THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 14, 1996 TAG: 9604120078
SECTION: HOME & GARDEN PAGE: G1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARCIA MANGUM, HOME & GARDEN EDITOR
LENGTH: Medium: 84 lines
VOTES ARE IN on most of the big decisions. Readers have selected a favorite architectural style, a kitchen layout and a master suite design.
Now it's time to get down to those details that drive many people crazy when they try to build a new home:
Do you want stained or painted woodwork?
Closets with wire shelving or wood?
A built-in central vacuum or a security system?
Ceramic tile, hardwood or vinyl on the foyer floor?
This is the final week to vote on The Virginian-Pilot Reader Home, and your last chance to help decide the finishing details. After this, the work is in the hands of Charlie Anderson Builder of Chesapeake, designer and builder for the home.
Everyone will be able to see the finished product at the 15th annual Homearama from Oct. 5-20 at South Shore Estates in Virginia Beach.
Over the next few weeks, Charlie Anderson will study the
survey results and come up with plans for the Reader Home. He'll break ground by the end of May.
In the meantime, a group of readers will be asked to get together to hash out details and help make some of the tough choices.
Around the time of the ground-breaking, we'll describe for readers what the house will look like and how their votes influenced it.
Readers can't expect the home to reflect every preference shown in the survey. Some things may not be possible, once blueprints are drawn, and money will dictate some choices.
The Tidewater Builders Association, which sponsors Homearama and co-sponsors the Reader Home, sets the cost of the house at between $245,000 and $265,000 and limits its size to about 2,400 to 3,000 square feet.
Anderson reminds readers to be realistic in choosing extras. When clients ask him to build a house, he itemizes the costs. Then most home buyers have to look at that list and decide what they're willing to forgo or downgrade.
A built-in intercom system may seem appealing until the $1,600 price tag pops up, Anderson says.
``It's like going into a store and seeing a $60 shirt you like,'' he says. ``You like it till you see the price, and then you may decide you like a cheaper one.''
Raised ceilings and specialty ceilings appeal to many, but some buyers change their minds when they think about costs. For instance, a three-tier vaulted ceiling, or tray ceiling, can increase the cost of a room by about $2,000. Then there are higher heating costs. The heating bill for a room with a 9-foot ceiling is about 10 percent higher than in a room with a standard 8-foot ceiling, Anderson notes.
Anderson notes that he budgets as much to build a high-quality covered porch as he does to build a room inside. Most home buyers would rather have the indoor room, but a porch may be the most important part of the house to someone who grew up in a neighborhood where people frequently spent evenings on their front porches.
Similarly, heavy exterior woodwork and elaborate interior moldings can add considerably to the cost of a house. But some people demand them.
Putting plywood on the attic floor adds about $1 per square foot to the price of the house, Anderson says. But for people who need the storage space, the flooring makes sense.
While many of these extras are based on personal wants and needs, others are more practical decisions. For example, it costs about $1,000 to $1,500 more to put architectural-grade shingles on the average roof than it does the standard three-tab shingles. But architectural grade shingles also come with a longer warranty, so the homeowner gets a shingle with a longer life as well as a better look, Anderson explains.
If the owner only plans to be in the home five years, that won't matter, but if they're buying for the long haul, it would.
Unlike buyers who contract to build their own homes, readers don't have to make all of these decisions and won't have to make the budget work.
But local builders want to know what features are popular. So be sure and vote for the extras you want in the Reader Home. Don't forget to let us know if you'd like to be part of a discussion group about a particular aspect of the house. If you're interested, call INFOLINE and leave the information requested at the end of the survey. ILLUSTRATION: Graphic
Reader Home Survey
KEYWORDS: READERS HOME SURVEY by CNB