Maricopa design appointments options/process

T

thedude111222

New member
1st major appointment for a Maricopa plan 1 is coming up, not sure what to expect.  drove by last weekend and it looks like the foundation is down, and have an appointment later this week to go over the first set of builder options.  According to the paperwork, options include a door to the master bathroom and options for extra hose bibs.  Has anyone who as gone through the process at Maricopa and/or any other IP development have any insight or suggestions as to what to expect?  Should I take pictures of the work as its being completed for personal records? If so, what should I take pictures of or what should I look for specifically? 
 
You might want to ask whether there is an option for water softener pre-plumbing if you are interested in that kind of thing.
Otherwise stage 1 is pretty much non-eventful (unless the floor plan has the option for den/BR/loft, or California room/observatory, fireplace..etc).
 
i would suggest u screw the stages and have mostly everything u want at least discussed with your designer and at least have a rough budget for all upgrades by stage 2 and all decided n written in stone by stage 3 or 4...

IP cuts it up into 5 "stages"... but that is just to mislead and trap you into spending more... there is a reason countertops, shower surround tiles, and flooring are in "different" stages, cause thats where IP has their highest mark up margin...

that way your home is also more "thought out" then most amatuers that pick themselves throughout the stages (amatuers usually end up with counter clashing flooring and or furniture color limiting countertops/flooring or looks that just seem like copy n paste from a crate n barel magazine)... the designers are not designers, they are sales... if you want good interiors/upgrades, id suggest hiring a architect interior designer (IP designers dont need to go to school to become an IP designer... architects need to get a masters degree to be truly certified)... if u do choose this route, you might as well have ur architect order all ur furniture/washer dryer too since they will have wholesale discounts (ranges anywhere from 15-30%) lower than retail... they can also advice u better on what the "market" price to do certain upgrades are n if u should go with IP or hire a contractor after u close...

u should also take into account the warranty offered when u do upgrades... u have the 1 year fit n finish, 4 year systems/plumbing, 10 year foundation n roof leak proof warranty, and a whole bunch of random warranties in between that i forgot now after i made my choices but were "good to know" when i was making those choices... cause doing certain contractor upgrades after u close void certain warranties... ur architect will tell u which warranties are "worth the money" to keep and which are just fluff n actually easy for u to maintain/fix urself... so ull definitely get a much better idea of which upgrades u "need" vs which ones are "good to have"...

anyways, do ur hw for everything after stage 1... cause if u dont do ur hw before u go in to these "appointments"... ur lamb to the slaughter...
 
@TheMotorCourtCompany We specified that we wanted the downstairs bedroom instead of the den, sliding doors instead of windows in the dining area/great room, and no fireplace when we put the initial deposit down...so not sure if this is stage I or II, but its the "foundation stage"

@WorldChaos That was very helpful.  Luckily we've done a lot of renovations to our current house, so I've got a good idea on market prices and how much things cost in the real world....so hopefully that will help.  I don't think we're going to go for a lot on the upgrade...want to keep the final purchase price as low as possible and maybe with some planning ahead we can wiggle out the upgrades we really want now.

@Irvine_Dreamer  Yeah, we decided to go with the corner lot.  Took a drive through LagAlt and saw what a built-out example might look like at Cortona and was pretty pleased.  Also after looking at the prices of Mendocino, looks like this was the last opportunity to snag a new contstruction non-motorcourt SFR for under 800k in Irvine thats not under a tollroad overpass
 
thedude111222 said:
  Also after looking at the prices of Mendocino, looks like this was the last opportunity to snag a new contstruction non-motorcourt SFR for under 800k in Irvine thats not under a tollroad overpass
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i will actually be very surprised if this is the case.  as a consumer i would feel like im taking it with no vaseline from TIC seeing as how you get less while paying more for Mendocino vs maricopa, i would not buy mendocino and wait for the price drop.
 
qwerty said:
thedude111222 said:
  Also after looking at the prices of Mendocino, looks like this was the last opportunity to snag a new contstruction non-motorcourt SFR for under 800k in Irvine thats not under a tollroad overpass
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i will actually be very surprised if this is the case.  as a consumer i would feel like im taking it with no vaseline from TIC seeing as how you get less while paying more for Mendocino vs maricopa, i would not buy mendocino and wait for the price drop.
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I agree, it's complete nonsense.  But as its been pointed out on several threads, they have all the leverage being the only company building homes right now outside of Portola Springs.  And if you look down the road to early 2013, those prices will be 100k-150k less than either the new woodbridge or university park homes by william lyon...puts them in a good position
 
First of all, congrats on your purchase to be.  We'll be in Maricopa as well. 

They won't tell you, but you have to constantly ask about getting the walk throughs.  There will be one where you can see all the stuff without drywall so you can take notes of plumbing, wiring, etc.    If you are snap happy w a camera, be careful because when you go back to look at the pics you won't remember the room.  I suggest taking a note pad and taking a pic of a note that says "mster south wall or 2BR closet".  That way you can sort your pics later. 

They don't like it, but keep visiting the site (sneak in), to make sure you are getting what you ordered.  A friend has found several construction errors that would have undoubtedly gone overlooked. 

I recommend taking the extra time to think about what you need in the house.  I wish we would have added some outlets and wiring after looking at my almost complete house.  However, it sounds like you may be past that stage.  If you aren't going to do many upgrades than you have less to worry about, but I wish I would have spent more time visiting model homes and looking at designs.  We were hurried through the process and probably would have made some different decisions. 

If you want bang for your buck for the upgrades - we paid 2500 to upgrade cabinets.  Obviously it'd cost much more to do this after the fact.    Also, the credit for the OE kitchen counter granite is nice so it only cost us $2000 to upgrade to a nicer stone.  That's cheaper than you'd ever pay doing it after close of escrow.  The appliance package upgrade was $700.  Obviously Kitchen Aid isnt the be all end all of appliances but it would also cost you thousands to try to upgrade.  We added some cabinetry here and there (for example in the plan 1 I'd recommend the hutch in lieu of home management).  We upgraded the sink for 400 which is not bad.  Overall, I think its good to focus on permanent items that are hard or expensive to replace.  Everything else like painting, window covering, and flooring is easier to change after. 

Also, even though its cheap, stay away from Piedrafina.  We used some of it because it was a very cheap upgrade over cultured marble and i think it looks horrible.

 
hey akim,

i was only notified that i would have 2 walkthroughs.  one was pre-drywall and the other was the final walkthrough.  are there any that i am unaware of?  i actually had to argue with my sales a bit to get my pre-drywall walkthrough =_=...

also im not quite sure what to look for during the walkthroughs... so what were some of the common defects ur friend found in his unit? that way im not all over the place so i have some areas of focus/basis... they only allow 3rd party inspector during my final walkthrough or something... :-\

yeah, some of the things doing through the design center is actually a good deal... i found the insulation and all electrical prewires (outlets and recessed lighting) at the standard 15-20% markeup so was fine with that... i valued their electrical systems warranty so i did those through the design center...

the hood/stove/microwave/dishwasher appliances (excluding fridge, washer, n dryer) were a good deal too since u save about 100-150 via their packages vs retail... the fridge, washer, n dryer i wouldnt advise to do through the design center though, the design center price was 150-250 usd more then retail for each freestanding appliance... what im doing is getting an architect to order the units for me wholesale... save about 400 to 500 usd per appliance... and then hire a plumber to install the fridge, washer, dryer for me (when u go through wholesale they dont install it for u like in retail), but even with a plumber thats about 250-300 usd max for their time n effort... still end up saving about 1k on those 3 freestanding appliances alone... without wholesale, ud probably still save about 300-500 usd... either way ull still get the 4 year warranty for appliances either with IP if u went through the design center or from the manufacturer if u went through retail/wholesale...
 
Thanks for the advice, soon-to-be neighbor!  Well not that soon, late January at the earliest...This last stage was pretty straight forward...opted for pre-plumbing for water softener systems and the privacy door to the master bath since the toilet and shower are right up in the front.  The next step I believe is the one that includes wiring, so I'll talke a better look at diagrams they gave us and check out the model again.  Definitely planning on doing some prewiring things like ceiling fans throughout the house and the hanging lighting fixure in the dining area

Also, was that cabinet upgrade 2500 to a wood cabinet or to the thermofoil upgrade that is in the model? Either way, I expected a lot larger mark up, so it's good to hear that there are some reasonable upgrades.
 
2K for a granite upgrades sounds like a great deal. at augusta, ours was 7,500 to upgrade two groups up, sounds pricey but then there is a lot of granite.  even if we went with standard and tried to do it afterward, not sure we would have saved much, if any, and then we have the hassle of supervising the contractor and hoping they do a good job installing it. 
 
qwerty said:
2K for a granite upgrades sounds like a great deal. at augusta, ours was 7,500 to upgrade two groups up, sounds pricey but then there is a lot of granite.  even if we went with standard and tried to do it afterward, not sure we would have saved much, if any, and then we have the hassle of supervising the contractor and hoping they do a good job installing it. 
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Granite and cabinet upgrades you definitely want to be doing through the builder, more often then not it'll be cheaper going through the builder versus doing it after the close.
 
@chaos:

there is another walk through you can ask for.. i forgot what its called (dirty floor walkthrough?), but a friend just had it.  Just bug them.  For the walkthrough, if you changed any thing or added stuff, just make sure the home is to your order.  FOR EXAMPLE - MARICOPA PLAN 1 - did you know that they changed the master bedroom window layout from what is shown in the model?  To me this is a very big deal, because people plan their rooms out (bed layout, bed in relation to tv outlet, etc). 



 
thedude111222 said:
Thanks for the advice, soon-to-be neighbor!  Well not that soon, late January at the earliest...This last stage was pretty straight forward...opted for pre-plumbing for water softener systems and the privacy door to the master bath since the toilet and shower are right up in the front.  The next step I believe is the one that includes wiring, so I'll talke a better look at diagrams they gave us and check out the model again.  Definitely planning on doing some prewiring things like ceiling fans throughout the house and the hanging lighting fixure in the dining area

Also, was that cabinet upgrade 2500 to a wood cabinet or to the thermofoil upgrade that is in the model? Either way, I expected a lot larger mark up, so it's good to hear that there are some reasonable upgrades.
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We went with white painted shaker cabinets.  The birch (darker wood) cabinets would have been about 3400 if I remember correctly.    I like white, but dont want to be dealing with peeling/yellowing cabinets.  Even for pricey stuff (dont ask me why, but caesarstone is really pricey, it was only a couple thousand for a plan 1).  I think the credit for the standard granite must be decent.  They dont give you crap for cultured marble, because it was several thousand just to upgrade the bathroom vanity counters.  for that reason, it may be good to upgrade kitchen, but not everywhere else.    We didnt really do much to baths 2 and 3 for that reason.
 
akim997 said:
@chaos:

there is another walk through you can ask for.. i forgot what its called (dirty floor walkthrough?), but a friend just had it.  Just bug them.  For the walkthrough, if you changed any thing or added stuff, just make sure the home is to your order.  FOR EXAMPLE - MARICOPA PLAN 1 - did you know that they changed the master bedroom window layout from what is shown in the model?  To me this is a very big deal, because people plan their rooms out (bed layout, bed in relation to tv outlet, etc).
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thanks dude! :)
 
akim997 said:
thedude111222 said:
Thanks for the advice, soon-to-be neighbor!  Well not that soon, late January at the earliest...This last stage was pretty straight forward...opted for pre-plumbing for water softener systems and the privacy door to the master bath since the toilet and shower are right up in the front.  The next step I believe is the one that includes wiring, so I'll talke a better look at diagrams they gave us and check out the model again.  Definitely planning on doing some prewiring things like ceiling fans throughout the house and the hanging lighting fixure in the dining area

Also, was that cabinet upgrade 2500 to a wood cabinet or to the thermofoil upgrade that is in the model? Either way, I expected a lot larger mark up, so it's good to hear that there are some reasonable upgrades.
Click to expand...

We went with white painted shaker cabinets.  The birch (darker wood) cabinets would have been about 3400 if I remember correctly.    I like white, but dont want to be dealing with peeling/yellowing cabinets.  Even for pricey stuff (dont ask me why, but caesarstone is really pricey, it was only a couple thousand for a plan 1).  I think the credit for the standard granite must be decent.  They dont give you crap for cultured marble, because it was several thousand just to upgrade the bathroom vanity counters.  for that reason, it may be good to upgrade kitchen, but not everywhere else.    We didnt really do much to baths 2 and 3 for that reason.
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With counter tops, definitely get something nice in the kitchen and then something nice in the master bath.  The secondary bathrooms arent as important to upgrade from a re-sale standpoint so if someone has a tight budget just pass on those.
 
i am doing homework for cabinet/countertop/floor for maricopa.
i am trying to do it in a small budget.
i am wondering if anyone has expeience with standard floor tiles (the lightest shade) they provide.
i am wondering if they will look good if i use them for the whole downstairs and choose the standard countertop (santa cecilia) and upgraded finish cabinet (sienna recessed panel).
since designer center only have a sample of the product instead of the real product, what's the best way to get the feel of the real thing?
 
for the countertops, i went to marbolis their 3rd party granite/marble slab contractor and just looked at the big slabs to get a better feel of the flowering... ask ur designer for marbolis contact and u can just drive there urself (its in anahiem) to get a better feel

for the standard floor tiles, emser teledo series, my architect actually ordered a few samples from the mfger directly so we put a few of the same color together on the floor for me to get a better idea of what it will look like... i decided to do emser teledo beige (lightest of the standard) in the bathrooms and emser teledo noce in the entire first floor... my arch is gonna send me her renderings some time later this month so once i get it ill upload pics so u may have a better idea of the beige tiles in the bathrooms

for the other design options, if u want to have a better idea, just ask the designer what the make/model of each item is from and see if that mfger has a showroom

i didnt upgrade any cabinet finish or the standard granite
 
i found pics of the santa cecelia slabs at the yard (debated between this and giallo ornamental, went with the giallo instead)

santa cecelia slabshttps://dl.dropbox.com/u/22410672/IMG_0647.jpghttps://dl.dropbox.com/u/22410672/IMG_0649.jpghttps://dl.dropbox.com/u/22410672/IMG_0651.jpg

emser teledo beige from mfg (with variations in show room and natural lighting plus variations with camera flash on and off)https://dl.dropbox.com/u/22410672/IMG_0417.jpghttps://dl.dropbox.com/u/22410672/IMG_0418.jpghttps://dl.dropbox.com/u/22410672/IMG_0419.jpghttps://dl.dropbox.com/u/22410672/IMG_0414.jpghttps://dl.dropbox.com/u/22410672/IMG_0415.jpghttps://dl.dropbox.com/u/22410672/IMG_0416.jpg

still... pics never do justice with building materials... light reflects/refracts differently off each thing so its still best to go check it out urself personally

 
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