I'm new to this site and have just purchased the lot I plan to build on. So far, this is a terrific resource. I hope I'll be able to contribute as time goes on. Robert in Paradise Valley, AZ

Kristy's Forum Posts: 22
Journal Entries: 3
Average Forum Rating: 4.24



Image from Kristy's blog

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Still waiting to sell!

Posted to BuzzardsNest by Kristy in Saint Lucie, FL on 2/14/2007

It's almost a year now, and we still have not sold our current home. Can't really get started on the new project until our current home is sold.  Although we have used this time to be working on the plans for the new house.  We had started with an architect at $1.50/ sq. ft (single story), and were really pleased with him.  But he wasn't very helpful, and he always seemed to be in a rush with us. Then I decided to call a few more places, not necessarily trying to get a better price, just a better person.  Unbelievably, I found someone new at $1.15/ sq ft (2 story)!  This new person has been awesome. Very efficient and helpful.  Had to forfeit the $1,000 deposit w/ guy #1, but still coming out ahead with the price savings.  And we've been very pleased with the outcome.  We've actually gone from single story to two story.  At this point, we've obtained our bid sets and now can go price shop. Ugh!

We've also started working with a 2nd architect/designer, that is going to assist us with from exterior to interior design including finish work. We purchased $5,000 worth of design work from a charity auction for $250!  The design work will be primarily for the kitchen, and we can obviously pay for his services to do the entire house!  It's all good in theory, but then you have to pay for all that fancy stuff!  And unfortunately all those upgrades are generally not in the budget. But we think we can still benefit from the great deal on the design work.

So if anyone is looking for a house in a Florida airpark community, ours is for sale!  flyinhomes.com

Not much happening

Posted to BuzzardsNest by Kristy in Saint Lucie, FL on 4/27/2006 11:02:58 PM

April 19, 2006:

Met with interior designer to get opinions on layout, traffic flow, furniture placement, etc.  Expected to spend about two hours with her, but barely made it an hour. Didn't really have too much to offer beyond what we had already thought of and she didn't have any great solutions to somewhat problem areas.  From what I gather it really comes down to personal preference and what issues one can or cannot live with.  Originally I was looking forward to working with a designer, and I guess I just expected a lot more.  Not worth it! All in all I'm glad I met with her, it just reassured us that we are on the right track trying to really think things through in this "planning" stage.  Jamie & I need to come together and tweak a few things on the plans and back to the architect we go!

In the meantime, I'm collecting lots of pictures of ideas on all sorts of things and organizing in a notebook. I'm trying to be much more organized. Continuing to learn a lot from this forum, and branching off to do our own research as well.  We need to decide on the home structure itself.  So far, I really like the ALL WALL system but need to gather more info.  Hope to decide soon!

In the Beginning...

Posted to BuzzardsNest by Kristy in Saint Lucie, FL on 4/8/2006

I've been wickedly hooked on this website now for weeks. It's unbelievably informative! I can't believe I'm actually sitting here doing a journal. Never thought I would become so involved, but after reading the others, I can see what an awesome memoir it is to have after a LONG project. So what the heck!

We are in the preliminary stages of our second owner-building project. We currently live in our first. I must compliment my husband, because he by far handled 90% of the 18-month headache. I took a backseat to it all. I don't know, I guess I was just intimidated by the whole thought. I took care of the finances; he did the rest. Yes, we made some mistakes along the way. At the time they seemed to be such a big deal, but now looking back I guess it comes with the territory. We thought this was going to be where we would live for the next 30+ years, but we've decided to move once again!

Attached is a picture of our first O-B home! 3,500 total square feet. 2,300 living/3,600 detached hangar.

Photos

Posted by Jim in Beverly Beach, FL on 4/10/2006 Jim's Forum Posts: 66 Average Forum Rating: 3.79 Randomly Selected Image 4/10/2006

Kristy, Fantastic to hear about your success on project # 1. We are in early planning stages near Flagler Beach, FL. We plan to break ground in early '07. Maybe we will also become "serial O-Bs" if all goes well. Nice-looking place that you built. It's somewhat similar to what we plan to build. I have a few questions, if you don't mind. What did you build the shell out of; stick, concrete block, ICF, SIP? I would like to use metal roofing like you did, it looks great, low maintenance, and wind resistant. I hear the cost is high, what did you find to be the case? What underlayment did you use under the metal roof? Thanks, Jim P.S. Come join us at this very active Florida Forum thread.

Posted by Cara in Orlando, FL on 4/10/2006 Cara's Forum Posts: 38 Journal Entries: 136 Interview Answers: 59 Average Forum Rating: 4.04 My Construction Website Image from Cara's blog 4/10/2006

Can't wait to read more, Kristy! We'll be following your story and I'm sure asking for advice along the way :) Cara