making an offer, need ps fairy dust!

[jcrow]

ann: definitely homes in my area have granite, just not the price range of my home. at least not that i''ve seen. the good thing about my (ha ha *my*) neighborhood is that there are higher priced homes in it. those have granite. for sure.

 

[Skippy123]

yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[TravelingGal]

Congrats JCrow! Now we''ll need house shots.

 

[Mara]

this is late but we LOVE our granite in our kitchen. it's a little bit HM but it's so beautiful. we have granite tiles with a dark beige grout and they are holding up wonderfully as is the grout. granite tiles are usually cheaper than slab. i have lived in new homes with small ceramic tiles on the counters and it always makes me think of a rental apartment. we got berber carpet all over the house and we also upgraded and got all 12 inch ceramic matte floor tiles in all the hard flooring rooms, even the laundry room, as we felt it had a more finished look. we had a $15k upgrade credit we negotiated with the seller (try this by the way) because they were eager to move the house (someone else had fallen out of financing at the last minute), and then we paid another $10k for the rest of the upgrades (A/C, alarm, upgraded tile master bath for tub and counters etc). a few of the upgrades might help us sell the house in a year or two but really it was mostly for us...we absolutely love our townhouse and a lot of it is the layout and the extra perks we got like the upgrades.

 

[IrishAngel7982]

That was fast! Congratulations JCrow!

 

[:)]

How exciting! Congrats!

 

[Miranda]

Congrats Jcrow!!!!! Such an exciting time!!! Re. the granite vs. ceramic tile discussion, have you thought of granite tiles??? They have a look that is similar to a slab with the beauty and character of natural stone with a much lower cost. We lived with white ceramic tiles on the counter for 9 years in our "starter" house. I didn''t love it, but, it wasn''t that bad...Just invest in toothbrushes and bleach because that is the only way I know of to keep it white. We have a granite slabs in our new house and I do love the way it looks. If you can, I''d go with granite. I''m not sure what the seller (builder - is it new??? I''m a little confused) offers as far as incentives or options, but, could you go with a flooring choice that is less expensive than wood (porcelain or ceramic tile 12" or better 18") and add granite counter tops for only a little extra $$$?

 

[Sundial]

Congratulations!!!

 

[jcrow]

we did think about granite tiles. but i thought the grout problem would still remain. i wonder what the cost difference would be between ceramic, granite tiles & granite slab...

the floor in the kitchen will already be ceramic tiles. the larger matte ones - which usually matches the ceramic tile counter tops.
should we put wood floors in the living, dining and kitchen instead? oh, this is complicated! eek.

miranda - the house is new. it's not built yet. only the slab poured.

 

[Shay37]

jcrow, that is wonderful news. Congrats to you. I would do granite counters, tile in a coordinating color for the floor. I''m not fond of hardwoods in the kitchen. Love them elsewhere though.

PS: I own a 100 year old home that my husband and I are basically rebuilding from the inside out a room at a time. We pay as we go, so that we don''t have to take a loan on anything. It''s tough making some of the decisions, but we usually agree on most stuff. good luck to you and your DH with this project.

shay

 

[gail013]

Hi JCrow-

Just wanted to add that I think granite in whatever form will pay off for you, either when you sell, or just because it is so durable. You will want an undermount sink, just because you can wipe the counters right off and stuff goes into the sink. There is no maintenence with calk, and it keeps clean. The newer granites or Cambria (manufactured quartz product-very nice, you can cut on this stuff) that are popular now, are the honed finishes-not shiny. Granite is not made for cutting on-it will dull your knives. Also, some of the lighter colors are likely to absorb grease. The Cambria product is more resiliant to all of that. The thing that makes granite durable is the quartz flecks, and the Cambria and Silestones are made of quartz.

Concrete counters are new in the marketplace and also very cool. I am not sure how they price against the above mentioned.

 

[Mara]

oh the one thing i have to really recommend. DON'T GET CARPET in your main living areas and walking areas. especially if you have a pet. ours is still pretty clean, but i have it professionally done 2x a year and it still drives me nuts. especially when i see pictures of it new...so pretty. we also don't wear shoes in the house and it's still dirty. i know it's probably dirtier than we realize. i am dying to have wood or laminate put down but we don't know how long we will be here so not sure we want ot make the investment. next house is going to be hardwood floors in all the main areas and walkways, or ceramic tile in entry and kitchen and wood elsewhere. i'd rather dust the floors daily than vacuum...at least then you can SEE what is on the floor. i would still get carpet upstairs in the less utilized areas but in the main areas, no carpet. it drives me nuts.

and yes we got granite tiles it and it was about $3k less i think. granite slab was about $9k and granite tiles were about $6k. we got a darkish beige grout that ends up never looking dirty even if it is...and we just keep the counters REALLY CLEAN and are very careful with them. we never cut or do anything on the actual countertop, we use flat plastic kind of thin cutting boards to do everything...even open jars. the floor tiles with grout actually got dirtier and we have done the clorox bleach pen on the floor tiles before but not had to do a thing to the top counters.

 

[WTNLVR]

Congrats! How exciting for you. Definately do the granite. You will not crack a slab of granite. Pick one that is very durable and doesn''t need constant care. We have black impala and it is awesome. Doesn''t need sealing, can cut on it, put hot pots on it, everything. I would think twice about buying a house without granite if there was another in my consideration that had it. The cost is surprisingly reasonable, especially for the impala. Any granite dealer can guide you in your choice. I would do hardwood everywhere you possible can -it''s a huge selling feature. When we bought our house we bought at the top of our price range and just got what came with the house. 10 years later, we still have vinyl floors and formica bathroom counters

. Once you move in you just don''t have the energy to deal with contractors in order to upgrade everything later on. Have fun making all the choices. The other thing to think about is upgrading faucets and light fixtures. Get the best grade carpet you can afford as well. Just be careful you don''t get rooked, builders love doing that to people.

 

[jcrow]

don''t worry mara. carpet is only in the bedrooms. ceramic tile is in the kitchen (unless we change that, which we prob won''t), utility room, and bathrooms. oh, and maybe dining room. not sure. since it''s open, i''m not sure where the wood would stop.

 

[jcrow]

Date: 1/8/2007 5:17:45 PM
Author: Ann
jcrow - if you go with granite, what kind of sink does your builder provide? Drop-in or undermount?
Most granite kitchen counters have an undermount sink and that can cause installation $ to go up. But you can use a drop-in sink and save lots of dollars!

sorry, i don''t know how i missed this. i''m not sure about what type they''d use. i will ask though, thanks.

 

[dani13]

Congrats, JCrow!!! How exciting!!!! So happy for you!!!

 

[lovelylulu]

Congratulations to you and your DH!!!!!!!!

That must have been such a great feeling to hear back that your offer was accepted.

What part of LA are you in? I went to school in new orleans and loved it there...

 

[jcrow]

thanks lulu. i''m still pretty nervous about the whole thing. the house should be ready in about 3 months. eek. we have sooo much to do in those next months it''s ridiculous! oh, and we live a few hours away from n.o.

 

[lovelylulu]

Don''t worry! You can shift all of your wedding planning energies over to house moving & decorating

.

 

[jcrow]

might as well keep the momentum going

 

[jcrow]

well, we signed the contract yesterday. now it's just waiting for the building & agonizing over color, fixture, countertop and other choices!

thanks PS for all the fairy dust!!

 

[Dee*Jay]

Great news about getting the contract all signed off on! And don''t forget to have *fun* with picking out all your stuff!

(It''s agonizing but so worth it in the end.)

 

[jcrow]

yeh i''m sure it is, i just don''t know where to even begin. it seems so overwhelming! mainly the kitchen. eek, the kitchen...probably b/c that''s where i have the most options. hehe. options can make a person crazy sometimes. but then again, i may find out i have 2 choices in my budget. hahaha. you never know.

 

[Fran Fine]

Congratulations! That''s so awesome - can''t wait to see pics!

 

[ellaila]

Just catching up on this thread now and ... WOW, that's sooooo awesome, JCrow!!! YAHOOOOO!!!!

Congrats!!

I can't wait for the photos!!

 

[sevens one]

*Congrats*

I''m so happy for you.
I can''t wait for the pics.

 

[jcrow]

well, we just CLOSED on our first home

thanks again for all of the ps fairy dust! this stuff really really works

we move in tomorrow!

yea!!!

 

[Skippy123]

Awesome. Wonderful news; Congrats. Post pics if you can. Very exciting

 

[sumbride]

YAHOO!!!! Congrats!!!

good luck with the move and the getting settled! How exciting!!!

 

[FireGoddess]

Yay yay yay!!! Congrats!!!