Ok, by now you can probably tell that I’m getting a little antsy about how everything has gone up to this point… as well as us getting in on time. Originally we were supposed to be in our house by May, then June and now possibly July… so much for our July 4th party.
One problem, per the agreement with our bank it needs to be completed by mid-July. I’m sure they’ll be amenable to modifying the original agreement (more $$) but still… I mentioned it to our GC and he says that “we’re on schedule” and that we should be in before our deadline.
Trying really hard to have confidence, really really hard
Ok, I’m trying to put the developments from the last few days behind me and focus on the big picture; the revised plans have been resubmitted to the City Planning Department so my hope is that it won’t be another 4 week delay. We need to get this going, our GC hasn’t been very responsive and moving in by June is looking more doubtful – it kills me to see that nothing is happening at the house – it’s just sitting there with nothing be done.
Plans are to be submitted tomorrow, per our GC, so my focus needs to be on the overall objective and trying to keep Julie’s spirits up after all of the recent setbacks and delays.
We sent our revisions of the kitchen layout back to our designer; we nixed the farm sink and moved the sink, refrigerator as well as the range around a little. Julie likes the original plan, as does our designer (she thinks it will look good in pictures) and while I’ll quickly admit that I have no idea or experience in designing a kitchen it’s just that the current plan doesn’t make sense to me or seem practical when considering two young boys in the mix. I probably need to remain quiet on this… I wonder if there are any new kitchen mags or kitchen design sites? (I’m joking… sort of).
I met with our GC today at my office. I’m hopeful that something was accomplished and that we’re on the same page however he didn’t take any notes and said a few times that “we’ll figure it out when we get to it” and that he’ll “give us plenty of time” with regards to advance notice in making decisions/selections. He didn’t stay very long, he said that he had another commitment. He also couldn’t give me any sort of schedule or timeline, however I did give him a copy of the plans which Julie and I had marked up. We shall see but I’m not feeling too good about it, just skeptical and disappointed – really wish that I could have discussed everything in more detail and not felt like I was under a time constraint or that we were such a bother. Confused is probably also an accurate feeling, maybe I’m overreacting and this is how it’s handled with residential construction – but I sort of feel like we’re being held hostage.
As for my concerns with the depth of the grading, he said that it was fine, still doesn’t make sense to me but then again I’ve never built a house before. Guess that I’ll be doing some research on Renovator’s Place and Fine Homebuilding. And thankfully I have a lot of wood to split, great way to take out my frustrations.
Our GC had to postpone our scheduled meeting until tomorrow – we’ve got to get back on track. The last thing we want are delays and surprises…been told that’s not possible though with residential construction.
We were also informed that we need to go ahead and decide immediately if we want an outdoor room on our deck so the concrete guys will know prior to pouring the foundation. A little different from what we were originally told by our GC about being able to wait on deciding until after the deck is finished.
I’m really getting frustrated as it seems the wheels are slowly starting to come off.
On a positive note, a colleague of mine introduced me to a local company that specializes in selling floor models of Wolf and Sub-Zero appliances, XTRA Inventory. Still might be out of our range but I can’t wait to see what they have in stock. Love a good deal.
Well our GC informed me today that the grading for the carport is correct and it is exactly as shown on the plans. Ok, he’s correct, however it isn’t what we discussed numerous times. I haven’t been educated in reading construction documents however I do know that numerous times we discussed our size requirements with him as well as the architect.
Tip: do not rely on anything verbal, make sure any changes are in writing and reflected on the plans – this “miscommunication” is now considered a change order (additional costs).
Also found out from our GC that the concrete guy is requiring that the foundation wall design be approved by the Permit Department before he will pour the walls. Delay!! Why was this not known or even drawn before now? Plus, I had to remind our GC about stubbing the basement for a future wet bar as well as the possibility of adding an outdoor room on part of the future deck.
Frustrated, Concerned, Scared and somewhat Mad are pretty accurate feelings that I’m currently experiencing. Our GC tells us that we can deal with the various issues and concerns “when we get to them” but that’s doing little to comfort me. We need to meet with him, we’ve yet to sit down with him and go over the plans in detail and have only walked through the property together twice for about 5-10 minutes each time. Email and phone conversations can accomplish a lot however I think it’s time we go through everything in more detail. This isn’t a little job and in my mind we’re spending a considerable amount of money – we’re overdue for a meeting.
UPDATE: I made the call and we’re scheduled to meet with our GC tomorrow, hopefully we’ll all leave on the same page and more importantly that this will reduce any further delays and/or miscommunications.
Tomorrow’s a new day and I’m looking forward to us getting back on track.
The grading was completed on the expansion portion of the house yesterday so I went by to view what will soon be covered in concrete. Not quite sure… but I think we have a problem, still have some diggin to do. The plans call for an 8′ finished ceiling in the basement, however I’m 6′ and I’m able to reach the top of the floor on the main level of the existing house. I know this can’t be correct as we’ll need to account for the joist, foundation, sub-floor, etc… Also the carport is smaller than what we discussed. I sent an email to our GC just to alert him to what I’ve discovered.
On another note, while Julie has enjoyed deciding on finishes, colors, etc… I’m starting to scare myself. I’m now a subscriber to Better Homes & Garden‘s website and bought a copy of the latest Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles and Renovation Style. Thankfully we were left with a lot of wood that needs to be split – think that I need to go and split some in the near future for a reality check.
Pics of the grading process, you can see that Max had a blast and felt very much at home:
We received the first draft of our kitchen layout today. Pretty impressive but I have a few questions with regards to the refrigerator door opening up into a doorway as well as the kitchen sink being under a “window” that is nonexistent. Never thought that I would, but I actually bought the most recent copy of Kitchen and Bath Ideas on the way home from work, hope this isn’t a prelude as to what’s to come of me.
Morningside Renovation 