Pre-Construction Meeting Questions

Now that I posted something about our adorable addition to the family I guess I'll post something about our house!

We haven't really done much lately with the house. It's been a nice little lull which has helped our my sanity (the boyfriend is always calm .. always). We still don't have much to do right now so I've occupied myself with thinking of fun projects for the house. I decided I'm going to build our kitchen table with my dad. I showed him the table I want (farmhouse looking table) and he said we could build it in a day. It will also be much cheaper than buying a nice table. Sold. We have also found flooring that we really like (we're putting a nice wood laminate over the vinyl they're giving us). I've also committed to doing some paintings for our house.

Other than that, our pre-construction meeting is on June 20th. Here are some questions we have written down and will be sending to our PM. If anyone else has suggestions, let me know. I don't want to miss anything.

General

·         What is the best way to reach you?

·         Can we visit the site? Do we have to ask first?

·         How many inspections? When?

·         What do we have to do if we want our own inspector as well?

·         Will you provide us with weekly updates?

·         Will you be going on vacation at all during our build?

Outside

·         Driveway – width/length

·         Driveway – Can we make it wider?

·         Lawn – Seeded or sodded?

·         Outside Lighting – What is included and where are they located?

·         Hose bibs – How many and where are they located? Can we choose where these are located?

·         Outlets – How many? Where?

·         Landscape – What’s included? Can we choose where trees/bushes go?

·         House position on lot – Backyard size (our SR told us this but I want to ask him too)

·         How far is the side of our house from our property line (We’re putting a fence up and need to know if a double gate will fit there)?

·         Distance from neighbors

·         Will there be sidewalks?

Garage

·         Hot Water access – Possible to have this in the garage?

·         Is the garage sheet rocked?

·         Is there a rough in for a garage door opener included?

·         How many outlets are in the garage?

·         Is garage at a pitch so water can easily drain out?

Construction

·         Is there extra floor support in high traffic areas?

·         Move Attic Entry to laundry room – Possible?

Cosmetic

·         Textured or smooth ceilings?

·         Flooring breaks – Where are the flooring breaks on the main floor?

·         Placement of walk-out basement door

·         Can we move where we want the basement door? (side of morning room vs. back of morning room)

·         Are windows standard size?

Hardware

·         Locks – Which doors have locks? Do any include deadbolts?

·         Kitchen hardware – If we buy our own can you install it for us?

·         Cabinets – Can we make cabinets above fridge flush with the fridge?

·         Toilet paper/towel holders – Can we choose height/location?

Kitchen

·         Pull out drawers instead of all Cabinets – Possible?

·         Pantry shelves – Included?

·         Size of spot for refrigerator

·         Backsplash – Can we forgo the 6 inch of “blacksplash” provided? (The countertop you choose will go up on the wall about 6 inches as a “backsplash” – I may want to put up my own backsplash that covers the whole area)

·         Fire Extinguishers/ How many?

·         Smoke Detectors/ How many?

Great Room

·         Extra wall support above fireplace for TV

Office

·         Door to office – Is it same as in the model (glass door) or regular solid door? How much is upgraded door?

Bathroom

·         Fan/dehumidifier in Master Bath – Want to make sure we get a fan above the toilet AND in the main area of the bathroom

Bedrooms

·         Double outlet next to bed

·         Light switch next to bed

Plumbing

·         Water Softener?

·         Water Heater Blanket – Included?

·         Sump Pump - Where is it located? 

Electrical

·         Exhaust Vent moved higher in Laundry Room (so it isn't blocked by dryer) – Possible?

·         Warranties on AC/Water Heater/Heating System/Roof etc – What are these and will we get documentation for these warranties?

·         Fan Locations – Want all fans to be centered in the room. Can we choose this?

·         Light fixture locations – Can we pick where we want lighting fixtures throughout the house?

·         Place of thermostat – Want to make sure this is not near any doors or the fireplace

·         Fireplace switch – Can we choose where that is located?

·         Smoke detectors/Carbon Monoxide detectors – How many?