Monday, March 27, 2017

Counting Down...

4 out of the 5 townhomes in my building have sold and Ryan Homes has applied for the county permit to start building! The anticipated start date for construction is the 3rd week of April. I can't wait! I know it will seem so much more real when I can actually see progress on my house. I ran by the community on Sunday afternoon and saw a lot of progress on the next building to be complete. It was wrapped in insulation and framing was completely done! AND, another building has been started with framing about half way done!
 
I completely forgot to take any pictures but I will do that next time I'm out there!

Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Final Changes... I hope!

Well, I have made another big change since my last update. I've been going back and forth on the attic/4th floor. When I originally looked at this community I never planned on having the attic add-on. It wasn't until I went to sign the contract that I talked to my parents about the possibility of adding this to the floor plan. I knew I didn't have a need for the attic but I was worried about re-sale without it. After much consideration I have decided to save the $36K and NOT put in the attic. I was able to make this change due to the changing of my lot and all of these last minute adjustments that normally wouldn't happen.
 
My final change I made is another lot change. I will now be lot #29 which has the option for a larger deck due to being pushed more forward on the lot. I will be able to have an 18x9 deck as opposed to an 18x6 deck on lot 30. The colors of this elevation will be a light green siding and a darker green door and shutters.
 
I emailed the Guardian rep and told him about the changes. I made the suggestion (to keep things simple) that we should move the ceiling fan rough in and the data/cable hook up in the attic to bedroom #3. He said that was fine and he would work on the changes for me!
 
I hope there won't be any more curveballs thrown my way and no more changes need to be made! I'm ready to start seeing some work on my house. It seems like a mid April construction start is on the books at this time. I can't wait!

Friday, March 10, 2017

Big Changes in the View...

One of my best friend's got this for me when she was out and it's exactly how I feel. I can't wait to put it in my new home!
 
 
 
And now for the updates and big changes....
 
I haven't updated in a while because I didn't feel like I had much to say. I felt like I was in a holding pattern as my building was not scheduled to begin anytime soon. I was originally told a possible delivery date of September 2017. While I was sitting at work yesterday, I got a call from my awesome sales rep who said she needed to talk to me. That's always nerve wracking! She explained that during a site plan meeting they were seeking to possibly get clearance to start my building earlier, but were denied and were told they actually would not be starting my building anytime soon. She mentioned several reasons Baltimore County gave for the delay but I can't honestly remember any of them. My brain was swimming at this point! My biggest source of anxiety with this entire process was the not knowing when my house would be done or even when it would start so this was a big deal to me.
 
But, because my sales rep is awesome, she had another plan to offer me and the other people who originally bought in my building. She was able to offer us another building. This building is considered a premium, unobstructed waterfront view that was originally going to be $50,000 more than what our lots were. We were offered these lots for $10,000 more than our original lots which  is a $40,000 difference!
 
So here are my options:
  1. Continue on with my current plan and stick with my previous lot. There is a question mark in terms of delivery date but they are thinking December or January, if not later!
  2. Move my lot to the unobstructed waterfront view for $10,000 more and have an estimated delivery date of July 2017.
I can honestly say these lots are better. My previous lot was waterfront but looked onto a marina with a boat that I considered quite an eye sore (think huge, pink, and rusted) and an actual sunken boat that was partially sticking out of the water. This new view is looking on boat slips and nothing else. There is a view down the entirety of Bear Creek. My sales rep explained to me that they were only going to need 4/5 townhomes sold to apply for the county permit and start building! As of now, three are sold (including mine) and there is one other person from the old building that she would be offering this deal to. If they decide to come over to the new building then it will be time to get started! So needless to say, I went with option #2!
 
I'm really excited about this opportunity! I'll attach some pictures of my new lot and view!
 
 
I'm now homesite 30!
 
 
My new unobstructed waterfront view
 

I'm anticipating some pretty epic sunsets from this house. 
 


 

Home sweet home
 

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Making my Guardian Selections

Last night I had my meeting with Guardian. This was an exciting meeting for me because I was looking forward to putting some technology in my home. I went into the meeting with an idea of the things I wanted to add and only changed my mind a few times while there. I'm very happy with my selections and thought they offered some pretty cool options as "included." Here is what I added:
 
  • For this community Guardian offered the base package of the alarm system and home automation for free (aside from paying the $50/month for the service). This means I will be able to control my door, garage door, alarm system, and thermostats from my phone. It will also come with a motion detector for the main level (a special pet friendly one that only picks up motion in people/objects greater than 40lbs). The only thing I added was a window sensor for the basement window.
  • Smart connections package: this package will take care of my cable and Ethernet connections. This was important to me since I like to use my Apply TV and Roku and sometimes notice a lag with streaming over Wifi. I added cable and Ethernet hookups in the rec room (basement), main level, master suite, 1 spare bedroom, and the attic loft.
  • I added 1 wall mount set up for the TV on the main level. I would like to install a full motion TV mount in this area so I can turn the TV to face the kitchen or living room. This will feature will allow the HDMI cable and outlet to be behind the TV so you don't notice any wires hanging behind the TV.
  • Home entertainment system to allow music to be played wirelessly throughout the rec room and living room/kitchen. Two speakers will be installed in the rec room ceiling and 2 speakers will be installed in the main level (living room and kitchen). I will have wall control units for each area to be able to adjust the volume and power it on/off in individual rooms. This will run primarily from my phone via Bluetooth.
  • 4 ceiling fan rough-ins. 1 in the attic, spare bedroom #1, master suite, and living room. I will start shopping for ceiling fans of my choice closer to move in time.
  • 4 recessed lights in the living room.
 Overall I'm really excited about the options I included. I can't wait to see how everything will look!

While I was there, I got a better picture of the new community sign
 

Monday, February 27, 2017

Buying and Building my FIRST Home!

I've thought about buying my own home for many years. I always knew it was something I wanted to accomplish, but didn't think it was possible. For as long as I can remember, I've been drawn to anything water and have often thought about how amazing it would be to own a home on the water. After moving to Baltimore, I would find myself going to open houses in the area that were waterfront or close to waterfront but would experience sticker shock at the prices and property taxes. One day, while doing my "weekly "Redfin search of the area, I came across new construction townhomes in Dundalk, MD that were waterfront on Bear Creek in Lynch Cove. It looked too good to be true! I immediately decided I needed to go out to explore the area for myself. On February 5th my dad came to Baltimore and we made our first trip to visit the community and meet with Brittney, one of the sales representatives. From the second I pulled into the community I was sold! The community features Mozart and Mozart with attic floor plans. The homes were neutral colors but had a nautical feel to them. There were a mixture of waterfront lots as well as interior lots. As soon as I walked into the model home I fell in love. I knew this was the place for me.

On February 12th I returned to the community to sign a contract on my soon-to-be home. I brought the expert panel (Mom, Dad, and Holly) for assistance and guidance. My original intention was to sign a contract for the Mozart floor plan (without attic) on waterfront lot #44. The day before signing the contract I spent the day/evening thinking about the attic and how it could improve my resale value and add storage space. Although it is only going to be me and my chihuahua and cat living there, I wanted to look ahead to the future. From walking around the community, it seemed like the buyers in the existing waterfront building had all opted for the attic. I decided I would too. Adding the attic not only added a 4th floor, but it also added a "roof top deck" in addition to the deck on the main level and a second HVAC unit.

Signing the contract was made incredibly easy because of my awesome sales rep, Brittney. She made the process fun, exciting, and easy to understand. I still can't believe I have a contract on my first home! I look forward to updating everyone as this process continues!

 
Putting the "Sold" sticker on the master plan!


Putting the "sold" sticker on my home site 


It's mine! 


View from my home site 

Looking at the community pier and onto the boat slips 
 
 
 New Ryan Homes boat slips to the left, existing boat slips to the right