Bid discussions with Tom

Talked with Tom Welker (our builder) today about the bids that have been coming in. We are still waiting for the concrete and lumber bids, two of the biggest - I think.

Stephanie and I will make a trip this week to see the differences in possible window selections. We hope to to with Kolbe & Kolbe, but will look at the Best Build brand as well.

Tom feels that running gas to the house will be cost prohibitive. As an alternative, we will use electric throughout. Most likely a tankless electric water heater in conjunction with the Geothermal, which looks like a real possibility. One real nice advantage to the Geothermal is the heated pool year around.

The Latest

Architect - check. Land - check. Builder - check. Here are the latest renderings of the house, it's coming along! The builder is bidding everything out - next step, approval and ground breaking.

Concepts

We have some catching up to do on our blog postings. These are some of the concepts that led up to the direction we're heading in. The block system works well to balance out the layout as well as contain costs. The images show the development of the design.

Lochwood Library

Speaking of progress, the newest Dallas Public Library opens Saturday, November 7 around the corner from our new address. It's a great symbol of the evolution of the neighborhood.

movin' on

We're moved into our temporary home, thanks in large part to George and the great movers at Texas State Movers. Fortunately the weather treated us well, despite 19 of 30 days of rain this October.

Now we're back on track with house planning. We've made some major decisions on design, exterior and materials. Progress is good!

next home. for now.

We found a rental property this weekend, so we have a new address for the next 12 months. It's better than I expected to find, updated maple cabinets in the kitchen, which opens to the den. It's also close to the lot and the lake. On to packing.

First look?

During our last meeting with Cliff we talked about site planning, ideas for space planning - big picture kind of stuff in my mind. Then he opens his notebook and shows us a drawing he "jotted down." What do you think? Scott and I both thought "well, what are we waiting for? let's start building!" If this is the kind of stuff he can create without much effort, we're can't wait to see what he comes up with. Next meeting is this Friday....

As of midnight 9/11, we have a contract on the house. Whew. It came down to the wire when we got a backup contract on the last day of the option period for the first buyer. At a better price. When it was all said & done, the first contract prevailed, we got out of paying for any repairs, and we close in late October. So now we're faced with the reality of purging and packing. And finding a place to live....

First party on Wyatt Circle

We took the opportunity to have a little get together while we had the lift on the lot. Had several friends over - Scott drove the lift and went up and down a number of times. The Lynches gave us hard hats complete with House of Zen logos. It looked much cuter on Brooke, and Bradley found a branch that looked a lot like longhorns. And we also have a bathroom now...well, a port-a-potty, at least.

Sunset from 2nd floor?

Last night we tried out the scissor left - sunset was at 8:02 PM. From 26' up, this is what we saw. Much more than expected - it's amazing. We're meeting Cliff at 5PM so he can check it out, then invited friends over later to check it out and have a cold beverage. Insert funny line about running with scissors or drinking and driving here. Or wait, I'm sure Chip will have a few wise cracks....

RTS 33

We're renting a Rough Terrain Scissor Lift all weekend to cruise around the lot and check out the best viewing spots for the 2nd story. Pictures to come.

Pool Option?

Interesting pool concept using recycled dumpsters/shipping containers. A unique way to cool off in the Bronx. Not sure if it's right for our place.

Researching: Geothermal

One of the energy efficient, renewable resources we are investigating is geothermal energy - tapping into subterranean resources to produce energy. Don't know if the necessary wells can be drilled in the heavy white rock (as in White Rock Lake) our house will sit upon, but it sounds really cool and space-age. And it is one of the most cost-efficient energy sources in terms of return on investment.

More on Cliff Welch

Here's an article about Cliff from the East Dallas Advocate magazine.

Architect

We finally decided on an architect. We interviewed several and toured their projects, and ultimately made the best connection with Cliff Welch. To say that we are fans of Cliff's work is an understatement - we're borderline stalkers. His has incredible style and the homes he builds have a distinct signature of Texas modern. We've watched several of his homes go up around White Rock lake - we've biked, rode scooters or driven by just to get a dose of his inspiration. Now he's designing a home for us! It will be a challenge - we don't have the 7-figure budgets a lot of his clients have, but we know we're going to love the outcome.

We have our first meeting next week, we're excited to get the process underway.

False Alarm

We had an offer on our house - seemed like it was headed in the right direction when the contract on the buyer's house fell thru. The domino effect meant that without a sale on their house, they couldn't buy our house. The roller coaster of emotions - it's sold, we gotta move, oops, false alarm - was a lot to go thru in a day. I guess that one just wasn't meant to be.

Keep it clean

We don't have much experience in the real estate listing business. But since Scott & I are kind of fastidious about things. we're trying to keep the house as pristine as possible for showings. With 2 dogs and a cat, it's hard enough. We're trying to keep kitchen use to a minimum, and in doing so, we've found a great takeout place that's spitting distance from our house. I think we have dinner from El Pollo Regio at least 2X per week, and I've just figured out how to get them to customize my order (#2 with chicken) so I get exactly what I want. We'll be there even more now. We've turned our realtor on to "el Pollo" and I think he eats there as much as we do. They import their charcoal from Mexico and make a darned good BBQ chicken. The salsa is tasty too.

Open House

Our current house was open today - we really want to sell it before we start construction. There were 50-60 people who came through in 2 hours. The realtors were really impressed. Bring on the offers! Check out the listing.

On Friday July 10, 2009 we purchased a beautiful piece of property in a Dallas negihborhood called Harbour Bluffs. Better known as East Dallas, and a play on words - there is no harbour - the original owners were named Harbour. There is a bluff however, and it's beautiful.