to a sit down meetings!!!!!!

More updates coming soon!!!