Checking in

Sorry I have been MIA... work is taking up most of my time lately.  Just wanted to give  a quick update on some recent service requests and some stuff we have been working on!

Service Requests:

We've been getting leaks in our basement under the front of our house.  There is a crack in the foundation at the spot of leakage so we assumed it was getting in through there.  However, when RH came to check it out, we discovered that the water was actually getting up under the siding and coming in above the foundation.  Apparently the culprit was an incorrectly installed stoop.  Now they have to come back and take off a whole bunch of siding and replace park of our framing that is already water damaged.  I'm a bit nervous because it's somewhat of a major fix, but hopefully it will go smoothly.

We had also been having problems with a banging heater, which they easily resolved with some extra screws where pipes were loose.

We lost some siding during the crazy windstorms down here last week.

And the final thing is the infamous shower!  This is the third (hopefully final) time we are having our master bathroom shower tiles fixed! 

Progress:

We have been working hard on our family room!  We did some painting last weekend, bought some awesome new furniture and I've been working on some DIY wall art!  Progress photos to come soon!

We have resumed work on the deck as well!  We are in the middle of installing our drainage system and we have ordered all of our PVC decking and railing materials, which should be arriving this week.  Once we are finished I'll share the breakdown of costs.  Let's just say our original budget was a little off. :) 

I hope everyone had a great St. Patrick's Day!

We Have Lumber!

We stopped at our lot on the way home from the shore* on Sunday and saw that our foundation had been backfilled and our lumber has been delivered!  (*1 hour and 5 minutes from our new house to the shore... woohoo!!).  Our basement floor slab is supposed to be poured today so hopefully they will begin framing before the holiday.

Lumber has arrived!

Our lot... if you look really hard you can see the foundation sticking up.

The secret to their speedy framework... the pieces come pre-assembled!

Exterior insulation, I think.

Basement

Garage

Not sure what that black thing or the two pipes are.  I imagine it's something to do with the sump pump?

I'm guessing this is where our septic connection will be.

I am a little concerned about this.  About 10 of our frame pieces were completely destroyed.  I guess it happened during delivery.  I hope they replace those pieces and don't just try to patch them up.

Close-up of some of the broken frames.

Week #2 Update

I just got our weekly call from our PM...  They passed the backfill inspection on Wednesday (backfill is now completed) and the foundation inspection this morning, so they will be pouring the basement slab on Monday.  He said the lumber should be delivered either today or Monday then they will start framing either Tuesday or Thursday.  I know it's still VERY early, but it seems like everything is on schedule so far.  I hope it stays that way!

On another note... while it's been very difficult for me, I still have not bought anything for the house.  I'm trying really hard to restrain myself because I want to be in there for a while before we decide what we REALLY need to buy.  I'm also just trying not to spend money before we close since we will be pretty close budget-wise for how much cash we need a closing plus how much I want to keep in the bank.  So far we are right on schedule, but I don't want ANYTHING to affect our ability to "re-qualify" with NVR since it seems like a lot of people have had issues.

Have a great weekend!!

Foundation

We made our first stop at the lot since construction began and I'm very pleased with the progress so far.  They broke ground last Monday and we already have a foundation!  I was glad to see that our basement was dry on Sunday even though we had a massive rain storm on Friday night.  Our PM called me on Friday with our "weekly update" and he said they would probably be going through inspections this week and then start framing within the next few weeks.  

Here are some pictures of our house so far:

View from the street.

The infamous elevation bump-outs!

Ours is a reverse plan, so that's the garage at the front-left, family room rear-left, morning room/kitchen/foyer/stairs in the middle, and living and dining room on the right.  The two things sticking out in the front will be our "stoop".

Me climbing up on our stockpile to get a better shot!