Builder Upgrades- what did you choose /how to get these done ?

[wbresident]

Flooring is best done post close...you'll save a ton of cash.  There are many reputable vendors in the area.  There should be no voiding of warranty to toilets, plumbing etc.

Personally I would do the recessed lights with the builder.  Every.  Single.  Room.

Really?  Builder is quoting mine at 1200 for 4 recessed light, and 3 external sources quoted for 1/2, 1/3 and 1/5 of that!  The first 2 sources have >100 5 star Yelp reviews and last one is a dependable handyman that I have used before

 

[AW]

1200/4=300 per can is by far the highest I've seen!

 

[Perspective]

Flooring is best done post close...you'll save a ton of cash.  There are many reputable vendors in the area.  There should be no voiding of warranty to toilets, plumbing etc.

Personally I would do the recessed lights with the builder.  Every.  Single.  Room.

Really?  Builder is quoting mine at 1200 for 4 recessed light, and 3 external sources quoted for 1/2, 1/3 and 1/5 of that!  The first 2 sources have >100 5 star Yelp reviews and last one is a dependable handyman that I have used before

Wow, who's the builder? Irvine Pacific charges ~$450 for four recessed lights PLUS the J-box ceiling fan pre-wire.

 

[jmoney74]

Flooring is best done post close...you'll save a ton of cash.  There are many reputable vendors in the area.  There should be no voiding of warranty to toilets, plumbing etc.

Personally I would do the recessed lights with the builder.  Every.  Single.  Room.

The builder doesn't cover your warranty if you do the bathroom floors outside.  So if it leaks.. it's on you.

For lighting, should do first floor.  Outside is much cheaper for second floor.. esp when you go with LEDs. 

 

[irvinetabby]

IP is really starting to nickle and dime people big time. At Petaluma, 4 recessed lights cost ~1300, and a Jbox for fan is an additional $450. So we are doing recessed lights after we close. We did put in one jbox. I probably got ripped off

What used to be the standard full-height (meet the crown molding) upper cabinets  now cost about ~3500 to upgrade to. Also, I noticed the lower cabinets no longer have top drawers. To upgrade to bar-pull handles is close to $600.

To upgrade existing granite to quartz, the price ranges from 3.3k-4.3k for Petaluma kitchens. We are doing that with the builder. Maybe I should've done my homework to see how much it would be post-close. I just figured with material AND demolition, the difference can't be too big. I may be wrong.

Flooring is best done post close...you'll save a ton of cash.  There are many reputable vendors in the area.  There should be no voiding of warranty to toilets, plumbing etc.

Personally I would do the recessed lights with the builder.  Every.  Single.  Room.

Really?  Builder is quoting mine at 1200 for 4 recessed light, and 3 external sources quoted for 1/2, 1/3 and 1/5 of that!  The first 2 sources have >100 5 star Yelp reviews and last one is a dependable handyman that I have used before

Wow, who's the builder? Irvine Pacific charges ~$450 for four recessed lights PLUS the J-box ceiling fan pre-wire.

 

[cheetos]

Do bathroom floor through the builder. I lived in a house where the wax ring for the toilet failed after the flooring was replaced. Leaked through the walls from the 2nd floor down the the first floor. It was a pain. Had to get mold inspections, etc. And you definitely lose the warranty if you redo bathroom floor after close you lose the warranty. I was told this by CalPac.

Flooring is best done post close...you'll save a ton of cash.  There are many reputable vendors in the area.  There should be no voiding of warranty to toilets, plumbing etc.

Personally I would do the recessed lights with the builder.  Every.  Single.  Room.

The builder doesn't cover your warranty if you do the bathroom floors outside.  So if it leaks.. it's on you.

For lighting, should do first floor.  Outside is much cheaper for second floor.. esp when you go with LEDs.

 

[akkord]

Possibly the older recessed wasn't LED which were cheaper and now they are putting in LED for people or IPAC just upcharging b/c they can?  I believe RAH was charging 750 for a 4 pack of recessed LEDs, no jbox in that cost. My Jboxs were all pre-plotted and I can't remember the pricing on them. 

IML charged me $100 per recessed LED (matched builder LED model) installed. They did the downstairs and upstairs and the patch up was minimal which IML did once they finished, IML does not paint, but RAH sent out a guy to touch up for us. I'd do the recessed post close at $1300 for a 4 pack.  You can even hire a professional painter to make sure the touch up looks great and still have cash in your pocket.  Not to mention the taxes you'd pay forever if you upgraded through the builder.

IP is really starting to nickle and dime people big time. At Petaluma, 4 recessed lights cost ~1300, and a Jbox for fan is an additional $450. So we are doing recessed lights after we close. We did put in one jbox. I probably got ripped off

What used to be the standard full-height (meet the crown molding) upper cabinets  now cost about ~3500 to upgrade to. Also, I noticed the lower cabinets no longer have top drawers. To upgrade to bar-pull handles is close to $600.

To upgrade existing granite to quartz, the price ranges from 3.3k-4.3k for Petaluma kitchens. We are doing that with the builder. Maybe I should've done my homework to see how much it would be post-close. I just figured with material AND demolition, the difference can't be too big. I may be wrong.

Flooring is best done post close...you'll save a ton of cash.  There are many reputable vendors in the area.  There should be no voiding of warranty to toilets, plumbing etc.

Personally I would do the recessed lights with the builder.  Every.  Single.  Room.

Really?  Builder is quoting mine at 1200 for 4 recessed light, and 3 external sources quoted for 1/2, 1/3 and 1/5 of that!  The first 2 sources have >100 5 star Yelp reviews and last one is a dependable handyman that I have used before

Wow, who's the builder? Irvine Pacific charges ~$450 for four recessed lights PLUS the J-box ceiling fan pre-wire.

 

[lnc]

$1300 for four recess lights!  That must be some kind of LED lights.

Why can the builder just install the regular cam with traditional screw in socket that can accept all kind of PAR30 light bulbs?  Is there a new home building code requires all recess lihgt to be energy efficient?  I know it is require do have only the energy efficient light (either LED or fluorescent) at kitchen and bathrooms but not other rooms.

 

[wbresident]

$1200 for 4 LED recessed light was for Belvedere.  Anyways, no brainer to do it post-close.  Even for the first floor, since I'm not going for premium paint and will paint afterward anyways.


I don't think it voids any warranty like the bathroom floor, would anyone disagree? 

 

[lnc]

$1200 for 4 LED recessed light was for Belvedere.  Anyways, no brainer to do it post-close.  Even for the first floor, since I'm not going for premium paint and will paint afterward anyways.


I don't think it voids any warranty like the bathroom floor, would anyone disagree? 

I don't think it void any warranty just for doing bathroom flooring after closing.

However, redo bathroom flooring require remove/reinstall the toilet and the warranty will not cover the damages if it's link to the faulty reinstallation of the toilet.  Double check make sure the toilet is operating properly before the renovation starts so you can ask builder to fix it.  And just make sue the toilet is properly installed after the flooring is done.

 

[jmoney74]

$1200 for 4 LED recessed light was for Belvedere.  Anyways, no brainer to do it post-close.  Even for the first floor, since I'm not going for premium paint and will paint afterward anyways.


I don't think it voids any warranty like the bathroom floor, would anyone disagree? 

I don't think it void any warranty just for doing bathroom flooring after closing.

However, redo bathroom flooring require remove/reinstall the toilet and the warranty will not cover the damages if it's link to the faulty reinstallation of the toilet.  Double check make sure the toilet is operating properly before the renovation starts so you can ask builder to fix it.  And just make sue the toilet is properly installed after the flooring is done.

sorry that is what i meant.

 

[mms2020]

You can also use builder's plumbing company to reinstall the toilets after flooring is complete.  It will cost you extra but will keep your warranty intact.

 

[plainwater]

How about Master bath tub top & surroundings and shower room? Should we upgrade from builder or just use the standard 6 inch square tile?

 

[jmoney74]

How about Master bath tub top & surroundings and shower room? Should we upgrade from builder or just use the standard 6 inch square tile?

It would be nice to do both the Master (for yourself) and then the bathroom downstairs (guests). 

 

[Goriot]

How about Master bath tub top & surroundings and shower room? Should we upgrade from builder or just use the standard 6 inch square tile?

For the Master bath tub top and shower surrounding tiles, it's better to go with the builder.
 
I received an estimate for the shower tiles from the third party contractor and the combination of demo costs and the installation costs were higher than going through the builder on these upgrades.  Also, it will not void the warranty.

Personally, I invested mostly on upgrading the Kitchen and Master Bath to enjoy for our selves and for resale later.

 

[qwerty]

How about Master bath tub top & surroundings and shower room? Should we upgrade from builder or just use the standard 6 inch square tile?

It will probably cost you 4-5k to do it after market so see how much more the builder will charge you and see if the difference is low enough for the convenience of not having to go through a after market remodel.

 

[irvinehomeowner]

I would upgrade master and guest bath through the builder.

Keep basic flooring (unless the design center has a "deal" on an upgrade) because this is easy to change later.

Kitchens nowadays are nice enough (wouldn't do built-in fridge though).

Do the cans/fans (this is a known TI meme) with the builder.

Have qwerscaper do your back and front yards.

 

[hiskudos]

Thanks for the information about what to do and not to do with builder.

I still have few questions

1. Paint throughout the house _ post close?? price wise,  is it better? The design center asked $3100( 1950 sq). I didn't get the quote yet outside.

2. Recessed light for 4 rooms. ($872 * 4). Isn't it hassle after close?

3.Reverse Osmosis System . Do I get this with builder for warranty ? I will do upgrade countertop with builder.

 

[gasman]

Thanks for the information about what to do and not to do with builder.

I still have few questions

1. Paint throughout the house _ post close?? price wise,  is it better? The design center asked $3100( 1950 sq). I didn't get the quote yet outside.

2. Recessed light for 4 rooms. ($872 * 4). Isn't it hassle after close?

3.Reverse Osmosis System . Do I get this with builder for warranty ? I will do upgrade countertop with builder.

1 - Paint use third party.  With builder, you are generally limited to one color selection.  You can be more flexible with 3rd party, and it will be cheaper.

2 - Do standard recessed lights with builder, then convert them to LED from Costco (Feit).

3 - Call Socal Water Systems. Way better pricing and way better system. They install Fleck softeners and Nimbus Sierra RO.

 

[OCVillager]

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