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[Natureluvr]

My daughter and son-in-law just purchased new construction and my daughter wants me to join her for the design appointments to help her make selections. Any suggestions on certain products, upgrades, or things we should consider? This is all new to us so I’d like to hear from those who have gone through the process and what things you’re pleased with and what things you wish you hadn’t chosen. Thank you!

[deeva]

There are limited options offered by the builder with new construction  

I really like having a central vacuum system, and we extended the length of our garage by four feet. We also chose a larger lot without any neighbors behind us. 

Not knowing what's important to your daughter, I can't offer many suggestions. 

[Natureluvr]

@deeva She has 3 young children so she’s all about low-maintenance and easy care. Things like countertops and tile selections will be important. I guess just any tips you can think of that might be helpful. Thanks

[Dusty1]

@Natureluvr If possible I would upgrade the appliances. 

[Carmie]

When we built our home, we got an upgraded roof, windows, kitchen cabinets, furnace  and upgraded the bathrooms with materials we really liked.

Some things, will wear out and need replaced in a few years, but other things will need to remain the same for 20 years or more.

I would suggest to get the items that will last a long time in the best available and get what you like, but don't spend a fortune on things that will need replaced.

Also, if she wants hardwood floors, get them now.  Trust me, they're way too much money and lots of hard work to add them later.  It is easier when the rooms are 100% empty.

A two car garage is a must.  If a front porch is desired, do it now.

A large kitchen pantry and large closets will be appreciated. Oh, almost forgot...windows that tilt in to clean are worth it.

[wherever]

I always opted in for the ceiling fan prewiring that the builder offered in homes I bought.  Your family can add (or have someone do it for them) ceilings fans they like after they move it. Very helpful for air circulation and for helping make rooms more comfortable when it's warm. I also recommend adding a ceiling fan with remote controls for the primary bedroom!

[spumoni99]

We had our house built in 1996 so things have changed a lot but one thing I really like that we did was in the cabinets the bottom part was white and wipeable not just wood, sorry I can't remember what it was called but with that you didn't need shelf liner.

We also had the roof extended over our patio which is really nice for some shade.  We also had a storage area put in under the staircase.  

Thats all I am remembering at the moment aside from good flooring and countertops, we have quartz now and I am happy with it.

[on the bay]

@Natureluvr,

My daughter and I chose everything for a small apt under the house and I never would have imagined how many things there were to decide! 

 Countertops-

I loved the quartz countertops. I like them better than granite because they don't have the pits that granite does. They are smooth and so many designs to chose from. Easy to care for and they look like marble.

It had 2 windows on the doors and we had the blinds inside the window panes so I never had to clean or dust the blinds. I really liked that feature.

Tub- I like porcelain not the acrylic.

The acrylic can crack and you can't install anything on it like bars.

Floors-

I wanted the softest possible. There really are none. We ended up with laminate that looks and feels like hardwood.  just recently read that this releases formaldehyde and other toxic chemicals! Great=not! So do things like linoleum or other manufactured types. So maybe hardwood is the way to go.

Closets and shelving- make sure they don't make shelves in kitchen and cabinets made for a giraffe or that you need a step ladder for.

Kitchen-a great feature was lazy susan type revolving shelves inside a cabinet-so great for storage.Ours had 2 shelving layers.Like this-

Paint-

It is worth it to get a high grade paint. We had Sherwin Williams and it really took a beating. I felt like you could touch it and it would chip off.

Glidden, Behr, Benjamin Moore all good.

Door handles-

I always like the lever kind rather than knobs-easier to open if any issues with hands, and for children but also easier to catch things on.

When you are done just re getting rugs.

Don't know why I never noticed this as much but so many rugs and rug pads are toxic so not good for anykids or any. I got rug pads from west elm-they use natural rubber-non toxic. Don't use rugs.com-they really don't reveal what they should.

I was pretty happy with overstock-nice to deal with and lots of selection-You really need to look read the details of online things if ordering that way.

Happy choosing! I hope it all goes as smoothly as possible for you and your daughter and family! You'll be so proud and happy when done!! 

ETA-

Stove/oven

Have the knobs above the stovetop not in the front where children can reach or accidently turn on.

Microwave-

I did not like the microwave above the stove. It it too big and awkward to reach and clean and if it needs replacing it is a big ordeal. I don't know why that is done. I didn't realize they were going to do it that way. I missed my countertop microwave.

And get lots of countertops!

Also lots of drawers and a pantry with shelves in the bathrooms

Ceiling fans, overhead/room lighting in each room-there are lots of pretty ones to chose.

Our builder could order most things himself with his builders discount. We would show him the ones we liked and sometimes would go with him to see things like floors that he would order right there.

[AuntG]

It's wise to ask if the house will still work for her family twenty years down the road. I know someone who picked a design with just a powder room and living quarters downstairs. The bedrooms and two bathrooms were upstairs. Sure, they had a big area for entertaining downstairs, but when the knees start to hurt and you don't want to carry laundry upstairs, a bedroom and full bath on the first floor would have made life more pleasant.

[We rescue cats]

I absolutely love my quartz countertops but one word of warning, mines is 'speckled' and I can lose about anything on that counter and am constantly wiping up crumbs, if I could do it over I would do a marble look. Upgrade the sink material, I went to a very heavyduty stainless. If she wants under cabinet lighting-do it now. EXTRA plugs!!!!!!!