Put the laundry on the floor where the bedrooms are our on the floor where the master is if your bedrooms are split.

Yes, worth it.

Or backsplash was 2800, but I choose a very high end tile. Tile can be DIY though, many people do it in dry areas (not showers)

Under cabinet lights are inexpensive. I vote worth it.

2. Depends on where YOU want it and where it works best for your family. I'm a downstairs laundry girl...I like it near the kitchen and back door.

3. Those upgrades would definitely be worth it to me...builder grade cabinets and carpet/pad are usually not the best. Countertops would depend on how scary the builder grade choices are, and what the additional cost is to upgrade. Doing different c-tops later isn't a huge pain if you need to save a bit of $ now.

4. I think doing a backsplash is a bit more complicated than "gluing" on tiles. There is a lot of planning & measuring involved, plus you have to rent a wet saw to cut the tiles. It would be worth $1600 to me to have it done.

5. More lighting/wiring is always good....if they are letting you buy your own fixtures that is awesome! UCLs are a definite "do"...I don't mess with wiring so I would have them do it.

6. They don't include gutters?!??! That is crazy! You need gutters!

7. Are you asking if you should pay extra to vault the ceiling? I wouldn't. But if you are asking if you should pay extra to turn a ceiling from being a sloped ceiling into a gabled-shaped vault OR a flat ceiling...I would. I dislike sloped ceilings.

Concentrate on the bones of the house, anything else can be changed out relatively easy later, and usually for less than the builders "upgrade charge", which more often than not is astronomical for a slight upgrade in quality.

I'd be more concerned with the basic construction than anything cosmetic (everything you can see). I'd be focusing on the quality of materials and construction methods.

blesserhouse.com comes to mind-- she blogs about updating a builder-grade home. Sounds like you're a diy'er, so might be something fun to read.

A friend in the carpet industry told me to buy mid range carpet and upgrade the pad.

Gutters are *extra*? Gutters are *code* where I live; you can't build without them. (Brings up an interesting question about where you are building? Who -- other than the builder -- will inspect this house as it goes up?)

I'd pay extra for a large family entry (mudroom), but I like my appliances where I can 'tend' them during the day. (I'm also a fan of the laundry chute in a two-story house.)

Ditto millworkman.

I'd skip the upgrades and just make your house comparable with the others in this development. Don't get 'fancy' if you hope to recoup the expense one day.

Is there an A/C advantage to a slanted ceiling in the MBR? If it's only cosmetic -- meh.

Skip cans in the LR. Undercabinet lights are a must -- for me. (Even if you replace the cabinets, the wiring will be there in the wall.)

Are you under contract for this house? Is there any point in asking why you are building where you can't supervise construction? (I'm afraid to even mention another thread here that is heavy with photos of terrible construction.)

Do you want to post a plan for comment? We might suggest some basics -- beyond gutters! -- like more windows.

Thanks all! I'm new to houzz so I'm not sure if there's a way to reply to your comments individually, but that is great point about the gutters. I just double checked our "included" and "optional" list (thinking maybe it was "upgraded" gutters on the optional list) but I don't see it on the included list anywhere. I'm going to reach out to our realtor and see if it's against code to build without. I'm leaning towards doing the under cabinet lighting, upgrading the cabinets, counters, and carpet pad to mid grade, and keeping the carpet at a level 1 or 2 upgrade (there are 6 levels). Chisue - I think I saw the thread you're referring to. To answer your question, we are building a house in another state because we are moving back there in spring 2016 and it will be our primary residence, but my husband works out of state for 6 months of the year. We are going to get a private inspector to come to the house twice during the build (I think prior to drywall going up and once before closing). Our realtor and a family member will also make bimonthly visits to the build site and be taking pictures.

Here are photos of the floor plan and exterior. Would love any more opinions and I appreciate the feedback.

Do you need a 3 car garage?

Where it says optional windows in the living area, I would definitely put them in.

Post your kitchen plan on the kitchen forum. It needs help. It is lots of steps and poor layout. That island is not good.

Personally if it was me moving to a new location and having the option to build, I wouldn't do it. I would find a place to rent for a year and then either build or find a resale house. One reason is I'd want to get an idea of the area and what areas would work best for myself and my family.

The most important reason is I would never build and leave it to others to check in is that no one will give it the care or understanding that you will. You need to be at the house checking not once or twice a month, but EVERY SINGLE DAY, or at least several x a week. If no one comes by for a week or two and there is a serious structural issue, what do you think will happen if you're not there? It will get hidden and good luck once you're in the house.

If contracts haven't been signed yet, I would seriously reconsider. Yes you may get to your new location and decide that building is the way to go, and then you'll have the advantage of being there to over see the work. Or you may find your dream home and it is a resale.

It's a nice, simple plan, and I doubt you can make any big changes to it. It appears to have a basement, too. How long do you think you'll be in it? How big is the development? What do you know about the builder?

Can you rearrange the kitchen? It's plenty big, but the island is weird. I'd also want a larger eating area -- directly in front of the sliders.

Add windows wherever you can. Natural light from two sides of a room is a big plus. I'd want a half-glass mudroom door or a window there.

Is there any point to the person door near the front of the garage? If you moved that to the rear of the garage, could you eliminate the back door into the mudroom and expand that space? (Kids would have to go through the garage to get into the house from the back yard.)

What's under the garage's raised roof? Is there a lower profile roof so that you could add a window in the upstairs laundry room?

Would a shower make the family bathroom feel a little larger? There's a tub in the MBA. (Maybe you don't want a tub in the MBA and do want one in the family bath?)

I'd love to reverse the closet and the MBA and add windows to the MBA.

Your upgrade plans seem well within reason. I hate to throw money away on non-permanent floor coverings like carpeting. Can you extend whatever is in the kitchen into the family room? (Is that tile?)

Can you actually change the design of your house without incurring a sizable change order? Production builders do not generally allow this without huge fee's.

cpartist thank you for your comments. We definitely want a 3 car garage and I agree with you about adding the windows for additional natural light. Unfortunately there's not much I can do about the kitchen layout except choose to not upgrade it to gourmet or choose to not extend the kitchen island. I like the extended island as it can fit 4 stools and sub in as a casual dining space in addition to the formal dining room. Is there a specific reason you dislike it so much? Luckily we've spent a lot of time in the area in the past and know that this is an area we'd like to move to. I understand what you are saying about being able to check in on the house ourselves throughout the process, unfortunately we just don't have that option.

chisue yes it does have a basement, we are choosing to leave it unfinished for now. But in the future it'll have an additional bathroom, bedroom, and rec room. We plan to be in this home for 10-20 years, dependent on how our family grows etc. The development is approximately 60 homesites, and the builder is a nationwide builder that our realtor (who we trust) says has a good reputation. We could nix the island extension, and then add a small breakfast table in front of the sliders, which I've been considering doing. I'm not sure if I'll regret missing the extra counter space. My husband and I decided not to do the optional side garage door ($1k) as it would just go to the side of the yard. We cannot ask to have it moved without incurring a large cost. There are 4 different exterior plans, none of which would include a window for the upstairs laundry room, although that is a great point I would have loved that. I prefer the shower/tub in the family room for when children are small and having the large jacuzzi tub in the MB :) I also agree with you on switching the master bath and master closet for more natural light in the bathroom but unfortunately we'd be unable to do so without incurring heavy costs :( I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts!

millworkman no we cannot. The structural options we have are solely the upgrade options they offer (moving laundry upstairs, adding morning room, standard vs gourmet kitchen, etc). This of course limits our decisions but I want to ensure we're making the best decisions for our family within the options we have.

Is there a specific reason you dislike it so much?

It's poor layout for a workable kitchen. You have a large expanse of counter between the stove and the refrigerator. It's mostly wasted space and it will require a lot of walking across the kitchen from fridge to sink carrying everything.

If two of you are cooking, you'll be in one another's way.

You have this huge expanse of counter but very little prep area. Prepping is normally done between sink and cooktop.

Rule of thumb is you take food out of the fridge, bring it to the sink to rinse, then prep between sink and stove and then clean up at sink/DW. So with this layout you're crossing zones.

Then you have the island that cuts into your breakfast space. It would be better if the island were straight running North/south. You have the room so I don't understand why they did it that way.

Additionally two super susans are wasted space.

While this arrangement still has the cooktop between the sink and fridge, at least now the cooktop is more centered on the wall so you have a nice prep area and I turned the island around. Ideally if you had a small prep sink on the island like have it then you'd have a good layout.

You'd go from fridge to prep sink and prep area on island, to cooking and then to cleanup sink and DW.

One other question. You said your RE agent said they are a good builder. Have you checked them out yourselves? Done research?

I understand you trust your realtor, but also realize he/she gets paid by the builder for selling those homes. She has a fiduciary responsibility to the SELLER unless you signed a buyer's agreement with her.She won't be there if there are problems in the future.

I trust my RE agent. She's been a friend since she sold us our apartment. However, I'd still do my research to make sure this production national builder is as good as she claims and is as good in your area. Remember a builder is only as good as his local subs.

I like the laundry upstairs, but being next to the master bedroom, you might want to ask about putting some insulation on the wall they share. I do a lot of laundry at night while my (lucky) husband is sleeping.

Speaking of insulation - I don't know what state your building in, but that would be one of my first questions - what kind of insulation and the R value that is going in the walls, floors and in the attic? I know they have to meet code, but I would put any extra money into sealing up the house tight and upgrading to a higher R value in the walls,floors and ceiling. Ask them about their air sealing practices. This handbook is not applicable to your build, but page 14 has a good illustration of air sealing in a home.

I would also ask about the heating and cooling system that is going into the home. I'm pretty sure that production builders aren't putting in a lot of ductless systems yet, but it never hurts to ask if that is something you're interested in.

I think the upgrades to the carpet, pad, cabinets and counters are such a personal decision, you would have to decide if the money was worth it. I personally would update the cabinets before any of the others.

The optional windows in the family room please add.

Ask your builder about the windows. What kind? U value?

1600 for a backsplash is a steal. Take them up on it.

I also like what cpartist did with your kitchen layout. Very functional. If you went with her layout, I think the wall opening to the dining room could open up somemore to the kitchen. I also think that if you ever need a bedroom downstairs, the dining room could convert easy.

Your powder room and mudroom need reworking. If you ever needed a bedroom downstairs, why not figure out how to add a small walk-in shower in this area. Much cheaper to do now than later.

What are you going to do for lighting over the island? Are you going to have a hood over the range or microwave? Ask the builder it its going to be vented outside.

UC lighting is also something I could not live without, but I have a love/hate thing going on with can lights. But I don't think a couple will hurt if they are sealed correctly. You can't every have too much light, right?

I would also ask about your outside lighting. Usually these homes come with 2 lights near the garage door and a porch light out back. You don't need to light up the neighborhood, but if you see any dark spots on the sides of the home where you may be able to install some lights, do it. Also ask that your lighting be able to use CFL bulbs and/or LED lighting is available. Its code where I'm at, but I'm sure the old incandescent lighting is still being used.

You have to have gutters, and I'm sure your builder will be including them in your build...but for some weird reason he is not a 2000 sf home with your standard gutter system runs around 600-900 dollars installed where I live.

I don't see any concrete pad in the back, outside your sliding glass door. Is there one? You have a covered concrete porch in front, can he do the same in the back? That might be something that is cheaper to do now then to call a contractor in later to do.

The vaulted ceiling I would not want in the bedroom. Is it entirely for aesthetic purposes? More ceiling to heat and cool and bedrooms are suppose to be cozy.

Also, my county keeps current building codes online. It is a lot to go through but it never hurts to read......and if something just doesn't feel/look right to you, don't be shy about asking.

I like your home. Good luck with your build!

Yes, without question I'd bring the laundry upstairs and make that downstairs space into a mudroom. For 2K, this is a bargain and will make your life run more smoothly on a daily basis.

Carpet, carpet pad, cabinets, countertops -- worth it depends up on the cost of the upgrade. With all of those things, you get what you pay for, and you have to find a happy balance between your budget, living comfortably, and keeping things in line with the rest of the neighborhood.

1.6K for a tile backsplash is absolutely insane. For that price you should have special handmade artisan tile ... glued to the wall with angel tears ... warrantied against zombie invasion. Seriously, skip this. No, I don't think you can do it for $100 -- tile is more expensive than that -- but you can do it for a couple hundred.

I don't think you'll be unhappy with extra lighting, but -- again -- what's the price?

What is "upgraded" about your gutters? If you're talking about leaf-free gutters, it might mean you won't have to clean them out /pay to have them cleaned out every fall ... and that might be a worthwhile cost. Again, how much? For $200, yes! For 2K, no way.

I'd say no to the vaulted ceiling in the master. It's a private room, so no guest will see it, and you'll be sleeping most of the time you're in there. It'll make temperature control more difficult (and upstairs rooms are already tricky for heating /cooling). No, this isn't attractive to me at any price.

Other thoughts:

I don't like the three-car garage poking out in front. It looks like lots of garage and a little bit of house -- and for what purpose?

I agree with the posters above who say pay attention to the "bones" of the house: Good walls, good insulation, etc. These things cannnot be changed later. At the same time, you don't want to ignore "smaller things" like the quality of your cabinets ... and you want to be careful that you don't buy expendable items that you plan to replace later -- for example, putting in cheap countertops now, thinking you'll get what you really want later. Later usually doesn't come, and if it does, you've paid for the item twice. It's all a balancing act, and you have to decide for yourself where to draw the lines.

I hate the island as it's shown in your original plan -- it isn't in the right location to be functional for cooking, and it cuts into the breakfast room. I can't imagine why the designers want to push this on you! CPArtist's plan is simple and immensely better. If the builder balks at this, could you build the house without the island ... and then add it yourself later? I'd only point out one small thing about that kitchen plan: I'd put a small cabinet (maybe a broom cabinet) between the refrigerator and the wall; this allows the refrigerator to open more easily.

I do not agree that two Super Susans are wasted space ... but they are considerably more expensive than standard cabinets. Are you going with drawers instead of standard cabinets, at least in part of your kitchen cabinetry? That's an upgrade that's well worth it.

Is that a small cabinet next to the pantry? I think I'd be tempted to lose that and enlarge the pantry a bit. It's a few steps from the kitchen, and I don't think it'd be particularly useful.

I'd like to see more windows in the dining room, kitchen, and mudroom.

The door between the hallway and the mudroom will stay open most of the time -- I'd go with a pocket door here. And I'd eliminate the door on the closet IN the mudroom. I'd just go with hooks instead of a real closet; make it easy, and the kids are more likely to keep it neat.

Upstairs:

I'd give bedrooms 3 and 4 double windows.

How big are the vanities in those two bathrooms? They don't seem to be big enough to support two sinks. When you have two sinks, you lose counter space and you lose drawer storage.

In the kids' bath, could the linen closet turn 90 degrees so it's INSIDE the bathroom? It's always more convenient to store your towels and extra shampoo IN the room where you'll use it. This would also mean that your linen closet won't open "across" the bedroom door.

I love the above poster's suggestion to "flip" the master bath and the closet. I see no reason it can't happen, and it will give you both an extra sound barrier and better windows.

I see you have a choice of single or double door for the master bedroom. Definitely go with single. A double door that doesn't match the other doors just looks silly, and it creates problems with placing the light fixture.

cpartist wow thank you! I have printed out your updated kitchen layout and am going to bring it up to my sales rep. I do love the idea of the straight extended island then still having room for the breakfast area. I'm not sure how accurate to scale the floorplans are but if that would work I think it might be worth it to incur their extra fee. I appreciate you taking the time to help! Also to answer your question yes of course we've done research haha we wouldn't buy a house without it. Most production builders I have found have fairly negative reviews - it seems people only post their reviews if they have a problem. All of their BBB complaints have been settled though. I plan to go door to door at our development when I fly out next week to ask current home owners how satisfied they are with their new home.

MsLindley I am formulating another email to my sales rep right now to ask what insulation they use and the R value in floors and walls. I just scoured the whole 10 pages of optional upgrades and didn't see anything about upgrading this. We're building in the northern midwest though - I'd think that people would definitely want to upgrade this. Thanks for bringing it up! On our included list I just see "Insulated windows with low­ e | glass and screens" and "Sealed exterior envelope | with tyvek housewrap." We plan on eventually finishing the basement and there will be another shower/bedroom down there. For lighting over the island we are having them wire it and I'm going to purchase pendant lights from Home Depot or wayfair.com. I'm debating between doing a hood over the cooktop. It currently comes with the microwave with exhaust filter over it. I can have them do a hood and change the double oven to oven/microwave, or do no microwave, or nix the hood and keep the microwave there. I'm leaning towards doing a hood, keeping the double oven, and putting a separate microwave in the pantry. Thoughts? I spoke with the builder this morning and gutters are NOT included standard. It's $2.1k to add so I think we'll outsource this. We are going to have a small wooden porch added in back! Thank you so much for all of your advice!

mrspete hahahaha thank you for giving me a good laugh about the tile backsplash. I think this is definitely something we're going to wait on, and if not DIY then have professionals do in the future. I'm almost positive I want to bring the laundry upstairs, I'm just waiting to 100% decide until I fly out this week to see how much smaller it makes the master bedroom. I spoke with our rep this morning because I agreed with other that gutters should be standard, so I thought maybe when they were listed on the upgrades it was to have some fancy gutters. However, they are not included, so we are going to outsource instead of pay $2.1k for gutters through the builder. To be honest I'm not exactly sure the kitchen features of cabinets vs drawers, as I haven't been to the model or met with the designer. I'm taking notes on everyones advice though to think it through on what will work best for us. Here is a picture of our floorplan and almost exactly what I want to do with our kitchen. The window on the far left is shown from an added "morning room" on this home though, which we wont have, there will be a wall where that window is instead of opening up to the morning room.

I love your suggestions with the mudroom, and plan to bring them up when I walk the model! Unfortunately with the production builder we can't change the actual layout without incurring heavy "structure" costs. So I can't switch the master bath and master closet, or move a linen closet inside of the bathroom. I also agree with single door to the master bedroom. Thank you so much for taking the time to help! I appreciate it!

I have replaced a M/W with exhaust fan TWICE in 14 years in our vacation rental condo. They run about $300 plus $100 installation. When the current one breaks, I'm ripping it out and putting in a hood. Then I'll buy a countertop M/W for $200 and no installation fee.

At home I have a built in combination oven and M/W. The oven will probably work for another twenty years. The M/W *light* burned out after five years. I had to have a tech take the whole thing apart just to replace the light! $$$$

I will also never again do cabinet fronts on appliances that WILL fail.

Can you get the plumbing stubbed in in the basement now?

The only thing I absolutely couldn't live with that would be a pain to change later is the lack of windows on the left side. A corner bedroom with windows on just one side? Makes me wonder what on earth they were thinking! A lot of the other things are debatable and based on some personal preferences/strong biases, but doesn't everyone like light?

Even if a view is not the best, you can hang sheers or even have obscure glass (I've done both), but there's no substitute for natural light, not really.

The only thing I absolutely couldn't live with that would be a pain to change later is the lack of windows on the left side. A corner bedroom with windows on just one side?

Ridiculous isn't it but if you notice in the elevation the garage has a gable in front that blocks any chance of putting windows on that wall. Personally I'd prefer to ditch the gable and have the windows.

I repeat what I said above, anything and everything you can change with a production builder you are paying thru the nose for as that is how they make money.

Thank you all for your comments and recommendations! We did negotiate $20k in upgrades so we of course are planning to use all of that. We are doing very few cosmetic changes and sticking to mainly structural upgrades and things that would be difficult to do once built.

Main Upgrades:

- Alternate hall bathroom layout (double sink)

- Moving laundry upstairs

- Gourmet kitchen cabinet layout

- Water softener

- Under cabinet kitchen lighting

- Spindles staircase

- Knockdown ceiling (no popcorn ceiling)

- Carpet pad upgrade (antimicrobial)

- Adding outlets (near mantel, in pantry)

Upgrades still deciding on:

- Add exterior outlets (already comes with one)

- Add recessed accent lights in master bedroom and living room

- Cabinet upgrades

- Countertop upgrades

- Carpet upgrades

- LVT upgrades

- Laminate upgrades

- One bowl kitchen sink vs two bowl

I do understand that a lot of these are going to be personal decisions dependent upon my visit to the design center on Friday, however if anyone has any strong opinions for/against any of these options specifically I'd love to hear them.

Do yourself a favor and at least talk to a custom builder. We are getting a totally custom house for what it would have cost us to build a crappy Toll Brothers house.

I wouldn't do the double sink in a secondary bath. Storage is more important.

I wouldn't do the carpet pad. Too high priced for what you get. It's carpet. Go as cheap as possible. You'll end up upgrading or redoing it before you sell anyway. Extra $ is throwing that $ away.

UC lighting would depend on what they plan. DIY LED tape lights might be a lot cheaper later if you have the outlets available.

Same with the water softener. If this is a whole house system, builders typically do not do the proper testing to personalize the system to your local conditions and instead do a generic inadequate one. More info would be needed for that, including a 3rd party water test to determine if your water even needs treatment.

You mention LVT and laminate upgrades but provide no information about the basic flooring material and what those upgrades would be. Both are typically associated with entry level homes, while many of your other choices on your list are more mid range. So you need to examine the neighborhood and its level.

You will never get the value of these "upgrades" back if it pushes your build over the neighborhood norm in building. Bear that in mind in going into this build. The *neighborhood* determines your home value in a builder development, not anything that you choose to do to your home. I would rather have 20K off of the price than most of the upgrades. The exception would be the laundry move and addition of windows and electric outlets. Everything else can be done cheaper after the sale if you are even a little bit handy.

If personalizing your home is important to you, you are dealing with the wrong type of builder. Production builds are more for those just starting out or ending their paths to home ownership. Newlyweds and seniors. For anyone in the middle, doing a more custom type build will have a greater value for the money spent on the overpriced "upgrades".

Honestly on some of your upgrades you're wasting your money.

Alternate hall bathroom layout (double sink)

Definitely not worth a double sink because the kids will never use the extra sink. More storage is more important than 2 sinks.

- Moving laundry upstairs

Absolutely yes.

- Gourmet kitchen cabinet layout

What is the difference between the non gourmet cabinet layout and what you have?

- Water softener

Yes but only if the proper testing is done first.

- Under cabinet kitchen lighting

This is easy enough to do yourself after the fact and is probably cheaper by going to HD.

- Spindles staircase

I wouldn't because you won't get your money back. Personally more windows would be more important.

- Knockdown ceiling (no popcorn ceiling)

Are you sure they were doing a popcorn ceiling since no one does popcorn anymore? Are you thinking orange peel is popcorn? Again, I wouldn't if the rest of the neighborhood is getting the same ceiling.

- Carpet pad upgrade (antimicrobial)

Yes

- Adding outlets (near mantel, in pantry)

Yes if you don't have enough.

Upgrades still deciding on:

- Add exterior outlets (already comes with one)

You need probably 1 or 2 more.

- Add recessed accent lights in master bedroom and living room

Probably not.

- Cabinet upgrades

Unless they are total garbage, it's not worth it.

- Countertop upgrades

Definitely not worth it especially if the neighborhood doesn't warrant it.

- Carpet upgrades

Actually you can upgrade later and it will probably still be cheaper.

- LVT upgrades

not worth it.

- Laminate upgrades

No.

- One bowl kitchen sink vs two bowl

Personal decision, but for me it would be a yes.

However as I said, more windows would be more important than most of the cosmetic stuff you're talking about.

If it is 'soft goods' (like carpeting) or if it cannot be changed easily later (like electrical wiring inside and outside, stair spindles -- and **windows**), do it now. I'm thinking spindles could help open up the rather cramped entry. (A future 'first impression' for a buyer.)

Kitchen cabinets are boxes with doors. I'd take what's standard unless it's cardboard; change out later. Same with countertops.

Don't mess with carpeting that will be trashed in a couple of years. "Antimicrobial Padding"? What? Carpet itself is a dirt magnet. You may be able to lay some hard surface flooring later.

Skip the can lights. Do the exterior outlets. Do in-wall UC wiring in kitchen.

Who builds popcorn ceilings today? (This is as odd as paying for guttering.)

It's unlikely two people will use the upstairs bathroom at the same time. No second sink. Put a slop sink in the mudroom instead.