I've haven't posted much in the last several months because I've been busy tidying up our current home preparing it to sell. Painting, deep cleaning, and other domestic chores didn't seem too interesting and frankly, after long days, I didn't feel like anyone would be interested in reading about it! We have moved to the next step in our 'relocation' process and it's much more interesting...at least to me!!
Wonderful Hubby and I have always planned to build a ranch-style home when we retired.
I took the plunge first in June of 2013 and he joined me in May of last year.
We had the first visit with our architect in June. Although we had LOTS of ideas, we didn't have a firm floor plan in mind.
Our architect listened to all our 'wants and needs' in this new home. And we had plenty!
He worked on the plans, sent his sketches for revision, met with us several more times and FINALLY delivered what we hope will be the perfect retirement home for us!
As I mentioned we had 'several' things we really wanted
to incorporate in our new home. These included:
- A front angled two-car garage - In our current home, the garage is on the side of house and it's impossible to see if anyone has driven up to our home without looking out through the opened garage door. We live in the country and our new home will also be in the country. As an older person, I want to be able to see if anyone has driven up to our house. We will eventually have a concreted drive/turnaround that will come to the front of the house and garage. Everyone will be using the front door!
- I would like a craft studio where I can work on sewing and crafting projects, edit my photography and store my supplies. Currently, I do all of this on three levels. I'm excited about the possibility to have it all in one place ... AND be able to close the door when company comes!!
- Wonderful Hubby wants a 'man space'. He wants a rustic decor that reflects his interests (hunting, golf, farming). Since this room will be in the basement, we discussed having a walkout to a patio area. This would have made us add a deck to the back of the house on the main floor. Neither of us wanted that look for the great room. Instead, we will have plenty of light in this lower 'lodge' area and a simple walkout on the side of the house.
- The kids' bedrooms will be on the lower level. We discussed this prior to meeting with the architect and it just seemed to make the most sense for us. They are older now and when they come to visit, they will have a bit more privacy. It also frees up floor space on the main level. There will be a full bath between the two.
- Consideration for a future elevator. We have seen elevators in several homes recently and realized their value when and if we would become incapacitated. Staying in this home as long as possible is a major goal. The plans include a roughed-in area for an elevator. Unfortunately, it will be at the expense of my craft studio's closet!! Oh, well!
- Big kitchen/dining room combination. I'm really looking forward to this!
- An outdoor entertaining area. Currently, we have a covered back porch but it's not very large. WH would like something that incorporates his grilling area with an eating/relaxing space. He and the architect spent a lot of time planning this and I think his vision will be a great space to share with family and friends!
The exterior will be brick and stone. Our current home is vinyl siding and because of the trees and humidity oin our area, we have to have it power washed every several years. As an older couple, we decided to go with brick. It doesn't show the mold!
We will be using geothermal heating and cooling. In fact WH installed the pipe field this fall. (He's quite handy!) In a future post, I'll share how it was done. We heat our current home with a Hardy wood furnace. NONE of us will miss cutting, splitting, and hauling wood or having to 'fire up' in the freezing cold!
Since Wonderful Hubby is retired now, he will be the general contractor. He feels pretty confident in this role and knows a lot of the area contractors.
We have started the bidding process.
Several ladies have already been through this and have shared their 'moving adventure' on their blogs. I have enjoyed reading about both Pat's (Back Porch Musings) and Kathysue's (Good Life of Design) experiences and thought processes. I hope to share some of our experiences here this coming year and would welcome your comments and suggestions.
It will be a busy and eventful year! Selling a home, building a new one and helping a bit with Precious Daughters wedding! Think I'll have some gray hairs by this time next year?!
Zenda
Linking to:
Make It Pretty Monday
Tuesdays With A Twist
17 comments:
Zenda, I'm so excited for you! The house plans look lovely and you have really thought everything out well. Hope you sell your home quickly and look forward to the updates on your new home. So glad you'll be sharing with SYC.
hugs,
Jann
What a wonderful time for you! Retired and building a new home. A future elevator space is a great idea. How I wish we had designated a spot an elevator. Be sure that you have a reputable company that oversees all of your contractors' invoices and payments. You want your home to be free from all liens of contractors. We went through an established builder who oversaw our home building for a percentage of the house cost. All contracts and payments went through his building company insuring we had a clear title to our home. My husband did a lot of the actual building because he took accumulated compensatory time from his full-time job. Everything bought went through our builder.
Looking forward to seeing your new home progress...
Judith
Good luck with the process. I am a few years behind you, but we will be searching for or building a lake house soon :-)
Zenda, how exciting! A new home in the makings! It is going to be beautiful! And a wedding coming too! WOW! Sounds like you are going to be a busy gal too! Life is full but ain't it wonderful! Hugs and blessings, Cindy
Like you, I retired in June of 2013, but we have never considered building an entire home. All of our additions and changes were enough for us.
I applaud you for building just the house you want.
I look forward to seeing posts as you Share Your Cup through the process.
Wow you have a lot on your plate as they say! How exciting to build a new home!! We had two homes built and one remodeled. I enjoyed the process even though there are days that can seem to challenge your patience. It makes perfect sense to put the extra bedrooms downstairs- I've seen it done many times and it allows you much larger rooms upstairs. I hope you'll share the process as you go- it's fun to observe and pick up things from others.
First of all, so nice to "meet" you! Thanks for your visit and comments. We built this house 3 years ago. It is in a 55 plus community and we LOVE living here. The ONLY drawback is we had to choose one of the models that they offered. In this model we have tiny closet space. BUT we do have huge storage areas in the basement even though alot od it is finished. As far as the building process: I would try to be there at the site almost every day if that is possible. In the last house we built, I went every day and thank goodness cause one day I got there and they had put a wall where no wall was supposed to be! I was there in time for them to remove it. It is great to be able to check on little things too. Take plenty of pictures. That way since your hubby is handy like mine he will be able to "see behind the walls" after it is built. Hope this helps.
Stumbled onto your blog via Art Is Beauty blog. My husband and I will be doing the same thing you are doing this year. We have been busy readying our house for about 6mths. Wanted to finish the basement before putting it up for sale this Spring. Lots of hard work. We will be moving to another state where we own property for our next adventure. I will be following your blog and New House happenings! Good Luck!
You have been busy and have lots ahead of you but so much of it will be fun. Building a new house is exciting and it looks like you'll have all the things included that you wanted in your new home. I look forward to sharing the process with you as you start your new dream home....
Wow how exciting to be building your dream house. It looks like it will be beautiful when finished.
Thanks for sharing this at our Cooking and Crafting with J&J!
How wonderfully exciting! It sounds like you and your hubby have a good grasp on what you want in this home. I hope you will share the progress!
Carol
That look fantastically exciting! I wish you the best! Do post it at Home Sweet Home! I love to see the finished product! Thanks for sharing at Home Sweet Home!
It will be fun to keep up with your adventures. Maybe I can get my husband in the mood to sell and build. I would love "less house"!!! Good luck.
Zenda,
Congratulations!!!
How exciting to be building a "Dream Home" filled with comfortable living design for retirement!!!
"Mr. Ed" and I have looked for several years to downsize,
but all the homes available in our area are still too large.
Last Fall, I mentioned to a Realtor, perhaps we need to buy a lot
and do a Custom Build. Hope that made her think!!!
I'll be watching for progress reports!!!
fondly,
Pat
This is SO exciting! :) How neat!
Thanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!
Love the detail of the plans for the house. You really took the time to get it all on paper. I bet the kids are going to love their room. We had the same type plan and putting the kids room there was the best decision we ever made. They love the room and it is far enough away they don't bother anyone.
Wilbert Bowers @ Mirr Ranch Group
This is such an exciting time in your lives! Building a new home is quite the adventure but architects do fantastic work. I am glad you were presented with a home that is everything you want. I am very interested to see what was out on paper come to life. Good luck in the building process!
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