As I promised, here are some homes that we have seen. I think we’ve seen around 20 homes so far? I haven’t been keeping track. [Click on the pictures for a larger view.] These homes are nice, but we didn’t love them, I wish I could find the pictures of the one we offered on, but no luck. We are actually considering the top one on the right. It’s brand new & the lot is decent. If we buy that house, I am planning on changing out all the light fixtures, paint & tile though. We’re planning to meet some builders this week to talk about having a home built for us. Anyone who’s done this before, please give me any advice or tips. Appreciate it.
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Do what you really want to it and roll it into your mortgage (finished basement, nice deck, fixtures, etc.) If you say you’re going to do it later, you probably won’t get around to it. Now we want to finish our basement and trying to find $25G’s to do it is not easy. Oh yeah, and our deck/patio is another $5G’s, minimum.
i like the 3rd one :-)
Xai and I thought about buidling a house too, but we were advise to not do it at this time (in this time of economy) because so many contractors are not doing so well. Hence they may be in business today and tomorrow their not and then you are SOL on your money and the work that you planned for them to do. I don’t really have an opinion other than that’s what we were advised of. I think it comes down to how long can you wait to have a house ready to move in…what does your goals and plans look like in the 1-3 years….
Xai and I bought a house with land so that if we wanted to expand we could…that’s kindda how we came to our house.
Minna- if you build, make sure it is the house you want and do not settle for cookie cutter homes. gosh i hate developments.. the houses you posted up reminds me of JaHer’s (our uncle/cousin who lives near GeNao’s farm) the thing i dont like about JaHer’s house is that there is sooo much vast emptiness to it.. have you been there? you should visit them and see how ridiciously the house is- my opinion that is.. as for you guys- get a 3bedroom 3 bath with an office small and intimate with a big kitchen. i think u would love that much better than the hugely overspaced overpriced homes u find in the developments.. (course i am basing this assumption on the ur old house and the way your old house was furnished and decorated..)
If you go with a builder of course make sure they’re reputable. BUT also beware that you’ll have to sit and wait until the house is done, it’ll be very white (good, but sometimes you want some of the rooms to be painted already) and you’ll have to go through the ga-zillion options for handle knobs, light fixtures and so on. Plus it might cost more in the end as well.
I really liked the one you guys chose, it’s a great looking home. Are you still looking in the Edina area too? Or changed to another part of town? Stay Strong, Have fun and keep us updated!
Ang: I know, that stuff is pricey! I wish we could afford to do everything, but I think we’ll do the basement later. Too much $$.
Pakou: The 3rd one was only nice on the main floor, but upstairs was kind of weird. Such a waste.
Yer: Thanks for the input. Kind of scary thinking about getting scammed.
Caroline: I haven’t seen JaHer’s house, but I have heard about it. Planning to go see Ong’s house. My mom might take us this week. I would love to have a one of kind house that is just a little bigger than our last one, but private school is too expensive & I’m tired of worrying about old windows & old siding & everything that comes with an old home. While I would love an older home because they have more charm & character than new homes, I am just too lazy to take care of them. I know, I am totally a traitor. :)
Linda: Thanks for the advice. We’re not looking in Edina anymore. The houses that we can afford there are either by the highway or railroad tracks, and we don’t want to live by either. We’re still looking on the west side of town though.
Look to Meetas and Lue for some advice. I’m sure they can probably walk you through it. Finding builders and developers. Lue probably could give you some estimations on how much things should cost.
I’m still waiting for that dream house that Lue’s going to design and build for us.
FYI: Lue actually custom designed ChaHer’s, Ong’s and Chia Kao’s (two) houses for a small fraction of a developers price. So, yes, lots of large empty spaces, just perfect for the many Hmong eating and gatherings was what they all requested.
I also like that top right house. I’m all about new, now that I’ve lived in one that’s not very old, but old enough to have some issues!
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