ᐅ Today was the material and finish selection appointment, smile
Created on: 9 Mar 2017 13:40
N
Nordlys
Some leftover vacation days in March. We just had the selection appointment. This morning at nine. Selection appointment with the mid-sized company. Waiting for us were Mrs. L., the secretary, with a coffee; Mr. K., the master carpenter; and Mr. R., the head of masonry and roofing. Mr. K. starts. In front of him, the building plan of our house, next to him a laundry basket full of various bits and pieces. Let’s get started. With windows. He flips through the building specification. Ah, they’re from Poland. He rummages through the laundry basket and pulls out a profile sample. Veka, triple glazing, Roto fittings, Hoppe handles. The handles can also be lockable, costs extra. But then you just lose the keys, no one needs that, and if burglars want to get in, they will anyway; it just ends up broken... My wife examines the profile. Well, you can easily wipe off the dirt, can’t you? And colored, she asks? Mr. K., dryly: Yeah, it’s possible. But it’s a waste of money; it doesn’t make a difference when looking out either... So, it remains white. It goes on in that style with tiles, interior doors. When it comes to the exterior window sills, he really gets going. Yes, those are aluminum, white or nothing at all. He grins. And on the inside? Laundry basket. Granite slabs are brought to the table. Four pieces. Two disappear right away because they are polished high gloss. That’s nonsense, he says; anyway, you’ll just put flowers on them. My wife picks one from the remaining slabs. Done, moving on. The roofing expert chimes in. Hey, I need to take off some joints first, what’s the plan? He takes us outside. There lies a package from Braas with sample tiles. He picks out three. That one, that one, or that one is allowed in the building plan. We choose the dark red one. Gloss coating against moss? Doesn’t work, there are no trees here. In High German: You don’t need it because there are no trees where you are building. Okay, convinced. The roof is done. He storms off. Inside we go. Front door, Mr. K. says, now that’s a topic. So, here are the panels from Rodenberger; from K1 to K6 are included at no extra cost. The long handle costs 100 extra. The very long one 250. But that one is no good, it’s flimsy. Then take the short one for 100. We flip through. That one is good, he says. Stable, timeless, with K5 included, okay price, has some glass, lets some light into the hallway, but it’s not a department store door. Done... that’s the one. Now the interior staircase, he judges... Yeah, you take beech, it’s a hard, quiet wood. It’s coated with parquet lacquer, so it’s also durable. And as a railing, a handrail with metal rods. He grins, done. Can it be done differently? White? Hmm, he shakes his head. It’s possible. But... that costs more, you have to paint, sand, and fill more. You can see on his face what he thinks about white stairs. I give in. Beech, parquet lacquer. Matte. Then he and my wife decide where the towel radiator should go. Here or there! And how and where tiles will be installed... done. Oh yes, facade... we’ll do it like the garage, right? So, everything smooth and seamless. The plinth a little anthracite accent, everyone does that. He rummages for some color samples for the plinth from the basket. Yes, that will do.
Selection appointment with the mid-sized company. Two hours, one coffee, and not a penny extra paid.
Selection appointment with the mid-sized company. Two hours, one coffee, and not a penny extra paid.
We did not receive a detailed scope of work. Instead, we have a quotation with each item broken down. There is also an Excel file that allows us to calculate the cost of adding, for example, 10 more electrical outlets, and it also encourages us to reconsider choices like a different plumbing brand, roof tiles, etc.
Last year, there was a brief selection appointment of about 2 hours. During that time, the different quality levels for windows, insulation, and so on were explained to us, as well as options for tiles, such as whether we wanted 80cm x 20cm (31.5 inches x 7.9 inches) sizes, laminate flooring, real wood parquet, or carpet.
At some point in April, we have appointments with various tradespeople—some of whom we have chosen ourselves—and will decide on the tile colors and related details.
It is not quite the free choice you would have at five different home improvement stores, but it is also not as limited as a traditional selection center where you might get 5 colors free of charge and 3 colors with an extra fee.
Last year, there was a brief selection appointment of about 2 hours. During that time, the different quality levels for windows, insulation, and so on were explained to us, as well as options for tiles, such as whether we wanted 80cm x 20cm (31.5 inches x 7.9 inches) sizes, laminate flooring, real wood parquet, or carpet.
At some point in April, we have appointments with various tradespeople—some of whom we have chosen ourselves—and will decide on the tile colors and related details.
It is not quite the free choice you would have at five different home improvement stores, but it is also not as limited as a traditional selection center where you might get 5 colors free of charge and 3 colors with an extra fee.
But you are building very specifically in the town, involving the demolition of an old house and so on, and probably not using a company that offers partly standardized services, right?
By the way, I’m not a fan of sample centers either. They look great at first, all nicely presented, but you are dependent on the operator. They set the range of products and prices or additional costs. I’d rather have the freedom to independently search through various suppliers where the builder has customer accounts. Karsten
By the way, I’m not a fan of sample centers either. They look great at first, all nicely presented, but you are dependent on the operator. They set the range of products and prices or additional costs. I’d rather have the freedom to independently search through various suppliers where the builder has customer accounts. Karsten
A sloped site is not unusual for us; demolition is. This is expected to increase in the coming years. Many municipalities no longer designate new development areas because town centers are declining. I believe that the logistics of a town center are not much different from those of a new development area where the neighborhood already exists.
In fact, only smaller companies can handle slopes, whether using solid construction, timber frame, or solid wood. The larger companies tend to use solutions like a basement with a custom-designed house on top, either designed by them or an architect, or a concrete retaining wall with the house set about one meter (3 feet) away in front of it. There are currently several traditional prefabricated home companies operating in our region. They should at least be able to manage a sloped site.
I think we have found a pretty good partner. They only work on custom designs—there are no show homes, and no two built houses look the same. Even though they do not work as independent architects.
In fact, only smaller companies can handle slopes, whether using solid construction, timber frame, or solid wood. The larger companies tend to use solutions like a basement with a custom-designed house on top, either designed by them or an architect, or a concrete retaining wall with the house set about one meter (3 feet) away in front of it. There are currently several traditional prefabricated home companies operating in our region. They should at least be able to manage a sloped site.
I think we have found a pretty good partner. They only work on custom designs—there are no show homes, and no two built houses look the same. Even though they do not work as independent architects.
C
Caspar202010 Mar 2017 11:31We were planning to build with a larger timber frame prefab manufacturer (approximately 600-700 houses per year).
The initial “pre-selection” alone took about 3 hours. Many of those options were immediately included in the contract, which already added up to nearly €25,000. We were also able to find many of the additional costs in corresponding forums for this manufacturer.
For the actual selection process, they usually schedule 2 days (including a nice overnight stay near the company’s headquarters) for FastTrack projects; this does not include wallpaper or tiled floors. We set a budget limit of another €15,000 for this phase.
We visited several selection centers. It was always very clear and transparent what was included as standard and what required an extra charge. We gathered a lot of ideas and preferences there, as well as in the show homes.
Some manufacturers have a dedicated selection corner within their show homes. We personally found that a bit unusual. Those manufacturers were quickly eliminated from our options.
The initial “pre-selection” alone took about 3 hours. Many of those options were immediately included in the contract, which already added up to nearly €25,000. We were also able to find many of the additional costs in corresponding forums for this manufacturer.
For the actual selection process, they usually schedule 2 days (including a nice overnight stay near the company’s headquarters) for FastTrack projects; this does not include wallpaper or tiled floors. We set a budget limit of another €15,000 for this phase.
We visited several selection centers. It was always very clear and transparent what was included as standard and what required an extra charge. We gathered a lot of ideas and preferences there, as well as in the show homes.
Some manufacturers have a dedicated selection corner within their show homes. We personally found that a bit unusual. Those manufacturers were quickly eliminated from our options.
H
HilfeHilfe10 Mar 2017 11:52Well, there’s no need to speak negatively about it. We also had a reasonable selection process. The plumbing was handled again with the plumber at the bathroom showroom.
During the construction phase, some additional ideas came up due to problems and considerations (like lowering ceilings, spotlights).
Everything was within the expected scope.
During the construction phase, some additional ideas came up due to problems and considerations (like lowering ceilings, spotlights).
Everything was within the expected scope.
@TE. It all seems a bit strange to me, even though I find your post very entertaining.
We significantly upgraded the electrical work; our general contractor did not charge extra for this (quote: “I don’t earn anything from one more outlet”). We added at least 6 additional outlets in every room along all walls. Power strips with cables just look unattractive.
The staircase was that terrible beech staircase. We didn’t want that at all. Is there an even worse one? So, we hired a stair builder and our friend (a carpenter) to do the stair treads and handrail. Now we have steel with treads and handrail made of black locust. The price was reasonable.
It’s nice when you can save money. I was also careful with the tiles. There is a wide selection, but we visited a tiler to see samples and really got a good impression. The tiler also gave us some advice. In the end, we chose quite a few things that were still within budget.
During the final selections, we noticed a number of things we didn’t like. Of course, you can just agree to everything, but we had put a lot of thought into the design beforehand, and some things simply didn’t fit. This took time and led to some discussions, but I didn’t want to live in a house where the general contractor designed my home. You usually have to make compromises, but letting the general contractor plan everything yourself feels a bit odd to me—even if it worked for you.
I hope you’re happy in your home.
Good luck
We significantly upgraded the electrical work; our general contractor did not charge extra for this (quote: “I don’t earn anything from one more outlet”). We added at least 6 additional outlets in every room along all walls. Power strips with cables just look unattractive.
The staircase was that terrible beech staircase. We didn’t want that at all. Is there an even worse one? So, we hired a stair builder and our friend (a carpenter) to do the stair treads and handrail. Now we have steel with treads and handrail made of black locust. The price was reasonable.
It’s nice when you can save money. I was also careful with the tiles. There is a wide selection, but we visited a tiler to see samples and really got a good impression. The tiler also gave us some advice. In the end, we chose quite a few things that were still within budget.
During the final selections, we noticed a number of things we didn’t like. Of course, you can just agree to everything, but we had put a lot of thought into the design beforehand, and some things simply didn’t fit. This took time and led to some discussions, but I didn’t want to live in a house where the general contractor designed my home. You usually have to make compromises, but letting the general contractor plan everything yourself feels a bit odd to me—even if it worked for you.
I hope you’re happy in your home.
Good luck
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