New Home Construction....What would you do?

Question

OK-So, I know that I have asked this quesitons before, or something very similiar, but we are getting closer to meeting with the designer. We are building a home that we will most likely stay in until we die. We have 2 small children (under the age of 7) who are both very active and we are on the go a lot! Does anyone have anything that they put into their homes that they can't live without or wish that they had included. I am looking for any advice what so ever. All of it I appreciate. I want to be THOROUGHLY researched with little regrets after we are finished!!!!

Thanks for you input!

Answer 1

Does the house have 2 stories? If so a laundry room on the same floor as the bedrooms is necessary if you will live there into old age. Arthritic knees and stairs with heavy baskets don't mix. As for the stairs use the space under them as a toy closet for the kids.Quick and easy way to hide the toy mess when guests come over. Open floor plans are nice, guest 1/2 bath is a must, Pedestal sinks are awful! Make sure that when you're planning where windows and doors will go you keep in mind furniture placement. Crown molding and baseboard are the like a frame for your room, and make the room look amazing. If you're going with carpet make sure it's stain resistant. Even though we have a no food except at the table rule, you'd be amazed how many spills we have in the living room. Real hardwood is the way to go. Always in style, if it is stained or marred you don't have to replace the whole thing to fix it. You can always place room sized rugs to soften.

Answer 2

I recently bought my first home and also have children under the age of 7 and a dog. I decided to put hardwood laminate throughout my entire house. No stains to worry about and you can buy rugs to go with each room (rugs are also easier to replace than carpeting). I do agree with the mud room. Very,very necessary. I bought a couch and loveseat from Lazy-Boy. It's microfiber so it's easy to clean and very soft to the touch. It also retains heat. Lazy-Boy offers a stain protection warrenty. It's a ten year warranty so if there is any stains that will not come out, they will clean it or reupolster it for free. A master bedroom with walk-in closet and full master bathroom. this is the one thing our rental home had that our new home doesn't and I miss it. I also agree with the laundry room being on the same floor as the bedrooms. Ours was in the basement and it was terrible to do laundry when I was pregnant. If you can, build a pantry. It could even be part of the mudroom if necessary. That's about all that I could think of.

Answer 3

congrats! we built a new house & moved in about a year ago. i have an 8yr old daughter. i have maple hardwood floors everywhere in the house, 'cept for my daughters bedroom we had white berber installed. no regrets on that. also u cannot have enough storage areas or closets. an outlet under each window or installed in the window sill. if u love to cook, buy the best appliances u can afford. also custom kitchen cabinets are a must! granite or silestone countertops are awesome & so timeless. don't skimp on mouldings or baseboards, they will make or break the look. consider doing white mouldings as they go with any color & never go out of style. splurge a lil & do chandeliers in every room, (even the bathrooms)it makes the room upscale. i did this with no regrets. also we thot about doing 9' ceilings, but decided on 10' ceilings everywhere. this makes the rooms look huge. make the foyer ur "WOW" room. this is where the impressions are formed. i can't think ne more... good luck

Answer 4

My Gdad built some interesting feautres into his house for the kids--it was a farm house where the kids were most often outside. Two storey as well.

The kitchen area had a drinking fountain, to keep the kids from dirtying cups--and to keep them moving on through.

The second story that led out to the grove had a fire pole off the balcony, which was a source of endless amusement to my cousins and I as we were growing up.

Just a couple of things to think about...good luck!

Answer 5

The best thing we did was to put the laundry room just off the kitchen. The kids come home from school and do their homework in the kitchen, so while one parent is cooking and the other is doing laundry, either one can still help with homework without having to run up and down stairs.

Answer 6

Congratulations on your new build! We just renovated our home and I can tell you this, upgrade to the best of your financial ability. You'll save $$ in the long run.

First of all, choose the best flooring you can afford. If you choose wood flooring, research the hardness of the wood, soft wood (such as pine) will need to be repaired/replaced over time. There are so many types to choose from, due your homework, find what you like and search the web.

If you choose tile and can't afford natural stone(marble, limestone) buy porcelin, not ceramic. Ceramic will chip. It's okay for walls in the kitchen or shower. Also, have the tile installed with thin grout lines. It will wear better and stay cleaner. And don't forget to have it sealed.

For cabinetry, make sure the interior of the cabinets are made with plywood, not pressboard or the like. If you ever have a leak, the plywood will fare much better (buy the thickest plywood offered if you can afford it). Buy hardwood cabinetry, not veneer, again, if it is within your budget. Add pull outs for your lower kitchen cabinets and a high faucet in the kitchen...the instant hot water tap is great, too. A mud room is great especially if you live in the north or do alot of gardening in the south.

Wall to wall carpeting will always have to be replaced so my house is tiled throughout and I just replace the area rugs when needed. It's much cleaner, too, especially for the kids.

For countertops, use natural stone such as granite, or porcelin tile (there are faux stones now, too, such as Silestone, but you can't go wrong with the real thing). Marble countertops are okay for the bathroom, but they can stain so I don't suggest it for the children's bath. For the kids tub, get a hand held shower head, it's much easier to wash their hair:} Plenty of storage space in the baths, too...the more they grow, the more you'll accumulate.

For doors (such as sliders or french) and windows, go for insulated...it'll save on your cooling/heating bill. They are pricey, though.

If your contract allows you to supply your own kitchen/bathroom hardware (faucets, towel bars, etc.), compare prices on Ebay. I bought very expensive brand new faucets (2 Price Pfister, 3 Delta) at a discounted price. One of the faucets I bought was $300 at Home Depot and a bit less at online stores but I bought it from Faucet Discounters (everything is in the original box with instructions, warranty, ect.) on Ebay for $125. (Happy dance:) A whirlpool tub is great, too, especially when you get a bit older and your body just plain hurts:{ It's very expensive to do this later.

Again, contract allowing, check online for lighting(free shipping and no tax). I saved a bundle after searching Home Depot and different lighting galleries (I live in Miami, FL). You can also find sinks online (I bought a gorgeous hand painted sink from California for $200).

For the electricity rough-in, remember the outside such as carriage lights beside the garage, flood/security lights, patio lighting, outdoor fans (anything you may not be able to afford right now) and have the contractor include that in the plans. It's very expensive to run new lines after the house is built.

Oh, and of course the roof...upgrade!! My sister is building a new house and we're going to make her a T-shirt that says "UPGRADE!"

I hope your contract has a clause for you to be able to supply your own hardware, cabinetry, lighting, etc. It will afford you the ability to save a ton of money since contractors add $$ to the upgrades. If not, add that clause now before you build, if possible. Good luck and have a happy life in your new home.

Answer 7

A mud room that is separate from the laundry room with a big sink and hose. This will come in handy if the kids come in with messy shoes, you can hose everything off in there without dirtying up the house.