The First Time Home Buyer Blog: Design Studio - Part 2

Hey! I am back with Part 2 of my Design Studio Blog! If you haven’t had a chance to read Part 1 or any of the blogs in my First Time Home Buyer Blog Series here are the links:

•  First Time Home Buyer Blog
•  First Time Home Buyer Blog – Personalizing My Floor Plan!
•  First Time Home Buyer Blog – Design Studio - Part 1

In Part 1 of my Design Studio blog I really wanted to give you some insight on what the Design Studio is and provide some tips for making the Design Studio Selections process easier. In Part Two (this blog), I want to talk to you about my experience once I got into the Design Studio with Susan (Design Studio Manager and Interior Designer).

Like I said before I had LOTS of time between when I purchase my new townhome and actually having to do my Design Studio Selections. With a closing date in October of this year I got lots of time! Typically you only have about a week from going firm on your agreement to get your Design Studio Selections done.

For my home I spent a lot of time researching, looking at pictures and contemplating what finishes I wanted in my new home. I wanted a very fresh and modern look, nothing crazy and nothing I couldn’t match accessories to. But I also wanted to keep on budget with the Design Dollars I was given as a bonus when I purchased and I wanted to try to not spend too much more. For a girl with expensive taste this got challenging ;)

When I got to the Design Studio, Susan started with the kitchen cabinets. This was a pretty easy decision for me because I had already decided on what style of door I was looking for and the stain colour. I want my kitchen to have a transitional design so I went with a door with clean simple lines in a colour called Java. I love dark kitchens; they show less of the mess I create ;). After selecting my cabinet style it was onto countertops, I wasn’t 100% sure on what colour I wanted for my countertop, light or dark. The Design Studio has a fantastic selection and I decided on a pattern/colour called Perlato Granite. It is a beautiful mid range colour between light and dark and has awesome tones of greys and an almost purple in it. I just love it! (The countertop is laminate, because well real granite was not in the budget, but it’s going to look awesome regardless!)

After selecting my kitchen cabinetry and countertops I moved onto selecting my bathroom cabinetry and countertops. I have this thing where I think it’s weird when the bathroom and kitchen have the exact same cabinets and countertops – like my powder room was going to be an extension of my kitchen. Weird! So I wanted to look into options of having white cabinets in my main floor powder room. With this in mind, I booked an appointment with our Kitchen Designer. When you are looking to upgrade your kitchen and/or bathroom cabinetry or countertops we offer the fantastic opportunity to meet with our Kitchen Designer – I will give you more insight on experience with her later. So back to my bathrooms… I knew I definitely wanted them to have a different colour countertop than my kitchen and thought a light colour would be best. I picked White Tigris, from the many options! It’s a nice light grey with a subtle pattern, which I am sure will help hide any bathroom mishaps that I am sure are on their way in my homeownership adventure! For my second floor bathrooms I picked the same dark java cabinets as my kitchen. With the light countertops I am convinced no one will get confused on whether they are in the kitchen or the bathroom :).

After the cabinetry for my home was picked, it was time for floor tile. I knew one of the upgrades that I wanted to do for my home was upgrading from vinyl to tile; one because I have a tendency to drop knives in the kitchen and I didn’t want to somehow slice my flooring and two because I wanted the look and durability of tile. Going with my overall theme of modern and fresh I found an awesome 13x13 grey tile amongst the many floor tile samples. It has an awesome texture, variation of tones and overall fits me and my style perfectly. Oh and it matches my cabinets and both countertops I have selected perfectly!

I will keep you in my bathroom just for a moment longer, to tell you about the wall tile that I selected for both my showers. I went through the wall tile samples multiple times, I wanted something that went with the floor tile and countertops I had already selected, but also wanted to make sure I picked a pattern with longevity, no cream undertones and that it wasn’t to white or to dark. The Design Studio offers many wall tile samples to choose from. After pulling MANY different options, I was able to find a light tile with beautiful grey undertones that matched my floor tile and countertop nicely with NO hint of cream. Can you tell I don’t like cream? ;)

The last selection I needed to make at the Design Studio was my trim and door package. I wanted something modern, something that was different from normal trim packages, clean lines and I didn’t want traditional details. I chose an upgraded package that I think is just beautiful! It is called Modern 1, so I think it was meant to be :).  I have attached a picture of it in one of our homes to show you, because it is difficult to describe its beauty!

That pretty much sums up my Design Studio Selection Process. There were some items that I stayed standard on because they worked for me – such as faucets, plumbing fixtures, interior and exterior door hardware, railings and spindles, etc. Also, with choosing to buy a townhome, my exterior colours and finishes were pre-selected for me. If you buy a single detached home you get the excitement of picking your exterior colour package as well. All Parkview Home Buyers have the opportunity to upgrade almost everything in their home, should their budget allow for it. If not there are so many awesome standard options, your home will looks fantastic no matter what!

You might be thinking I forget to go back and talk about my visit with our Kitchen Designer… I haven’t it was just such an awesome experience I want to give it it’s own blog so nothing is missed.

So until next time I hope this was helpful and I look forward to talking to you soon!

- Alyssa

Click here for more information about the Parkview Homes Design Studio!

(Also, there are fantastic videos on this page that will show you the Design Studio and explain the Design Studio (Colour) Selection process!)

Easter Really is Coming! Honestly!

Wow!!! Here we are everyone! Spring at Last!!!...at least…I think…it’s ...no wait…what the?? …HEY!!! What is that little white stuff I see falling out of the sky?? You have got to be kidding me!!!

There are times that I’m thrilled to have been born in Canada and appreciate so many things about living in this amazing and beautiful country of ours...but SERIOUSLY, after encountering a winter like this past one that even the SNOWMOBILERS were complaining about…it makes me wonder if I was born in the right place after all.

However, the one thrill in having experienced what no one can comprehend without actually living here …is that when Spring does begin to peep through the suddenly melting snow, it makes our hearts soar in a way that few things do.

In all honesty, I had to stop listening to the weather reports…I mean…Who really wants to feel hopeless on top of the cold and endless, snow, ice and freezing rain?

But then one day I heard the sound…and it happened on a day when several co-workers let me know more of the white stuff was still being predicted…yet when I heard the sound…I knew the winter of discontent was finally ending despite the evil reports…because regardless of what we had experienced I knew these birds (only seen when Spring is a looming reality) would not be making their appearance or be singing their song of hope for a better season…unless it was true. As I looked out the window to make sure I wasn’t hallucinating, there before me stood a little quartet of robins…singing their hearts out to welcome what their instincts were telling them was at last on the way.

So welcome, Spring!! …Welcome beautiful, warm, weather…holding a promise of an even lovelier Summer…and Easter…sweet Easter is really on the way…in fact just a few days away….Wait!! What did the weatherman just say is being predicted… in April????....NOOOOOOOOOOOO…snow and freezing rain???....Those robins are in BIG trouble!! 

-Catey, New Home Specialist @ Parkview Homes

The First Time Home Buyer Blog: Design Studio - Part 1

Hello, hello, hello!

Welcome back or welcome if you haven’t read the first few blogs in this series!

If you want to know what you have missed so far, here are the links to the first two blogs I have written about my First Time Home Buyer experience:

·          Blog #1 – First Time Home Buyer Blog

        Blog #2 – First Time Home Buyer Blog – Personalizing My Floor Plan!

In this blog, I want to start talking to you about the Design Studio Selection process. It is an extremely exciting, nerve racking and awesome experience! I want to share with you my experience and also share tips that helped make it a much easier process for me.

First, I want to start by explaining what the Design Studio is. The Design Studio is a convenient one-stop shop for picking out everything that goes into your new home! I mean EVERYTHING! Carpet, floor tile, wall tile, hardwood, kitchen cabinets, kitchen countertops, bathroom cabinets, bathroom countertops, doors, trim, faucets, railings and all exterior finishes - I could go on but I don’t want to scare you! Luckily, all this is available in one place so you can compare colours and styles all in one location. Also, I should point out that the Design Studio has many standard options that are included in the price of your new home. However, if you have the budget and are looking to upgrade your new home, there are many, many upgrade options throughout the Design Studio to choose from as well.

Now for a look into my experience…

As I mentioned before, I work for Parkview Homes, which has given me the advantage of being in and out of our Design Studio many times. Even before I knew I was buying a Parkview Home, whenever I was in there I was looking at all the selection and dreamed about how some of the finishes would look in my imaginary home. I once contemplated becoming an Interior Designer (before I settled on being a Graphic Designer), so picking out interior finishes, matching colours and patterns is very exciting for me!

Here is Tip #1 – RESEARCH!!

Even if you think you know what you want and know your personal style really well, still do your RESEARCH! A good place to start is online, search interior decorating sites. I really loved Pinterest and Houzz. They were extremely helpful in deciding what kind of style I wanted to accomplish in my new house, before I headed into the Design Studio for my Design Studio Appointment. Also, in your research, figure out if you prefer classic, transitional or contemporary styling. As well, I found it helpful to decide what neutral colour I was – are you cream, beige, grey or greige person? I am definitely a grey person! I am a big believer in keeping large items neutral and accessorizing in colour. Accessories are easy to change out, big items such as ceramic tile flooring or kitchen cabinets are not so easy or cheap to change.

Tip #2 – BROWSE, BROWSE, BROWSE!!

Once you have determined what style and colour you would like to see in yournew home, head into the Design Studio for Browsing Hours. Browse through the selections, see what you like, what you don’t like, make notes and take pictures. When browsing at the Design Studio I found it extremely helpful to take pictures of the combinations that I liked, so I could reference back when I got home.

Also, if you are design or colour challenged, don’t worry! Susan, our Design Studio Consultant and Interior Designer is there to guide you through the process and offer suggestions to make your home fit your personal style.

Now I should mention, with my closing date not until fall, I had plenty of time between when I signed my agreement and when I needed to pick my Design Studio Selections. In most cases you don’t have the luxury of that much time. The typical time frame is within 7 days of signing a firm agreement. My suggestion, if you fall into this category, is start browsing online before your agreement even goes firm. You can also visit the Design Studio for Browsing Hours, to get an idea of what is offered and what you would like in your new home!

I am going to break this blog here! I don’t want to bore you with all my ramblings. Stay tuned for my next blog where I will give you a sneak peak at the selections I chose and also explain how beneficial it was to visit our kitchen designer! She’s awesome by the way! :)

Until my next blog - I hope this has been helpful! I look forward to continuing to write about my Design Studio Selection process!

Talk to you soon,

Alyssa

Click here for more information about the Parkview Homes Design Studio!

(Also, there are fantastic videos on this page that will show you the Design Studio and explain the Design Studio (Colour) Selection process!)

The First Time Home Buyer Blog: Personalizing My Floor Plan to Suit Me!

Welcome back or welcome if you didn’t read the first blog in this series!

As promised, in this blog I am going to explain how very exciting it was for me to have the ability to personalize my floor plan to the way I wanted it.

To start I needed to figure out which townhome plan it was that I could afford. Parkview Homes offers three different designs; The Kenton II, The Berkley and The Arundel. While they were all very affordable, my budget is very small so I went with the least expensive design, The Arundel! It is super cute on the inside and out, I must add! I am very excited to move in this fall! In fact, I just bought a roasting pan! I know your probably thinking what a nerd, but hey! I get excited by the simple things in life – like a new roasting pan :)

Now on to the floor plan personalization… It wasn’t that I didn’t like the original design; I did, it was beautiful! It just didn’t fit my lifestyle. The original Arundel design had a separate dining room that wasn’t going to work for me. As I mentioned in my previous blog I come from a large family, and a separate dining room with no where to expand wasn’t going to be able to accommodate me hosting family dinners. I wanted to have the flexibility to stretch out my dining room table, to allow for my family to have lots of room, and for any extended family or friends to join us. So I moved it over and attached it to my great room and took down the middle wall to open everything up (I had to stretch the budget a little bit with the removal of the supporting wall, but it will be all worth it to have my home the way I want it!).

Another change I wanted to make was moving the powder room from the front entrance to just behind the kitchen. I wanted it to be more accessible from the main living area.

With these two changes I was able to create a more open concept layout for my new home! I now have an awesome dining room/great room, a perfectly placed kitchen that is open to my dining room/great room, my spacious breakfast area and a conveniently located powder room!

I should also note that when I made the changes on main floor, they did effect more than just the main floor (you may have already noticed), by moving the powder room, the location of the stairs had to change, which meant that my upstairs layout had to change slightly. My master bedroom configuration got altered and the locations of my main bath and ensuite also changed. I am elated with the final layout!

Just looking at the floor plan that I personalized with the help of the fantastic designer at Parkview Homes, it gives my butterflies and goose bumps of excitement for when I move in and host that first family dinner! And use that shining new roasting pan ;). Also, did you see the size of the walk-in closet in my master bedroom?! I could live in that thing!

As I mentioned in my first blog, I have the advantage of knowing A LOT about the new home building industry, because I do work for Parkview Homes. I know what you might be thinking; this blog is a marketing ploy to get you to buy a new home. Well it may be a little bit, but it’s more importantly a chance for me, a first time homebuyer, to share the knowledge that I have gained over the last two years of working here, as well as share my first home buying experience!

Here are a few tips that might be helpful that I wouldn’t have known two years ago:

1.  If you are not familiar with new home builders, changing floor plans is usually something that they will NOT accommodate. Usually, you pick a floor plan and that is exactly how your home is going to be built.

I am very lucky that Parkview will make changes to meet my personal and lifestyle needs. This isn’t just a special service for me – they do it for everyone! However, like I mentioned before you should be aware there may be some costs involved depending on the changes/modifications that you would like to make.

2.  You get to pick your own design selections! Flooring, Trim, Doors, Exterior Colours, etc. This is something you get to learn more about in my next blog. I think picking colours was the most nerve racking and exciting part!! Stay tuned :)!

I hope this has been helpful! I look forward to writing about my Design Studio Selection process!

Talk to you soon,

Alyssa

Here are a few resources if you are thinking about buying your first home or a new home or you just really want to be my neighbour!

Jackson Creek Meadows – Townhomes

Jackson Creek Meadows – Community

The First Time Home Buyer Series: Part 1

If you are thinking about buying your first home… this is the blog for you!

Let me start by introducing myself. I am Alyssa and I live with my parents, my 3 siblings and two cats. Life is crazy and I never seem to have a minute for myself! I graduated from college almost 4 years ago and like most college grads found myself living back with my parents. After experiencing what it’s like to be on my own, I have known for a long time that I had no long terms plans for continuing to live with my parents. However, as the money cautious person that I am, renting seemed to be the worst idea in the world. I just couldn’t imagine giving my hard earned money away to a landlord when I could be saving it to get myself further ahead. This is where I landed on the idea of buying a house!

I have been saving for probably about three years and said that I wouldn’t start looking until I had reached my set goal. I had almost reached that goal this past fall and decided it was time to start looking to see what I could afford and start thinking about what I wanted in my first home.

As a single girl looking to buy her first home, I knew I wouldn’t be very handy. I knew I didn’t want to be spending every waking hour working on my house, not to mention I wanted to know that I had a few dollars to eat or maybe go out once and awhile. The more I thought about it, an older home just wasn’t really going to work for me. Here are the conclusions I came to:

·      I didn’t want to be changing my roof in two years

·      I didn’t want to update my windows in three years

·      I didn’t want to run the risk of bad electrical

·      I didn’t want to have questionable plumbing

·      I didn’t want to be living with someone else’s version of a DIY home renovation

·      I DEFINITELY didn’t want to be living a life of constant renovations

So after really thinking about want I really didn’t want in my first home, I landed on the idea of a new townhome. I don’t have a lot of money to play with but I was willing to push my budget by a very minimal amount to get what I wanted.

This is where I must reveal that I have the advantage of knowing more about new homes than most; I have been working for Parkview Homes for the past two years. I know A LOT about new homes, I know many plans inside and out, the advantages and disadvantages of buying new and I have the knowledge of the new home industry that a regular first time homebuyer wouldn’t normally be exposed to.

Even though I know a lot about new homes I still did a lot of research and thinking to make sure that it was the best choice for me. Here are some of the conclusions I came to as to why I was leaning towards a new townhome:

·      Personalized floorplan – I will explain more about this in a later blog.

·      Long closing date – I wanted extra time to save!

·      Little to no updating

·      Great community/location – I get to be in the West End of Peterborough without paying West End prices or being in an older home

·      I get to choose my own interior selections – I don’t have to live with anyone else’s taste, until I have the money to change them

·      Everything was new! – new electrical, new plumbing, new flooring, new windows, new roof, new appliances, new kitchen, new toilets NEW EVERYTHING!

·      Fantastic resale value

After comparing my list of what I didn’t want in an older home to what I could get in a new townhome it was a no brainer for me, I had to go with the new home. It is what made the most sense for me.

So on November 17, 2013, after many, many, many loooong nights of estimating all my possible costs, budgeting every cent I have and many conversations and discussions with family and friends about what they thought of my plan, I signed an agreement to purchase my new townhome in Jackson Creek Meadows!

My house won’t be ready until Fall of 2014, but that is exactly how I wanted it. It gives me plenty of extra time to save, stock up on all the necessities and really get excited!

My plan is to make this blog a series so that you can follow along the new home buying process with me! In my next blogs I will talk about the fun process of personalizing my floorplan, my Design Studio Selection Process and anything else exciting that happens!

Talk to you soon,

Alyssa

Here are a few resources if you are thinking about buying your first home or a new home:

Jackson Creek Meadows – Townhomes

Jackson Creek Meadows – Community

Why has everything gone grey?

As I look out my window on this stormy winter’s day, I ask the question “why has everything gone grey”? And I don’t just mean the skies! What I am most curious about is what’s happening in the home décor world.

As you may already be aware the trend in decorating has shifted from what once was clearly beige/brown to grey. I personally really like the use of this colour in interiors, but I know that it is quite a controversial colour as some people find it quite depressing. Some refer to grey as the “drabbest colour in the pallette”. Grey is often associated with industrial environments which are typically utilitarian and functional.

 If we look at grey, we see a colour that is neither black nor white. Given it is virtually absent of colour, it draws no attention to itself, neither good nor bad, in my opinion. The flip side to this coin is that some colour enthusiasts believe it is the new beige and feels as neutral and pleasing to the eye as can be.

In recent months we have seen a significant shift in the use of the colour grey; not just in paint, cabinets, and accessories but also in clothing, and even car manufacturers have caught on to this hot trend! I recently purchased a new vehicle in what I would call a mid grey tone (they call it graphite) which is not too light (silver) and not too dark (charcoal) but in my opinion just right. Up until a few years ago I could never see myself liking a grey car, but have to admit I have fully embraced the “grey” world!

There could be a number of reasons why grey is the new colour of choice by many. It could be seen as a trendy/fashionable statement by those who follow design shows and read up on the latest magazines. This gives a sense of belonging, inclusion, even acceptance.

Your New Home… Personalized Just For You!

In our careers there are always aspects of our jobs that we find interesting and fulfilling. One of the aspects that I enjoy is helping my customers find practical solutions to personalizing their floor plan, to meet their lifestyle requirements or special needs. Often my clients will be looking at a floor plan on our website and contact me and wondering if they can make changes. The answer is that at Parkview Homes, we love to work with our purchasers to make the changes they desire to personalize their home to suit their lifestyle and needs.

I enjoy listening to my client's suggestions and I love to offer my own suggestions. Often I will make practical and low cost suggestions that my clients have not even considered. I find making suggestions that will enhance my clients home in terms of “their wishes” very satisfying.
 
For example:

“How about we increase the width of your front door? This will make it easier for delivery of large appliances or furniture.”

“Why don’t we upgrade your regular ensuite door in your master bathroom, to a pocket door that way the door will not be hiding your new elegant glass shower door?”

Normally when I’m working with a client, I review and examine the floor plan after I understand my client's lifestyle needs and budget and offer helpful suggestions. Reviewing and/or changing floor plans is something I thoroughly enjoy doing. I often receive feedback from my customers on how helpful the process was and they really were appreciative of my suggestions.
 
I have re-designed master ensuite bathrooms, created dream kitchen suggestions, helped re-design lower levels and I even had the pleasure of designing a wheelchair accessible home.

I also receive feedback from my customers that many of the other builders would not spend as much time with them and I often hear that other local builders were not interested in making floor plan changes.

Looking for a new home? Let’s Chat!  I’m available 5 days a week, where we can sit down in a nice relaxed environment, share design thoughts & ideas and together design a home which is “PERSONALIZED JUST FOR YOU.”
 
For more information, contact Rick Phillips – Director of sales and Marketing – Parkview Homes
rphillips@parkviewhomes.ca   705-741-1004 (office)