We are officially re approved on our home loan. Again we held our breath until we got the magical, "YES"! There is no real difference with this loan compared to the last, other then that there are a series of money pulls during each step of the building process. Before the next pull can occur, the bank will send someone out to the home site to do an inspection. This will happen at each pull.
We didn't know if we would have to start paying on the interest after each pull, but the builder essentially pays for it and our responsibility comes in after the home is turned over to us. It is nice to know that we don't have to come up with additional money each month for the interest. Now we can focus on other things that will need bought before we even rest our heads on our pillows for our first night in the home; appliances, garage door opener, blinds. Don't want anyone peeking in on us through the bare windows, now do we???
Not that is was any less real of a feeling before getting re-approved with this new lender, but it was a set back that we held our breath on. Everything up until that point was going very smoothly.
Our next step is to begin the REAL paperwork process at the end of July/beginning of August. This way there will only be 24/72 hours before the start of the build to finish up the rest of the paperwork for signing in September! I don't know how I am going to be able to contain myself until then. At least we have spring and summer to look forward to. I don't know what I'd do if I had to make it through another entire holiday season before all this would begin. At least we know we'll be in the house before the end of this year! YAY!
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Visitation
Today (1/24) we loaded up the family and went to visit our lot. It wasn't exciting to someone looking in on the situation, but it was a BLAST to us! Yep, we're weird like that.
Trust me when I say it wasn't all that thrilling, even for me, but it gave us a sense of where we'll live. We walked on the soil and went as far back as our lot went. It was so neat.
The girls were everything but thrilled after about 2 minutes on the lot. We heard a lot of, "Do we HAVE to come here EVERY day?" and "When are we going to leave?" UGH. Yes & soon.
I'm posting a new photos of our LOT! Don't mind the mess!....
(top left--entry way into the subdivision
top right--end of the road on the right, by the white fence, is our lot)
Color schemes, upgrades GALORE!
Since this would be our last and final (HOPEFULLY) home, we wanted to bulk it up with upgrades. Of course we kept in mind that A) we don't want to pay 30 years (hopefully less!) on some upgrade that we could do ourselves, and B) some upgrades can break (appliances) in the 30 years that you are paying for them. Do you really want to continue paying for the broken upgrade while paying for a replacement???
Saturday January 23rd, we sat down to finish our paperwork and to pick out everything for our new home. It was so exciting, but I was sooo tired from being up late the night before (picked Garrett up at the airport from a business trip) that I wasn't living in the moment. I just wanted to be done and out of there. I feel bad about it, but I can't excuse the fact that I was red-eyed-slap-happy tired. We picked colors, and tile, and wood, and cabinets...it seemed to go on forever.
Garrett was pulling for espresso colored cabinets in the kitchen (think black), all I cared for was something other then builder brown, in a maple wood, with 42 inch upper cabinets and crown molding. I figured I'd allow him a few choices in our home! LOL
Considering the state of mind I was in while picking everything, I PRAY that it all comes together and looks good. I have a fear that we'll be doing our initial walk-thru of the finished home and seeing what I picked will bring me to tears. I hope and pray that this isn't the case. What would I do? Can't turn back, what is done is done!
We also found out what our address will be! This was a exciting moment for me--I'd be finding out what our house numbers would be and it would seem and feel a lot more real (as if signing paperwork wasn't enough!)
Virginia also explained the process of the build and what we can expect in the months to come. Since we won't officially be starting until September, we still had to go over everything as if it would be happening tomorrow.
We'll be assigned a contractor/builder and he'll take over from there. We'll meet with him and he'll show us the blue prints and go over all the details in the home. We'll show him where we want outlets and tv hook-ups, anything that we couldn't go over with Virginia. Once the build begins he will give us a phone call every Friday to update us on the house. Of course I'll be at the home site as much as I can. Although I'll stay out of their way, I will want to pester the heck of the builders and ask as many questions as I can!! I am soo excited!!!
We did have a bit of bad news during our time with Virginia. Who woulda thunk that this should go smoothly! We found out that we'll have to reapply for a CP loan--where they draw on it during the construction process. Not a MAJOR set back, it doesn't make a difference AT ALL, but it brings Garrett and I back to the nail-biting moments of getting approved through a whole different lender. OIY! So the reason why we had to switch to a CP loan is because we have over $15,000 worth of upgrades! We both agreed that we will NOT part with any of our new toys! So CP loan it is!
Saturday January 23rd, we sat down to finish our paperwork and to pick out everything for our new home. It was so exciting, but I was sooo tired from being up late the night before (picked Garrett up at the airport from a business trip) that I wasn't living in the moment. I just wanted to be done and out of there. I feel bad about it, but I can't excuse the fact that I was red-eyed-slap-happy tired. We picked colors, and tile, and wood, and cabinets...it seemed to go on forever.
Garrett was pulling for espresso colored cabinets in the kitchen (think black), all I cared for was something other then builder brown, in a maple wood, with 42 inch upper cabinets and crown molding. I figured I'd allow him a few choices in our home! LOL
Considering the state of mind I was in while picking everything, I PRAY that it all comes together and looks good. I have a fear that we'll be doing our initial walk-thru of the finished home and seeing what I picked will bring me to tears. I hope and pray that this isn't the case. What would I do? Can't turn back, what is done is done!
We also found out what our address will be! This was a exciting moment for me--I'd be finding out what our house numbers would be and it would seem and feel a lot more real (as if signing paperwork wasn't enough!)
Virginia also explained the process of the build and what we can expect in the months to come. Since we won't officially be starting until September, we still had to go over everything as if it would be happening tomorrow.
We'll be assigned a contractor/builder and he'll take over from there. We'll meet with him and he'll show us the blue prints and go over all the details in the home. We'll show him where we want outlets and tv hook-ups, anything that we couldn't go over with Virginia. Once the build begins he will give us a phone call every Friday to update us on the house. Of course I'll be at the home site as much as I can. Although I'll stay out of their way, I will want to pester the heck of the builders and ask as many questions as I can!! I am soo excited!!!
We did have a bit of bad news during our time with Virginia. Who woulda thunk that this should go smoothly! We found out that we'll have to reapply for a CP loan--where they draw on it during the construction process. Not a MAJOR set back, it doesn't make a difference AT ALL, but it brings Garrett and I back to the nail-biting moments of getting approved through a whole different lender. OIY! So the reason why we had to switch to a CP loan is because we have over $15,000 worth of upgrades! We both agreed that we will NOT part with any of our new toys! So CP loan it is!
Approval and paperwork--OH MY!
Picking the home and dreaming about colors and upgrades is EASY! Getting approved and all the paperwork that goes with it is not! We were very nervous about getting approved for a loan. Not only would it be the BIGGEST loan to date, but it would be during a time when lending restrictions are very...strict! This was our fear with our first home, you would think it would go away by now! It doesn't. So we just dive in feet first and pray and hope...and pray.
Of course we got approved, who wouldn't want to approve US! We were ecstatic, this dreaming was moving forth. Next step was to reserve our lot (*) and put money down on it. we had to pinch ourselves to know this was really happening!
Virginia informed us that the lot we wanted was not only available, but that another couple was looking to get preapproved for it! WHAT!! I just couldn't let someone else move in on my lot, our lot. I already pictured us sipping cocktails out on the lanai while the girls ran circles around the yard. I pictured how beautiful the inside would be with our touch and decor. Not only was I not allowing anyone to get our lot, but I wasn't about to do the sit and wait approach on the paperwork. We scored the lot and 10 days later we were due in Virginia's office to complete the rest of the paperwork.
(*) The lot was reserved TWICE by the same gentleman. He didn't come in TWICE to finish up his paperwork. The will only hold the lot for 30 days (30 DAYS! OMG) before the release it. He did this TWICE. We really knew it was meant to be.
Of course we got approved, who wouldn't want to approve US! We were ecstatic, this dreaming was moving forth. Next step was to reserve our lot (*) and put money down on it.
Virginia informed us that the lot we wanted was not only available, but that another couple was looking to get preapproved for it! WHAT!! I just couldn't let someone else move in on my lot, our lot. I already pictured us sipping cocktails out on the lanai while the girls ran circles around the yard. I pictured how beautiful the inside would be with our touch and decor. Not only was I not allowing anyone to get our lot, but I wasn't about to do the sit and wait approach on the paperwork. We scored the lot and 10 days later we were due in Virginia's office to complete the rest of the paperwork.
(*) The lot was reserved TWICE by the same gentleman. He didn't come in TWICE to finish up his paperwork. The will only hold the lot for 30 days (30 DAYS! OMG) before the release it. He did this TWICE. We really knew it was meant to be.
The birth of our Dream
Ever since I can remember I have wanted to build a home. I was drawn to picking out everything that I wanted in a home, having it brand new and never touched. We've already been down the fixer-upper path, and while it was fun it had its moments where we wanted to escape and never look back.
Garrett always had the same dreams as me, and together we knew we would make it a reality. It took time, patience and A LOT of understanding.
We picked our builder, Southern Home, in Jan 2009. We liked the look of the floor plans and felt that Southern Homes had everything we wanted in a home (plus it was affordable to US). None of the floor plans were 2-story, and most all of the floor plans had 4 bedrooms. With the girls still young enough for toys and chaos, we wanted a room just for them and their "stuff".
We also wanted a good sized laundry room, 2 full bathrooms, a 3-car garage, lanai (that's known as a screened porch to the Northern Folk), a nice sized kitchen and, most importantly, his & her sinks!
The picking of the subdivision was very simple. We wanted a gated community, one close to a lake, and one that was very close to where our friends lived. BINGO! Shores at Lake Sears. It's everything we wanted and more. BEST part is we picked the biggest lot, on a corner and facing the water!!! That was the easy part, sitting down and crunching numbers wasn't!!
One Saturday in January (2010), we went to look at a few model homes. We noticed that Southern Home had added more floor plan choices to the subdivision we wanted to build in, but seeing them on paper vs. in person was two different things. The day we went in to look at the floor plan that we LOVED, we left in disappointment. Again it looked better on paper. Our representative, Virginia, sat with us while we talked about what WE wanted in the home. She ruffled through the stack of floor plans and showed us 4 or 5. It was easy to cross off the ones we didn't like and all but 2 were left. I wasn't crazy about the 2nd of the two floor plans, and was reluctant when Virginia urged us to go take a look at both models the following weekend.
The girls were becoming pros at home looking! They don't enjoy it as much as we do; in fact they are kind of oblivious to what is happening! Most weekend trips to the homes are met with moans and groans from them and we get asked if we have to that to 'that lady' again!
We arrived the next Saturday assuming we had THE floor plan. We were shown the one we weren't too crazy about (on paper) Walking into the home felt like walking into a home that was made for just for us. We couldn't believe how much we LOVED the home. It's 3 bedrooms with nice sized rooms. The girls bathroom is HUGE and would be a lot bigger then what they have now. The laundry room was a dream and my mind was swirling with ideas. Garrett LOVED the kitchen, it's a eat in over-looking the living room. The ONLY thing I do not like about it--it doesn't have a window over-looking the backyard! It does in fact have a lot of windows and light from the living room. In the front entry of the house there is a dining room to the left, a sitting area the the right and a enclosed den next to the sitting area! We also get the lanai, master bedroom with a beautiful bathroom. The house was it. I didn't care to see the other one, the one we thought was THE one. We went anyways and boy were we disappointed. It did nothing for us when we walked in. One thing I learned is that when you walk into a home you get a feeling. It is either a good feeling or bad one. You will know, and no one can tell you where or when that feeling will overcome. It just happens and it happened to the both of us.
Garrett always had the same dreams as me, and together we knew we would make it a reality. It took time, patience and A LOT of understanding.
We picked our builder, Southern Home, in Jan 2009. We liked the look of the floor plans and felt that Southern Homes had everything we wanted in a home (plus it was affordable to US). None of the floor plans were 2-story, and most all of the floor plans had 4 bedrooms. With the girls still young enough for toys and chaos, we wanted a room just for them and their "stuff".
We also wanted a good sized laundry room, 2 full bathrooms, a 3-car garage, lanai (that's known as a screened porch to the Northern Folk), a nice sized kitchen and, most importantly, his & her sinks!
The picking of the subdivision was very simple. We wanted a gated community, one close to a lake, and one that was very close to where our friends lived. BINGO! Shores at Lake Sears. It's everything we wanted and more. BEST part is we picked the biggest lot, on a corner and facing the water!!! That was the easy part, sitting down and crunching numbers wasn't!!
One Saturday in January (2010), we went to look at a few model homes. We noticed that Southern Home had added more floor plan choices to the subdivision we wanted to build in, but seeing them on paper vs. in person was two different things. The day we went in to look at the floor plan that we LOVED, we left in disappointment. Again it looked better on paper. Our representative, Virginia, sat with us while we talked about what WE wanted in the home. She ruffled through the stack of floor plans and showed us 4 or 5. It was easy to cross off the ones we didn't like and all but 2 were left. I wasn't crazy about the 2nd of the two floor plans, and was reluctant when Virginia urged us to go take a look at both models the following weekend.
The girls were becoming pros at home looking! They don't enjoy it as much as we do; in fact they are kind of oblivious to what is happening! Most weekend trips to the homes are met with moans and groans from them and we get asked if we have to that to 'that lady' again!
We arrived the next Saturday assuming we had THE floor plan. We were shown the one we weren't too crazy about (on paper) Walking into the home felt like walking into a home that was made for just for us. We couldn't believe how much we LOVED the home. It's 3 bedrooms with nice sized rooms. The girls bathroom is HUGE and would be a lot bigger then what they have now. The laundry room was a dream and my mind was swirling with ideas. Garrett LOVED the kitchen, it's a eat in over-looking the living room. The ONLY thing I do not like about it--it doesn't have a window over-looking the backyard! It does in fact have a lot of windows and light from the living room. In the front entry of the house there is a dining room to the left, a sitting area the the right and a enclosed den next to the sitting area! We also get the lanai, master bedroom with a beautiful bathroom. The house was it. I didn't care to see the other one, the one we thought was THE one. We went anyways and boy were we disappointed. It did nothing for us when we walked in. One thing I learned is that when you walk into a home you get a feeling. It is either a good feeling or bad one. You will know, and no one can tell you where or when that feeling will overcome. It just happens and it happened to the both of us.
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