As many people have seen we are going through a crazy situation with our home not fitting on our lot. We went down to our community to meet with our Sales Rep on Saturday and went over our options and made a Plan A, B & C.
Plan A
Earlier last week our SR told us to write up a list of things we needed from Ryan Homes in order to get us to move to the other lot (that we don't like as much). We wrote up a pretty long list because we figured we might as well ask. All they can do is say no. This list contained having them build us a deck (to compenstate for us not getting a walk out basement and essentially having no direct access into the backyard) as well as many other options (upgraded carpet, ceramic tile in all bathrooms, crown molding on cabinets, double vanity is secondary bath, etc). It's a long list. This is what we would get if we lived in a perfect world. If they say yes to our long list of demands then we will move. Our SR said she's "Just being honest .. but that is not going to happen," which we already kind of knew.
Plan B
We see what Ryan Homes' counter offer is to our long list of requests. We're thinking they may offer to give us a deck and then offer to give us some options at cost. Once we get this offer, which should be tomorrow or Wednesday, we can make our decision if we think it's enough.
Plan C
We choose a different home model and stay with our better lot. As I mentioned before, only two homes our community offers will fit on our lot. These include the Venice and the Milan. We originally were going to go with the Venice, but then we got worried that it was too small. We didn't like the floor plan of the Milan because of where the morning room would be located (The morning room was more of an extension of the kitchen - less open concept). While looking at the big poster for the Milan at our community's office on Saturday we realized the Milan's floor plan looked different so we asked about it. They're actually changing the Milan's floor plan based on feedback from people who built the Milan previously. People said they wished the morning room opened up into the kitchen and great room, compared to just the kitchen. This was the only thing we didn't like about the Milan so now that it has changed it is back on the table. The only problem is that the Milan's base price is about $10k more than the Palermo in our community so I don't know if we'd have to make cuts or if they could maybe give us that home with the same options our Palermo had for the same price (kind of like giving us a 10k discount due to their mistake and us having to change models and go through all of this craziness). I don't think that is a far fetched request but my boyfriend doesn't think they'll let us do that .. Anyways, here are some pictures of the floor plans- Old floor plan vs new floor plan.
4)Our building has definitely been delayed. We originally were going to have our pre-construction meeting on the 20th but that won't be happening now. We haven't rescheduled a meeting yet because the length of the delay depends on what we choose to do.
Plan A
Earlier last week our SR told us to write up a list of things we needed from Ryan Homes in order to get us to move to the other lot (that we don't like as much). We wrote up a pretty long list because we figured we might as well ask. All they can do is say no. This list contained having them build us a deck (to compenstate for us not getting a walk out basement and essentially having no direct access into the backyard) as well as many other options (upgraded carpet, ceramic tile in all bathrooms, crown molding on cabinets, double vanity is secondary bath, etc). It's a long list. This is what we would get if we lived in a perfect world. If they say yes to our long list of demands then we will move. Our SR said she's "Just being honest .. but that is not going to happen," which we already kind of knew.
Plan B
We see what Ryan Homes' counter offer is to our long list of requests. We're thinking they may offer to give us a deck and then offer to give us some options at cost. Once we get this offer, which should be tomorrow or Wednesday, we can make our decision if we think it's enough.
Plan C
We choose a different home model and stay with our better lot. As I mentioned before, only two homes our community offers will fit on our lot. These include the Venice and the Milan. We originally were going to go with the Venice, but then we got worried that it was too small. We didn't like the floor plan of the Milan because of where the morning room would be located (The morning room was more of an extension of the kitchen - less open concept). While looking at the big poster for the Milan at our community's office on Saturday we realized the Milan's floor plan looked different so we asked about it. They're actually changing the Milan's floor plan based on feedback from people who built the Milan previously. People said they wished the morning room opened up into the kitchen and great room, compared to just the kitchen. This was the only thing we didn't like about the Milan so now that it has changed it is back on the table. The only problem is that the Milan's base price is about $10k more than the Palermo in our community so I don't know if we'd have to make cuts or if they could maybe give us that home with the same options our Palermo had for the same price (kind of like giving us a 10k discount due to their mistake and us having to change models and go through all of this craziness). I don't think that is a far fetched request but my boyfriend doesn't think they'll let us do that .. Anyways, here are some pictures of the floor plans- Old floor plan vs new floor plan.
Old Milan Layout - 1st floor
New Milan Layout - 1st Floor
Some other things we had clarified at our visit:
1) We can pick two-toned siding.
2) Our current lot does NOT have a drain easement in the actual lot. It is in between our lot and the neighbors lot but it weirdly does not appear on the blue prints. Apparently, they asked if they could just allow our house to hang over our propety line in the back a little but the only reason they can't allow it is because it would creep into the drain easement territory, which is not on our property. I'm not sure why they didn't explain this before because I definitely would have been less mad lol.
3) They're changing a lot of stuff with these new homes. They limited their options lists by about half. It's crazy. We don't have to use this limited option list because we signed everything so long ago but the new people do. One change, for example, is they are only allowing people to add a full bath in the basement and not a powder room. Weird, right? They also don't show flooring options on the new list .. I guess you just figure out prices once you get to your flooring meeting? They're also including a lot more in the base price (which of course is higher). Some new "standard" options are double vanity in master, recessed lighting in basement, Elevation B (they got rid of Elevation A). They say it's to make the process easier for people.
4)Our building has definitely been delayed. We originally were going to have our pre-construction meeting on the 20th but that won't be happening now. We haven't rescheduled a meeting yet because the length of the delay depends on what we choose to do.
Overall, this whole process sucks. On top of that I think my boyfriend and I are on different pages on which option we would prefer. I think he wants to just move lots while I would rather get the Milan and stay on our current lot .. so many choices!
I'll keep things updated on what we choose and what we're actually offered by Ryan Homes.
Decisions decisions. I guess first things first is to make sure you and BF are on the same page. You don't want one of you with regrets for next 30 years possibly. I also think you should ask for some kind compensation or free upgrades. If you don't ask, the answer is always no. Based on my experience, every time I asked for something I didn't have any luck getting it.
ReplyDeleteI know at times I wished I would have just went for the Venice instead of Florence but after looking at my neighbors Venice yesterday, my girlfriend and I both agree we don't like it's basement and feel it is too "choppy". I would probably make demands and see what they offer if anything, and then decide. You can still go with better lot if you don't like their counter offer. It makes you wonder how Ryan Homes can screw up the way they do sometimes with lots, plans and permits. Yet in their purchase agreements, it says that some delays "beyond" their control can occur and they have 2 years to build you a house, so that's how they get out of a lot of stuff.
Good luck. I am anxious to see what you guys decide and if Ryan Homes will make a fair counter offer.
Yea .. I agree. We definitely need to get on the same page because, like you said, this is a decision that could affect us for 30 + years. I think both options have benefits but it also all depends on how much Ryan is willing to give us in each situation. My BF thinks Ryan will compensate us more if we move to a new lot but I think they should compensate us equally regardless on which option we choose.
DeleteI agree with you on the Venice. We ended up going to the model again and the house is definitely nice, but we don't like how the basement is choppy either. It just makes it feel smaller.
They should be getting back to us today about our requests. We sent them a list of stuff we want from them if we move to a new lot. If we don't like what they offer then we may stay on our lot and just ask that they give us the Milan at a comparable price to what we were paying for the Palermo. I don't know how Ryan Homes messes up like this sometimes. I'm sure that line about the possibility of it taking up to 2 years has saved them many many times! A friend of ours also had something go wrong with Ryan Homes in regards to a permit and it was a disaster. It delayed them from closing on their house and they had to stay in a hotel for several months with their two young daughters (Ryan Homes paid for their hotel and gave them about $4k to compensate for the inconvenience).
I'll definitely keep things updated with what Ryan Homes offers us and what we end up choosing. Definitely some difficult decisions in the near future! I hope everything is going smoothly with your home!
I'm pulling for you. Hopefully you get what you want. I will be checking back tonight while i'm on the night shift to see if there is any updates. Not much else to do but read blogs while at work ;)
DeleteWow. If I were you I'll probably go bananas and start cursing up a storm. But my boyfriend would probably never take me anywhere anymore. lol Just like MrJaypup33 said, I'll also check back tonight for any news. The suspense is killing me! Hope Ryan Homes give you guys what you want!
ReplyDeleteBelieve me! I definitely did curse up a storm but I just did it at home! haha! If I said what I wanted to say to all the people involved they probably would have just told us they couldn't build for us at all anymore. When we went to our meeting with the SR on Saturday I could feel how tense my boyfriend was. He definitely thought I would lose it, but I stayed calm (pretty proud of myself!).
DeleteI just started following you so I'm reading up. I know you had to be furious. I can't wait to see what the resolution to this was...
ReplyDelete