Tuesday, August 17, 2010

What We Ended Up With

It's been a while since my last post.  Aside from the fact that not much has been going on with the house, my husband and I went away to celebrate our first anniversary and as a teacher I'm scrambling to get ready for school to begin!  But this is a fun post, so I don't want to put it off any longer.  We decided on the Venice model.  Here are the upgrades we chose:

- Elevation B
- Full Brick Front
- Egress Window in basement (this one boggles my mind, see below!)
- Plumbing for future bathroom in the basement
- MORNING ROOM!!!!!!
- Upgrade to level 2 kitchen cabinets
- Gourmet island in kitchen
- 42" cabinets in the kitchen (this was a no brainer for only $350)
- Kitchen sink upgrade - deeper bowls
- Gas hookup for stove (I don't really consider this an upgrade!)
- Microwave to be mounted above oven
- Ice maker rough in (refrigerator not included!)
- Fire place in family room
- Oak handrails and banisters for stairs
- Upgraded lighting package
- Recessed lights in kitchen, family room, and morning room
- Floor drain in garage
- Upgraded carpet and carpet padding
- Laundry tub (yep, that's an upgrade!)

The price of upgrades does vary from loctation to location.  For example, a finished basement for my model in Pittsburgh is close to $12,000 but in Ohio is $6,000 for the same model.  While they may not be the same, if you're interested in cost, feel free to email me at ryanbuilder2010@gmail.com

So some of the upgrades we're getting are hardly upgrades in my mind.  For example, we are REQUIRED to have a window in the basement - it makes sense.  However, this is an $850 upgrade.  My feeling is that if something is required to meet code, it should be included in the price of the house.  Other absurd upgrades (in my mind) were the gas hookups, the floor drain, garage opener, and wash tub.  Also, I was very disappointed in the standard lighting package.  I know we could have changed the light fixtures ourselves, but I think that cost would add up very quickly if we did it on our own.

All of that aside I am very happy with what we're getting.  Sure there are things I wanted that we didn't get, but we're going to have a great house.  I'm most excited about the morning room!  I can't wait to be in our new home.

Next time I'll post about the upgrades we didn't get....and why.

7 comments:

  1. Hi k m,

    Would love to see the list of upgrade options and their costs. I too have noticed a variance in upgrade pricing depending on the area...actually depending on the development.

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  2. I'm building with Ryan as well. One upgrade I found absolutly absourd wsa $650 for a drain in garage. But got to have it.....

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  3. bdeandel - you can email me at ryanbuilder2010@gmail.com and I'll send the list of uprades and costs. It is interesting to see what things cost in different areas.

    Chris - I KNOW!!! Those types of "upgrades" drive me crazy!

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  4. Absolutely agree with you that the basement window should come standard!! Kind of a ripoff! Yay for the morning room!!!

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  5. Megan, hope your move went well. Looking forward to an update and some pictures!

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  6. looking to build with Ryan homes. Considering adding the extra four feet to my home. WOuld like to have an idea of cost before meeting with the sales rep. any idea?

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  7. Upgrades with ryan are typically more expensive than you could do it yourself, you should have bought the light fixtures yourself as it would have been cheaper. Crazy to think that is true but they take advantage of people needing to roll it in the mortgage.

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