Building a home

[Asher]

No. He's an engineer.

[Asher]

The sales lady chuckled when she heard us discussing the colours. Very analytical questions rather than designy...

- Which one will fade the best? The bolder the colour the more obvious the fading, right?
- Which one would be best for resale value? Probably want something neutral.
- Which siding material is the most durable and resistant to hail damage?
- Light colours probably show dirt more...

[SpencerH]

I realize this is Canada we're talking about but it's the Soviets haven't taken over yet. Hmmm, maybe I've been away too long. **** the neighbors! Repaint in pink and purple. You'll have to dismantle that double sized garage door that faces the street anyway since I hate those ugly things. Viva la revolution!

[Asher]

We actually were considering another neighbourhood which has all garages facing the rear, to a lane. Some beautiful houses. But unfortunately, I'd never see it since I always drive in from a scuzzy lane to the back of the house...

[SpencerH]

A much better choice, tastewise. You can always drive by the front yard when you want to. I'm definitely leaning toward the first house style. It's classic (north) american. I'd like to see it in the grey combo now

[Asher]

Yeah, I like how it looks better on the exterior at least.

There were other considerations as well -- the neighbourhood with all of those houses is a bit farther out of the way, with a much lower average house price, and is in a valley instead of on hills. They also don't seem to "sub-zone" the neighbourhood well. Normally the "laned homes" section of the neighbourhood is sort of segregated as it's lower-value houses, but in that neighbourhood (since every house is a lane), you can have $200,000 homes next to $800K-$1M homes. I don't want to buy a nice house like in the first pic there (which is ~2200sqft + basement) to have some guy go build a 1000 sq foot bungalow next door and park his RV in a huge parking pad on his lot...which is what you see a lot with the laned homes.

[Asher]

If you're curious, here's a photo gallery of the interior of that top house:

http://www.sterlinghomesgroup.com/photogalleryster.bpsx?ModelID=143

And the floorplan: http://www.sterlinghomesgroup.com/ph...sx?ModelID=143

This would've been our pick in the other neighbourhood.

[onodera]

Oh man, so many ****ing choices. I wish I was a designy gay.

Does anyone have suggesting for exterior house colors? Gotta choose them first.

The neighbourhood has strict architectural controls, so we've got a rather limited colour pallette to choose from (typically earth tones, but there's also some blues, reds, greens, whites...).

Can you replace siding with plaster? Tan plaster with glazed terra cotta decorations looks really good. That garage door really makes it look ugly, though. Is the lot too narrow to have the garage next to the house?

[Asher]

Can you replace siding with plaster? Tan plaster with glazed terra cotta decorations looks really good. That garage door really makes it look ugly, though. Is the lot too narrow to have the garage next to the house?

Yes, the lot is way too narrow for that. It has to go at the front of the house, there is no back lane (behind the house is greenspace and pathways).

The door we'll be getting looks much nicer as there is detailing on it and windows, so it's not just a steel door.

There is a stucco option (which is what I assume you meant by plaster?), but it's a $30,000 option which I will certainly not be paying for.

[onodera]

Damn, 30K is steep. Just how much do houses cost there? I could have a similar one built for 100-150K here, with foamed concrete walls. The land costs extra and much more, of course

[MRT144]

Best media room sofa ever, amiright?







http://www.leons.ca/shared/product/p...dItemId=257167

I feel like I'm on the USS Entertainmentprize

[Asher]

Damn, 30K is steep. Just how much do houses cost there? I could have a similar one built for 100-150K here, with foamed concrete walls. The land costs extra and much more, of course

The plot alone is $180K.

With taxes, house, etc the total is north of $500,000.

[Flubber]

Can you replace siding with plaster? Tan plaster with glazed terra cotta decorations looks really good. That garage door really makes it look ugly, though. Is the lot too narrow to have the garage next to the house?

I have the front attached garage and while i don't love the look, the functionality cannot be beat. The downside of most of the 'lane" neighborhoods with rear garages is the need to wade through snow and cold with groceries etc etc. I love on a cold day being able to jump in my car without going outside. My lot was also not wide enough to put the gragae alongside (house was 44ish at its widest while the lot was 51 at the front)


Asher, did you decide not to go with Morrison after? I haven't followed closely this thread buit I thought I saw mentions of Sterling???

[Asher]

Morrison had one lot left in the neighbourhood that could fit the house I wanted, and it was awful. It was a back-to-front lot with utility boxes in the front yard, and a steep hill in the back. And it was still $165K for the lot.

[Flubber]

It depends if you're talking about feeder lines or drainage lines. For drainage lines (all non pressure lines) PVC is preferred since they're cheaper and easier to maintain. If they're pressure feeder lines, copper.

AS someone that has worked a little with plumbing, I found the plastic was far easier for do-it-yourself repair. have as much as is possible-- joining copper pipe is not that much fun