Saturday, October 8, 2011

Loan Approval - Check!

We were surprised when we received a call yesterday from the LO.  It had only been five (business) days since we submitted our loan application, so I assumed NVR was asking for more paperwork.  Instead, we were congratulated on our loan approval - yay!  That was fast!  After hearing so many NVR horror stories, we expected there to be a few bumps in the road.  Hopefully this is an indication that they have made changes in their business procedures to help better serve their customers.  We have over seven months to go before closing, so we can only hope that the remainder of our interactions with NVR will go just as smoothly.  What was your experience with NVR?

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Exterior Color Selections - Check!

Over the weekend, we met with our Sales Rep to choose our exterior colors and finalize our options and upgrades.  We fell in love with the color scheme at the right on our first trip to the Oakmont model.  Unfortunately, the shutter and door colors are no longer offered, but there were similar colors available.  Here is our exterior color scheme:

Brick:  Biscay
Siding:  Stone Mountain Clay
Trim:  Almond
Shutters:  Black Watch Green
Front Door:  Fine Wine

We are still unsure about the front door color.  The small sample door in the design center appeared red, but it appears more purple on the Sherwin Williams website.  Did anyone choose Fine Wine for their front door color?  How did it turn out?

We also reviewed our selections from Rusmur flooring and Guardian and added a few outlets to complete our options.  We also learned about some upgrades for our phase that RH has included in the base price of our home:
Icemaker RI
Poured Wall Foundation
3 Dimensional Shingles
Knock Down Stipple (Textured Ceiling)
Upgraded Landscaping Package with Black Mulch
Upgraded Garage Door (Carriage Style)
Passive Radon System

The township will be paving the first 3rd of our road within the next few weeks.  After that, we'll meet with our sales rep again and meet with the PM to thoroughly inspect our homesite.  Hopefully we'll get to put a "sold" sticker on our lot sign at that meeting too!  After that, there won't be much going on until our pre-construction meeting in February.  Of course, the hubs and I will be browsing for furntiture, appliances, and some other items we want for the house while we wait to break ground!

Here is a photo of the current view from the top of our street.

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Flooring Selections - Check!

We spent about one hour at Rusmur making our flooring selections.  I took a few photos, however, the overhead flourescent lighting distorted the coloring a bit.  I think we made some choices that are fairly popular.

Family Room Carpet:  White Fox with 6# upgraded padding
Foyer, Powder Room, Kitchen, Morning Room, Laundry:  Initiator 66178
Kitchen Cabinets:  Wyoming Cherry Spice
Kitchen Countertop:  Butterum Granite



Upstairs Hall Bath:  Andover Maple Spice Cabinet
                              White cultured marble countertop
                              Flooring:  Initiator 66180


Luxury Owners Bath:  Andover Maple Spice Cabinet
                                  White cultured marble countertop
                                  Tile Flooring & Surround, and Listello:  Brixton Bone


We chose to carry the White Fox carpeting throughout the rest of the home including the study, dining room, and upstairs.  We selected a chestnut stain for our banisters/handrails.  Overall, we were pleased with the selection at Rusmur.  We were advised to not upgrade any carpet unless it was to at least level 5 from several people we know who already own a RH.  We followed that advice and only upgraded the padding in our family room with the expectation that the carpet will need to be replaced within a few years - at least in the high traffic areas.  What did you do about the carpet?  Did you find the selections offered at Level 1 to be of low quality as well?