Closed and sold!

Loan - Closed!

Today we closed on the loan.  Over the years we have closed enough times to know that there was a lot of signing so that was no surprise.  This is, however, our first (and hopefully last) construction loan closing.  Learning about the disbursement process and role of both the bank and the title company are new aspects for both of us.  Bottom line, we will get to know Mike and Jean very well, so I have listed them both as Project Partners.

Garage - Sold!

The only nice thing about the existing home is the garage.  It's fairly new, so we tried to make it work as part of the plan, but unfortunately it is just in the wrong spot.  On a whim, I posted the garage on Craigslist for $700, must be disassembled and hauled away in a short 2 day window.  I got a flurry of responses.  But agreed to the first comer's offer of $300.  In the end, it will also save us $600 in demolition costs.  That's a happy $900 bump to the Craig-o-Meter!   

Our $900 YIPPEE!!! 

Color Kismet

Timeline Update: Demolition
We appear to have a date for the demolition - it will now be Tuesday, December 6th.  All previous calls for gawking/toasting still stand!

Color Inspiration
This has been a pain in the rear.  While I realize that we can't paint until it is built, or the spring flowers are popping out of the ground, materials can be purchased NOW.  That means we need to get the color scheme figured out.

If you love to look at books and magazines for inspiration, you need to discover Houzz.  Architects, designers, and builders upload their project pictures and there are hundreds of thousands of searchable photos to browse for inspiration.  With hundreds of thousands of pictures, still nothing that made the color combo come to life for either of us.

So, Andy has been trolling local architect sites.  He showed me one yesterday that I quickly dismissed.  Today we were on a Craigslist buying tour of the city and came back through an area with lots of tear-downs.  We snapped pictures as we went.  Sure enough, one stuck out to me!  Back at home Andy put the iPad under my nose, looking a little smug... it was the same house he showed me the day before.  I call it destiny, he calls it "I told you so."  Either way, we both seem happy with it.

The architect's shot, not ours.

Craigslist Delivers
The Craig-o-Meter is climbing!  The long weekend has yielded some excellent scores.  A few items are   New in Box (NIB) such as a kitchen sink, the previously discussed hood (from White Bear Lake) and a faucet for the kid's bathroom.  Thank you to everyone who we have purchased materials from - I have to say, everyone has been wonderful!

Count down to tear down.

Demolition Update
A first in construction history, things are moving ahead of schedule.  It looks like the house might actually be demolished as early as next week.  Here are some of the events that need to fall into place and their projected dates:

Close on loan Wednesday 11/30

Demolition Thursday or Friday????

The biggest open item is how the demolition will be celebrated.  My first reaction is to give the old place a proper send off (read, a round in it's honor).  My second reaction is...  I guess I don't have a second reaction.  Let me know if you might be interested in a viewing of the house's remains, then adjourning to a local establishment to share in a farewell round.  

Craig-o-Meter 2.0
The fact that people care about the Craig-o-Meter makes my thrifty side so pleased.  The fact that there is confusion about the terms of the Craig-o-Meter makes the engineer in me uneasy.  So here are the rules of Craig-o-Meter 2.0 (legalese thanks to Andy):

• The Craig-o-Meter shall only register savings for items specified in the building specifications.  The Craig-o-Meter shall filter out any items that are out of scope from said specifications. 
• Craig-o-Meter savings shall be delineated in two separate formats: (i) cost savings vis-a-vis the specified allowance for said item and (ii) cost savings vis-a-vis the lowest online retail price for said item from a respectable merchant.

The house that Craig built.

What did we do before Craigslist?  We have both gotten to the point where we have memorized the postings of all relevant materials and can discuss them in regular conversation.

Rachel:  Andy, do you think the Euro Vent-a-hood on Craigslist would work?

Andy:  The one from Eden Prairie, or the one from Maplewood without the vent cover?

It seems like a strange way to shop, but the deals are outrageous!  This weekend we came out $580 ahead.  We bought a Kohler sink and faucet that had been installed for 2 months, the lady even delivered it to our home.  Then we helped a couple from Hudson by agreeing to sell them the tear-down's corner tub as a replacement for theirs that was ruined by a refinisher.  I think this will be a significant source of savings, so much that I have created a Craig-o-Meter to our blog to tally our deals.

The other topic that has consumed the weekend is COLOR.  We need to make some decisions on exterior and interior colors so we can continue to accumulate materials on Craigslist.  I uploaded our drawing to a color visualizer and asked Lucy's advice.  What do you think of her submission?

A new house, finally.

2012 may put us in the looney bin, but here we go.  Hand-in-hand with our decision to start a second adoption, we have decided to build a house.  The small, 2 bedroom house that we have loved for the last 8 years is starting to close in around us.  We looked for the extra functionality without giving up our convenient location...  apparently it doesn't exist.

Last October, when we bought a tear down house in St. Anthony Park neighborhood of St. Paul, MN.  It's 4 miles from downtown Minneapolis.  With more than a year of planning and indecision - we have decided to move forward.

The Lot

St. Anthony Park is heavy on the "park".  The lot is no exception.  The lot is only 50' wide, but 230" deep.  The woods and quiet setting really made us fall in love with the potential.  There is a current house that will need to be torn down, probably in mid-December.

The Plan

Not terribly big (about 2,300 sq ft), the plan gives us all of the things we have been missing in our current house:  3 bedrooms on the same floor, a 2 car garage, an open kitchen, a master bath, and a mud room.  

Our biggest challenge was the narrow lot.  Unfortunately, there is no alley access.  That means we needed to get the house and a driveway on the 50' lot.  We will have a 2 car detached garage behind the house.

What's Next?
In the next few weeks, we will be cutting down trees, tearing down the existing house, and getting a foundation.  John, our contractor said that the whole thing should be done in 6 to 7 months.  If you geek out on this sort of stuff, follow along.  We are hoping for input on the thousands of decisions coming out way!