Orange Peel Walls & Laminate Shelving & Tract Homes? (Sarasota: appliances, houses)

[strawberryblueberry]

Hi. My husband and I are looking to buy or build in the Parrish/Sarasota area. We recently visited and saw some things in some homes that we are not used to. We are not from Florida, so a couple of things stood out to us. Hopefully you can help. Please be honest! We can use all the advice you can give us.

Do most homes in Florida have Orange Peel walls?

And are the inner shelves of your kitchen cabinets not solid wood? Instead a pressurized type of wood with a thin printed laminate glued to it?

Are any of these things considered tacky, cheap, or bad for resale?

Also, there seem to be so many communities in Florida that are "tract homes" or "production homes." Are tract/production homes and communities seen as a "cookie cutter" or negative way to live? I'm asking because I have heard mixed reviews.

Again, please be brutally honest! I really don't know. All of these things are totally foreign to me. Thank you!

[Obrero]

Originally Posted by strawberryblueberry

Hi. My husband and I are looking to buy or build in the Parrish/Sarasota area. We recently visited and saw some things in some homes that we are not used to. We are not from Florida, so a couple of things stood out to us. Hopefully you can help. Please be honest! We can use all the advice you can give us.

Do most homes in Florida have Orange Peel walls?

And are the inner shelves of your kitchen cabinets not solid wood? Instead a pressurized type of wood with a thin printed laminate glued to it?

Are any of these things considered tacky, cheap, or bad for resale?

Also, there seem to be so many communities in Florida that are "tract homes" or "production homes." Are tract/production homes and communities seen as a "cookie cutter" or negative way to live? I'm asking because I have heard mixed reviews.

Again, please be brutally honest! I really don't know. All of these things are totally foreign to me. Thank you!

Brutally honest? OK - spend more money and you won't see any of these things.

[TamRE]

There are different types of textured walls here in Florida such as orange peel, knockdown, skip trowel - each with a unique textured look. Very few have a smooth finish.

Many of the less expensive cabinets are laminate or thermofoil finish with particle board shelving. These do not last as long as real wood. Real wood is more expensive, looks nicer and will last longer. Many of the cabinets with a laminate finish start to peel, especially around the stove or under a cabinet where steam came from an appliance such as a toaster.

Yes, many of the communities were built by one builder and they only offer a handful of floor plans, so they pretty much look alike with the same type of roof, same type of frontage, etc. Whether you choose to live in this type of community is a personal preference, that is why you will see mixed reviews. There are communities that offer more of a variety and are not so identical.

[blueherons]

I like the textured walls. When I built my home in South Carolina, they were an upgrade.

My cabinets however, were all wood.

[strawberryblueberry]

Thanks Tamre,

I think I explained the cabinets wrong. What I mean is that the front door, and sides are all real wood, but the inner shelving is some kind of compressed wood with a thin layer of material over it. The ones we have now are 100% solid wood inside and out, with the shelving just stained, not covered with a thing layer of something that looks like wood.

In the houses we saw, many had that compressed wood business. So I don't know if that means cheap materials or if it is just the way things are done in florida and the 100% solid wood (inside & out) is rare? My concern is how durable they are, and future resale value.

Thank you for your thoughtful insight.

[strawberryblueberry]

Originally Posted by Obrero

Brutally honest? OK - spend more money and you won't see any of these things.

Thanks for your honesty, Obrero!

The houses that we're looking at are all below $300K. Are you saying we need to go higher than that?

[TamRE]

Most builders install the cabinets that have the interior compressed wood. The all wood is an upgrade. High end builders will do all real wood and if someone had the upgrade done on the home. But it is typical down here to have wood, laminate or thermofoil exterior doors and the interior be compressed material. The compressed material can get destroyed if water gets on it. Some people paint the interior. Some people put shelf paper lining on the interior. The only real difference for resale value would be if the entire kitchen needs to be upgraded. If the exterior is real wood and it looks nice, then it isn't usually an issue. It also depends on the price range of home you are talking about. High end builders will not use the compressed wood or laminate. So in a high priced, high end home it may be an issue for resale.

[Sunshine Rules]

A lot of the builders in the Parrish - Ellenton - Bradenton - Sarasota areas are trying to appeal to buyers in the $300,000 and under category as that is a very popular price range with buyers. They often market the new construction prices as "starting in the low ...." For example, it may say 'starting in the low $200's but most of the actual homes sold are actually priced in the upper $200's. When it comes to fixtures and features, these builders try to put the $$ where it is most noticed by buyers and cut back on costs where it is less noticable. Which is why you are finding wood fronts on the cabinets but the interior shelves are laminate.

Keep in mind that the model homes may often have $30,000 to $60,000 in "upgrades." The profit is in the upgrades. You may find that some builders do not offer solid wood cabinets as an upgrade, others may. Going up in price will generally give you higher end finishes, or at least the option of them if you're willing to pay for the upgrades.

Regarding the cookie cutter-ishness of the subdivisions. I have a couple of theories about that. First, cost. Builders typically have a set number of floor plans that they work from in order to keep costs down. Some builders will allow buyers to do some custom changes to the floor plans, you have to ask. Second, the builders have to work within the couny zoning and long range growth/development plans for the area. These will dictate to a large extent what builders can do when they start site planning of a new community, the required green spaces, how lots are laid out, the streets, etc. So the newer construction communities will often have similiarities due to county and/or state regulated requirements.

My best advice to you for resale purposes is to check out the elementary, middle and high school districts of each community you are considering as school districts have one of the bigger impacts on resale values of homes, along with location, location, location. If a buyer with children has a choice of a home with nicer finishes in a lesser school district vs a home with slightly lesser finishes in a higher rated school district, parents will almost always go with the better school districts.

As long as the finishes are consistent with other homes in the community (ie granite counter tops vs laminate, stainless steel kitchen appliances, etc for a $300k home), I wouldn't get too wrapped up in the small details.

[sware2cod]

The spray finish on the walls and ceilings is common in most homes in FL and has been common for a long time. It's very rare to see smooth finish interior wall texture in FL.

Most mid grade cabinets will have particle board shelves aka melomine, IMO. Even if you upgrade to solid wood doors which is pretty common, the other upgrade is usually plywood sides and usually you do that for the sides that are exposed on the outside (next to a window or sink, etc).

I have not seen cabinet shelves that are solid wood unless very old cabinets . I suppose the very pricey super high end cabinets might have solid wood shelves.


the biggie in FL that can be costly to replace is the roof material. There are various grades of asphalt and FL sun is brutal and asphalt roofs can need replacement in 10 years+-. Tile roofs last longer and metal lasts the longest. You'll see tile/slate/metal roofs is the more pricey homes, and even better quality(longer lasting) asphalt as the prices go up.

[kiggy]

Textured walls, I believe, help with mold, a common problem in Florida homes due to the humidity.