Any recent Westin Homes owner in Harmony, Spring? (Albany, Alba: 2015, house)

[allen3iverson]

Originally Posted by lam0279

Thanks for your info
What floor plan did you buy? How much were your upgrades?
If we go with the 60' lot and Preston plan (318k), with 3% incentives, we'll have about 22k for upgrades. With Westin's expensive upgrades, do you think that's doable?

BTW, are you in Harmony sub? How do you like it?

If 22k for upgrade except structural, it barely OK, but remember, their standards are ugly, basically you need to upgrade everything.
just try to help you name a few:
metal spindles for stairs: 4500
granite: 2000-4000
Tile: depends on how many rooms: 4000-10000
plunging: 1000
lightning: 1000
front door: 1000
stainless appliance: 1200
Cabinet: 3000,
sprinkler: 2000
and more smaller upgrades

[lam0279]

Man, I like their floor plans but it sucks that everything has to be upgrade for it to look good.

What upgrades are necessary (hard or can't be done later)?

[a_guerrajr]

Originally Posted by lam0279

Man, I like their floor plans but it sucks that everything has to be upgrade for it to look good.

What upgrades are necessary (hard or can't be done later)?

anything inside the wall or anything that has to be framed( to a certain degree).

We went with standard cabinets, they didn't look bad. we didnt do SS appliances because it was just for the color, not a higher series.

in theory, nothing is necessary, just depends on your taste and what you want to come home to.

if you prefer the higher end look, and live with a smaller lot.
or bigger lot, and get what you can and do the unnecessary stuff later.

[lam0279]

I think we'll go with bigger lot. We might stretch our budget and buy inventory 60' Preston. Or keep it under budget and go with standard 60' Preston then upgrade later.

We have been homeless for the last few years so we aren't really care for high end looks :-)

[lam0279]

Originally Posted by a_guerrajr

anything inside the wall or anything that has to be framed( to a certain degree).

We went with standard cabinets, they didn't look bad. we didnt do SS appliances because it was just for the color, not a higher series.

in theory, nothing is necessary, just depends on your taste and what you want to come home to.

if you prefer the higher end look, and live with a smaller lot.
or bigger lot, and get what you can and do the unnecessary stuff later.

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Just stumbled upon these. Are these pics of your house?

[inspector80]

Originally Posted by allen3iverson

If 22k for upgrade except structural, it barely OK, but remember, their standards are ugly, basically you need to upgrade everything.
just try to help you name a few:
metal spindles for stairs: 4500
granite: 2000-4000
Tile: depends on how many rooms: 4000-10000
plunging: 1000
lightning: 1000
front door: 1000
stainless appliance: 1200
Cabinet: 3000,
sprinkler: 2000
and more smaller upgrades

Sir, I'm not sure if you are just trying to prove your point here, but you gross over-estimations above are an out right dis-service to this forum and future buyers looking to this resource for actual insight and honest knowledge for what can be a daunting, and extremely important, decision...despite who the actual builder is. In regards to Westin, who's "pricing" you referenced above, here is what I know to be true:
1. Metal spindles are the most expensive single upgrade of their homes. In the Preston, for example, the bronze basket style are 3,576. In fact, the Bailey that the OP is interested in is only 2,708. To be fair, there are 6 other styles also available, but the most expensive style is 3,990 for the Bailey.

2. Granite: group 1 granite is standard in the kitchen and bathrooms. However, there are only two colors in group 1 and both are less than desirable, to say the least. If you upgraded to one of the 14 different colors of granite that are in group 2, again using the Preston plan, the cost is 491 for the kitchen; 151 for the master bath; 84 for bathroom 2; and, if the 3rd bath option is chosen, 67 for that bathroom. That's a total cost of 793.00 IF they decide to uprade ALL the granite in the house. From what I understand, half their buyers will go standard granite in the upstairs bathroom that the kids will be using. Once more, to be fair, last I heard Westin's levels of granite go up to level 8 or 9, so if you somehow dislike all 14 colors in group 2, a buyer can spend more.

3. Tile: with Westin, flooring is the most expense, cumulative upgrade of the home. The 2 or 3 standard tile choices are very basic and plain. I believe they are light in color and 13x13 in the entry and wet areas. If one were to select an 18x18 inch group 4 tile in all of those areas AND the extended entry (the area from the stairs to the family room) the total would be approximately 6,195. Assuming again ALL areas, upstairs and down, were all upgraded to the 18 inch tile.

Faucets: Your quote of 1000 on this one is fairly accurate, assuming the selections made were oil rubbed bronze.

Lighting: I don't honestly think I can accurately put into words how hideous Westin's standard lighting package actually is, so I won't try. Just suffice to say I, literally, do not know of another Houston builder who's standard lighting package is an uglier style. With that said, in a Preston, the cost to upgrade to a fairly nice oil rubbed bronze package for the whole home is about 1100.

Front door: standard front door is a solid mahogany, 8 foot tall, 6 panel door. Upgrades, depending on preference, range from 750 to 1050 or so.

Cabinets: Oh cabinets....Westin's total cabinet upgrade cost is almost impossible to estimate. This is because Westin's upgrade options for cabinets consist of 3 different cabinet manufacturers with a total of almost 200 different choices, no joke. And as long as you stay with the same cabinet manufacturer, you can pick different selections for each cabinet area in the home. Someone could spend anywhere from 2000 all the way up to 10,000 total for the cabinets in the home. I hear that the typical buyer ends up somewhere between 2100 to 2900, assuming the Preston plan, for a dark brown maple flat panel cabinet through the home.

Sprinkler system: you're actually low on this one. For a standard sized lot with 4 zones, the cost is 3,000. This you can actually get done after closing for closer to 2,000.

All in all, in my opinion, the biggest issue with the upgrades Westin offers isn't the cost of the upgrades themselves, it's the massive number of different options and upgrades that they offer. And that's not even taking into consideration that the buyer has the ability to make totally different selections for each individual area of the home. It can get quite overwhelming if you're not prepared.

However, I suppose that most, given the option, would opt for more choice rather than less.

Lastly, to the OP, when it come to the point of choosing upgrades with any of Houston's builders, keep this in mind:

When it comes to resale, the finishes inside a home (i.e. flooring type, granite color, fixtures, etc.) are not what makes a home valuable. The value of a home comes from the architecture, size, and space that home provides. The interior finishes only affect the homes appeal.

Anyway, I hope this info helps and good luck.

[lam0279]

Originally Posted by inspector80

Sir, I'm not sure if you are just trying to prove your point here, but you gross over-estimations above are an out right dis-service to this forum and future buyers looking to this resource for actual insight and honest knowledge for what can be a daunting, and extremely important, decision...despite who the actual builder is. In regards to Westin, who's "pricing" you referenced above, here is what I know to be true:
1. Metal spindles are the most expensive single upgrade of their homes. In the Preston, for example, the bronze basket style are 3,576. In fact, the Bailey that the OP is interested in is only 2,708. To be fair, there are 6 other styles also available, but the most expensive style is 3,990 for the Bailey.

2. Granite: group 1 granite is standard in the kitchen and bathrooms. However, there are only two colors in group 1 and both are less than desirable, to say the least. If you upgraded to one of the 14 different colors of granite that are in group 2, again using the Preston plan, the cost is 491 for the kitchen; 151 for the master bath; 84 for bathroom 2; and, if the 3rd bath option is chosen, 67 for that bathroom. That's a total cost of 793.00 IF they decide to uprade ALL the granite in the house. From what I understand, half their buyers will go standard granite in the upstairs bathroom that the kids will be using. Once more, to be fair, last I heard Westin's levels of granite go up to level 8 or 9, so if you somehow dislike all 14 colors in group 2, a buyer can spend more.

3. Tile: with Westin, flooring is the most expense, cumulative upgrade of the home. The 2 or 3 standard tile choices are very basic and plain. I believe they are light in color and 13x13 in the entry and wet areas. If one were to select an 18x18 inch group 4 tile in all of those areas AND the extended entry (the area from the stairs to the family room) the total would be approximately 6,195. Assuming again ALL areas, upstairs and down, were all upgraded to the 18 inch tile.

Faucets: Your quote of 1000 on this one is fairly accurate, assuming the selections made were oil rubbed bronze.

Lighting: I don't honestly think I can accurately put into words how hideous Westin's standard lighting package actually is, so I won't try. Just suffice to say I, literally, do not know of another Houston builder who's standard lighting package is an uglier style. With that said, in a Preston, the cost to upgrade to a fairly nice oil rubbed bronze package for the whole home is about 1100.

Front door: standard front door is a solid mahogany, 8 foot tall, 6 panel door. Upgrades, depending on preference, range from 750 to 1050 or so.

Cabinets: Oh cabinets....Westin's total cabinet upgrade cost is almost impossible to estimate. This is because Westin's upgrade options for cabinets consist of 3 different cabinet manufacturers with a total of almost 200 different choices, no joke. And as long as you stay with the same cabinet manufacturer, you can pick different selections for each cabinet area in the home. Someone could spend anywhere from 2000 all the way up to 10,000 total for the cabinets in the home. I hear that the typical buyer ends up somewhere between 2100 to 2900, assuming the Preston plan, for a dark brown maple flat panel cabinet through the home.

Sprinkler system: you're actually low on this one. For a standard sized lot with 4 zones, the cost is 3,000. This you can actually get done after closing for closer to 2,000.

All in all, in my opinion, the biggest issue with the upgrades Westin offers isn't the cost of the upgrades themselves, it's the massive number of different options and upgrades that they offer. And that's not even taking into consideration that the buyer has the ability to make totally different selections for each individual area of the home. It can get quite overwhelming if you're not prepared.

However, I suppose that most, given the option, would opt for more choice rather than less.

Lastly, to the OP, when it come to the point of choosing upgrades with any of Houston's builders, keep this in mind:

When it comes to resale, the finishes inside a home (i.e. flooring type, granite color, fixtures, etc.) are not what makes a home valuable. The value of a home comes from the architecture, size, and space that home provides. The interior finishes only affect the homes appeal.

Anyway, I hope this info helps and good luck.

Thanks for your detailed info. It helps a lot.

So spindles, granite, tiles, faucets, lightnings, doors and cabinets will cost us approximately 20k. Then there are other structural upgrades. I think it will be 30k-40k easily.

[MIBA1234]

Hi,

Just to give you some idea.we are currently building Gardner floor plan with westin. Our design center options total was $64507. Westin deducted the prices of their standard options ($8,804). So the total was 55,703. We have selected level 7 tiles and level 5 granite.

[a_guerrajr]

Yes that is my old house Iam0279!



inspector80, 3K for a regular sprinkler system? I've had 5 quotes on a 5-6 zone system, and it ranged from $1900 - $2300
3K, they are too proud.

[inspector80]

inspector80, 3K for a regular sprinkler system? I've had 5 quotes on a 5-6 zone system, and it ranged from $1900 - $2300
3K, they are too proud.[/quote]


Couldn't agree more, there is always a fine line a buyer must walk between cost and convenience.