23 March 2015 - Day 97 - Private Inspection

So we had a private inspector come inspect the house today to make sure there wasn't any major issues before we closed on Thursday.

The PM met us at the house and we systematically walked through the house annotating all discrepacies we came across.  I felt bad for the PM as he was being pulled in 4 different directions.... by me and two other realty agents that we had with us.  Took us slighty over 2 hours to go through it all.  

A couple of things the inspector noted was a lightswitch that would not turn off all the way, and blown insulation in the A/C / Furnce drain pan, which could cause a clog.  Other than that below are a handful of things I came across:

- Pin holes in the bathroom grout

- Missing quarter round in mudroom

- some smears and dents on sheetrock and moulding

- cracked master bath cabinet door (on order)

- Missing end piece on gutter above porch

- a few hairline cracks and scratches on hardwood floors

Can't really see it well... the top of the tile leans forward.  A service call will be put in to replace the tile and straighten the wall.

Large gap between moulding and house.  Tyvek can be seen if you look through the gap.

Door does not seal at the top right corner.

Missing window sills

Splatter on wall from stain

Loose lamp post - needs to get secured down.

Gaps between electrical panel and sheetrock.  They will be re-doing the sheetrock for a better fit.

One of my biggest gripes... this one isn't as bad as the other.  Two of the cabinets are slightly slanted.  Basically if a measurement is taken between the cabinet face and the granite, there is about a half inch difference between the left and right meaning that the cabinet is not square.  The PM said that there are easy ways to make it look right by adjusting the tracks and cabinet drawer.  I told him I highly doubt that and that the cabinet will need to get seperated from the granite and re-adjusted.  I'll let him try his fix first and if it's not good enough, I will have to raise the issue further.

Anyway, we are only 3 days away from closing.  Everything seems fairly good and the PM will be getting a certificate of occupancy tomorrow or Wednesday.  We will have our New Home Orientation / Final Walkthrough on Wednesday and a closing on Thursday.  

21 March 2015 - Day 95 - Carpet, Wood Floors, and a bunch of other stuff

It's been a busy two days. We went out there yesterday and today to check on the property as it approached the final few days of construction. 

From the looks of things this is more like the last leg to the finish line. The hardwood floors have been put in, tile work was almost done in the bathroom, appliances had been hooked up, landscaping about complete, door painted and a multitude of other little things. 

Below are a few pictures from yesterday.... We really didn't see much in the house today as they were carpeting all of the upstairs and our PM was actually sanding the downstairs walls to do a final coat of paint. I was surprised to see him inside working with his shoes removed not to damage the carpet or the wood floors even though they were covered.  

Our private inspector will be going his thing this Monday, I'm hoping there won't be much wrong and things can be easily fixed. 

Day 94 

Day 94 Selfie

Day 94 Selfie with hard wood...... That's what she said. 

Hot water heater

Formal Living Room and Dining Room Hardwood Floors

Pantry

Not too crazy about this transition. 

This is some shoddy looking work right here. I talked to the PM, and will look at a different way of doing this. 

Stainless microwave. Pretty nice, but I do miss my advantium microwave. 

Stove. Ready to start cooking. I'll probably cook for my Italian Sunday's. 

Dishwasher. 

A whole lotta data and coax lines. 

2nd bathroom

Our tiled master bathroom shower

Master Tub

See that hump in the wall up top?  It looks bad in person, as if the wall is leaning forward. PM will be fixing it. Not sure if it will be before or after closing. 

Upstairs hallway

What is this fricken thing?  It looks like a darn doggie gate. Where are my steps so I can walk into the back yard? Our Sales Rep had said we got steps and the PM said that it was a $750 addition/option. Grrrr. Still torn on how I want to approach this, especially since I'll be doing a deck within a year.  I asked the SR today and he did say that we didn't get steps now. It was a different answer 5 months ago.  I feel bad for our PM at times because all these issues that are caused by others end up landing on his lap to deal with. 

Driveway

Our porch 

Landscaping

And the wife has been on search mode for some decent curtains with yellow accents. She has finally found some 95" panels from JC Penny's.  Hallelujah. 

19 March 2015 - Day 93 - One Week Out

We can't believe there is only one week left till we get the keys to the house.  As I was at work, my wifey decided she wanted to stop by the property alone without me to witness all the progress... she gets dropped down a few pegs for that... Anyway, she saw the guys working on the master bath tile and also all the appliances delivered, then she iMessaged me so she can tease me.  Oh well still love her; however she has to work extra hard to get those pegs back. :-)

Of course I wasn't gonna let her have all the fun, so we went back out at 4pm.  As I pulled up, there must have been over 5 trucks/vans.  Folks everywhere.... working on landscaping, bathroom tile, kitchen trim, low voltage wiring, water heater, and HVAC.  

For some odd reason the walls looked worse than they did a couple of days ago.... some spots were all banged up... additionally I also confirmed that the panty door was installed backwards.  I notified the PM and he said he'll have it corrected tomorrow.  It's amazing the little things we overlook sometime.  Some of the workers in the house must think I'm strange as I stand and stare in a room for a few minutes studying every corner and crevis.  It also seemed like our PM has been a lot more active with the property these last few days.  Blue tape was attached to different areas throughout the house.  

Morning pictures from the wifey:

Someone is missing here... that's right... it's me.  I told my wife to start small and get different appliances.  This should work.

Hmmm that tile is slightly off the laser line... why bother with lasers if it's not exact?

Half bath downstairs.

I'm back ..... Day 93 Selfie

Side lanscaping

Anyone know what kind of bush this is?

A bunch of vans and trucks... Neighbors have been pissed off unable to get through.

Take screen is fugly.... it has got to go.

Spare bath almost complete... just needs quarter round

Second Bathroom brushed nickel faucets

Sink Brushed Nickel faucets.... all the same throughout the house                                                                                                                          

Our Goose Neck kitchen faucet

Water heater getting installed

Garbage Disposal

Not a fan of this stove/oven.... I see change in the future.

Gawd... those knobs are hideous

Oven/Stove Parking

Dishwasher - much nicer than the one in the model

Supports for kitchen island

Supports and trim for morning room bar

Looks good with the lights turned on... not sure why the light above the sink is on a separate circuit. 

Tile is coming along nicely from what I can see... these guys have been at it for about 10 hours and they still aren't done.

Staircase light fixture.

Onto the Oops pictures:

Dining room fixture is a little crooked.

Kitchen cabinet hits the bulkhead... I'm glad the PM caught this.  First time it ever happened for him.

Pantry door should open inside the pantry.

Why not just rip through the crawlspace drainage pipe?  

Brushed Nickel hinges painted.... come on now.. I paid extra for those.

PM is on it..... getting it done and marking things.  I'll be coming with my Eagle Eyes soon.