Please Help Us Decide What To Upgrade/Add in our Taylor Morrison Home (And What to Leave Out) (appliances, how much)

[daisee1203]

Hello!

We are getting ready to build a Taylor Morrison home. I have read countless articles and posts on what to hold off on upgrading and what to go for. I would love input from others - especially if you chose not to do something and ended up regretting it.

So far, here are the things we are considering adding/having TM add. We chose based on cost and/or lack of knowing how to do it on our own (or wanting to):

- Extended covered patio (covered patio with a fan is standard) - we plan to entertain a lot with new home and I want to eat dinner and breakfast outside when the weather is somewhat decent
- Adding a gas line for outside grill
- Adding extra outlets
- Bay windows in master BR
- Accent paint on exterior of house (we get one color but I feel adding an accent color will help it stand out a bit)


Here is what we are torn on:
- Upgrading to their "gourmet" package which will make all kitchen appliances SS and flush with the cabinets, while upgrading the cabinets
- Arched doorways in some areas (I feel it will look dated in a few years)
- Crown moulding in the kitchen, master BD/Bath and LR
- If accent paint on exterior would be cheaper to do after closing
- sprinkler system


Any thoughts? Ideas? Thanks!

[lhafer]

Don't add the sprinkler system unless you want to pay for it for the next 30 years. Ask around your new neighborhood who does sprinkler systems and get it done the day you close or soon after. Much cheaper that way!

[daisee1203]

Ok. Will do. Thanks so much for the info on the sprinkler system!

[Kiovo]

Originally Posted by daisee1203

Hello!

We are getting ready to build a Taylor Morrison home. I have read countless articles and posts on what to hold off on upgrading and what to go for. I would love input from others - especially if you chose not to do something and ended up regretting it.

So far, here are the things we are considering adding/having TM add. We chose based on cost and/or lack of knowing how to do it on our own (or wanting to):

- Extended covered patio (covered patio with a fan is standard) - we plan to entertain a lot with new home and I want to eat dinner and breakfast outside when the weather is somewhat decent
- Adding a gas line for outside grill yes, we had this done and glad we did
- Adding extra outlets yes, this will be something that cost you more if you do it afterwards
- Bay windows in master BRif it's what you want
- Accent paint on exterior of house (we get one color but I feel adding an accent color will help it stand out a bit)


Here is what we are torn on:
- Upgrading to their "gourmet" package which will make all kitchen appliances SS and flush with the cabinets, while upgrading the cabinets again, this is a personal preference if you want to pay for it or not
- Arched doorways in some areas (I feel it will look dated in a few years)
- Crown moulding in the kitchen, master BD/Bath and LR
- If accent paint on exterior would be cheaper to do after closing
- sprinkler system


Any thoughts? Ideas? Thanks!

When we built our home, we had the builder do the things that would be near impossible or cost too much to do after the house has been built. Also take in consideration how much work and time it'll take a contractor to do it afterwards. Crown molding, paint, sprinkler system, extended patio are all things you can do afterwards and most likely for cheaper.

The benefit of having the builder do it, is it's all done when you move in. Whatever you do afterwards, you have to source out yourself and some people never get around to doing so but to me, that means it never was worth spending the money on!

[Rip808]

Also building with TM and it has been a great experience thus far. The lady at the design center was really helpful, and even game me hints as to what to do and what not to do. I would say that you upgrade to the SS package, the kitchen is one of the rooms that you do not want to skimp out on. Sprinklers can wait, we have a guy that can do six zones for a very reasonable price. We only did two arches which are the ones that are in the entrance and the other one that leads to the family room. Also, we paid to have an electrical outlet above the fireplace to hang a tv if we ever wanted to. DM with any questions you may have! Best wishes on your home build.

[haudi]

Just went through the design center fun in February on a build that will soon be done. I would say that you need to first and foremost set an upgrade budget, as it's easy to go in and get carried away. Also, look at areas that you can shave money off of without sacrificing quality. For instance, I found a tile a level down from what I was priced at that I really liked more than anything at the next higher level. Ended up saving me $1800 just from stepping down one level. Materials wise, there was no difference in quality. That $1800 was spent adding a double-oven and other things elsewhere in the house. You can find a lot of places you might find upgrades that you like at a lower level than what you are priced for without sacrificing quality.

As far as must-haves, I decided to spend a lot of my upgrade budget on things that I may or may not use immediately, but would be a pain in the rear to go back and add later. These included security camera prewires on the exterior of the house, soffit outlets for Christmas lights, dedicated outlets in the garage for a future freezer, surround sound pre-wires, network jack and cable prewires, TV/Power on the covered patio prewires, and lighting pre-wires in the kitchen for future pendant lights.

Next up were practical upgrades like additional recessed lighting cans in various places throughout the house, and additional outlets in strategic places like a quad outlet next to the bigger vanity for my better half's curling irons, hair dryers, etc. You simply can't have enough electrical outlets and they are cheap to add now.

I also took a look at the plans with the help of my salesperson and figured out where otherwise dead space was going to be upstairs. I used those areas to do things like adding linen closets, a computer niche, and attic space in areas that were otherwise just going to be solid walls. Use the dead space behind the walls wisely. Adding doors and closets is CHEAP to do at the time of build!

Lastly, look at the electrical plan and determine if you need any additional sets of switches for anything. For example, make sure you have one set of switches for your kitchen where you enter while in the house and another set of switches closest to the door where you enter from the garage. Just little things like that make a huge difference in the usability and comfort of your home. I also can see these things being appreciated if it comes time to resell.

Design choices are completely subject to your tastes, but spend wisely. It's easy to start running up a big number if you don't walk in with a game plan!

[huma281]

I added outlets on every wall in my garage and have two where the water softener and sprinklers are located.

Definitely do the patio with the builder. They will build the base as part of the foundation vs doing it afterwards and have a 5? inch slab of concrete poured on top of your soil. Your roof with the patio will also be stream lined with the rest of the home vs having a attached roof. My cousin regrets not having the extended patio built with the builder and he's finding that prices are only a little less what he would have paid them.

Crown molding and larger base boards are good to do if they offer a fair price. I think if you posted the pricing they are giving you, we would be able to let you know if it's a good deal or not.

I would check to see if they pre-plumb for an outdoor sink in the patio. One builder I spoke to said they only charge about $500 for it. Really worth it if you're planning to cook or be outside under your patio a lot.

[daisee1203]

Originally Posted by Rip808

Also building with TM and it has been a great experience thus far. The lady at the design center was really helpful, and even game me hints as to what to do and what not to do. I would say that you upgrade to the SS package, the kitchen is one of the rooms that you do not want to skimp out on. Sprinklers can wait, we have a guy that can do six zones for a very reasonable price. We only did two arches which are the ones that are in the entrance and the other one that leads to the family room. Also, we paid to have an electrical outlet above the fireplace to hang a tv if we ever wanted to. DM with any questions you may have! Best wishes on your home build.

Thanks so much! Great to hear you were getting hints. I appreciate your input about SS b/c we were wondering if it's worth it and that is a great point about the kitchen and not skimping. I didn't even think of that, despite it being the "hub" and one of the most used areas in a home!

We currently have our TV above our fireplace and I will never do it another way. It's wonderful. We definitely have that on our list.

[daisee1203]

Originally Posted by Kiovo

When we built our home, we had the builder do the things that would be near impossible or cost too much to do after the house has been built. Also take in consideration how much work and time it'll take a contractor to do it afterwards. Crown molding, paint, sprinkler system, extended patio are all things you can do afterwards and most likely for cheaper.

The benefit of having the builder do it, is it's all done when you move in. Whatever you do afterwards, you have to source out yourself and some people never get around to doing so but to me, that means it never was worth spending the money on!

I have to disagree on adding an extended patio after. Everything we read says to do structural items before closing. That way it's a part of your original foundation and it's all one piece. I feel
If we do it after we will be paying to have concrete poured and a roof added that may not match what we will already have, which is a covered patio with a fan. Plus, if we get it extended while we build, the fan will be in the center of it all vs the fan only being in the center of the original (included) covered patio. It will be off balance.

Thanks so much for your input about crown moulding after. I was torn.

[tampac66]

Originally Posted by daisee1203

I have to disagree on adding an extended patio after. Everything we read says to do structural items before closing. That way it's a part of your original foundation and it's all one piece. I feel
If we do it after we will be paying to have concrete poured and a roof added that may not match what we will already have, which is a covered patio with a fan. Plus, if we get it extended while we build, the fan will be in the center of it all vs the fan only being in the center of the original (included) covered patio. It will be off balance.

Thanks so much for your input about crown moulding after. I was torn.

If you ever plan on upgrading the kitchen or building a patio I would definitely do those up front. The outlets are up to you. If you think you need more, then definitely do that up front as well.

Id wait on the paint for sure. You can do it yourself for much less and you wont pay interest on it for 30 years.