Continuing from our new construction home building guide post earlier, here is a list of options that we wish we had chosen for our home. I guess I can split it into two; options that we wish we had chosen (we had no idea we could ask for some of these) and options that we asked for but didn’t get. So here is a post totally ignoring the fact that adding any of these options would have put us over our pre-approved loan amount (we maxed out on that)! 🙂 However, there are a few that had I known about earlier I would have preferred over the ones we chose (like the garage extension over the upgraded granite for kitchen countertops).
First up, options that we wish we had chosen/asked for: in order of their importance to us,
- Extend the garage by a few more feet. Didn’t even know we could do this! With all the kids’ bikes, scooters, the lawn equipment, and the gigantic trash/recycle bins the extra space would have been a life saver.
- More recessed lighting. We thought we had added enough but we definitely need more especially in the kitchen and the family room.
- Gas line to the back of house for the grill. This one was available but we didn’t think it was necessary at the time. After almost 2 yrs in the house, we badly wish we had added it, would have saved us the hassle of changing out the gas cylinder now and then.
- A centralized humidifier would have lessened the crown molding cracks due to the wood expansion/shrinkage. At least that’s what we were told by the ‘super’ at our 1 yr inspection.
- Expand the corner shower in the master bathroom. Again, more space would’ve been great.
- Add a hose bib on the main level where the deck would be built (we built the deck later) to wash the deck and water the planters. Would have been so easy to fill up my container water garden after each cleaning! This one is very important if you have a walkout basement (ours is a semi walkout).
- Pull out drawers for the under the sink bathroom cabinets for better organizing.
- Windows in the 3 bathrooms and the laundry room. Luckily we have a good size window in the master bath.
- Though not a huge priority, attic pull down stairs would have been nice to have.
- During our pre-sprinkler days, we have kicked ourselves so many times for not adding outside hose nozzles on the sides of the house (we have one in the garage in the front and one in the back).
- Pull out drawers for pans in the kitchen, again better organization.
- A dual zone HVAC system. Our builder did not have this as an option. According to them our single zone system is really powerful. So far we are happy with our electricity bill. Still, a 2 zone would have given us more peace of mind.
- Laundry room sink. This was actually an option that we had chosen. But once the builder finished the model home (we bought it at the pre-model stage, more details here) they realized that there was no space for a sink in the laundry room. So we had to take it out. Instead we could have pushed for one in the unfinished area in the basement, which we didn’t.
- Glass French doors for the home office. Another thing that we should have pushed a bit harder as some of our neighbors who built later on got it. We do have French doors for the office but not glass.
- Heated grid for tile floors. Especially true if your kitchen has a tiled floor. We have tiles only in the bathrooms, so not a big deal.
- Extra outdoor outlets, if you’re big on Christmas lights/decorations
- Double hung windows
Did I miss anything? What features do you wish you had in your home? What was your experience buying a new construction home like?
This stuff is useful!
Thank you! Hope it helps you in your house hunting endeavor. Good luck!
Vidya
Plugs above fireplace for Chrismas lights or decor. And several outdoor plugs.