Yesterday morning, we took a look at the completed floor plans and elevations from J (the builder). Once again, he pretty much nailed what we were looking for.

However, after some discussion and research, we've decided to change course. We looked at the neighboring houses in the development we'll be building in, and the houses to the left and right of us are ~2,000 and 1,528 square feet, respectively. Our plans came to ~2,300 square feet - we didn't want to be in the position of being the largest house in the immediate area -not a very wise financial move.

What we're now going to do is keep our main floor plan, and build three bedrooms, a full bath, a family room, and storage into the basement, instead of putting bedrooms on a second level. We're also going to keep the elevations (with the exception of removing the second level.) Besides being a better fit for the neighborhood, this allows better HVAC into the bedrooms, keeps the bedrooms quieter, and gives us a lot more living space for less money.

We'll get revised plans next week, allow a second week for revisions, a third/fourth for bids, and will likely break ground around Memorial Day. J, with a straight face, quoted us three months for completion - we'll see if he can deliver.

The journey continues.......