Shel
Full Member
Posts: 408
Jul 16, 2014 0:32:12 GMT
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Post by Shel on Apr 23, 2016 0:14:54 GMT
OK, so we are building for the first time and I have a couple of stupid questions:
1-how soon can we change things to the new address. The community mail box is already up and there are already people living in the neighborhood. We are in a rental and (long story short) are having issues with a couple of the schools, so wondered how soon is okay to start using it? My sister couldn't remember exactly when she used their new address but she remembers picking her mail up at the post office until they actually moved into their build.
2-does the builder have the house cleaned before they give you occupancy. I don't care either way - I just want to know what the expectation is. (I would be doing my own cleaning after moving in anyway; but wanted to know if I should have someone go in before me to tackle areas I don't necessarily want to do right away.
Finally, where do you buy your curtains. We are going to be doing a mixture of window coverings throughout the house, but in some of the main floor rooms I really want to do some great drapes. I want heavier weight with a pattern (not floral or too retro). My china and kitchen dishes are a mix of blues, greys, greens. We are buying new furniture for the family room so no set colors there yet. I don't mind getting them online, I just want to find a place that sells good quality curtains that have great options from which to choose. (Or do you have them custom done? I know the 2nd house we bought the lady had done that but I've never gone through that process myself.)
Thanks for any advice!! |
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Post by christine58 on Apr 23, 2016 0:18:14 GMT
2-does the builder have the house cleaned before they give you occupancy. I don't care either way - I just want to know what the expectation is. (I would be doing my own cleaning after moving in anyway; but wanted to know if I should have someone go in before me to tackle areas I don't necessarily want to do right away. Mine did...it was spotless. Everything was vacuumed, dusted, etc. |
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Sept 29, 2024 22:29:25 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Apr 23, 2016 0:21:05 GMT
You can use the mail address as soon as you have proof you own it. The post office is going to want proof of ownership. So mortgage papers. Schools around here require a utility bill in your name before letting kids attend school. Proof you have electricity, water, or gas... that the place is habitable.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Sept 29, 2024 22:29:25 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Apr 23, 2016 0:24:18 GMT
JCPenney has a great catalog for curtains.
Usually the builder will clean but not enough for my standards.
Legally you aren't living there. As far as schools are concerned, I think it's important not to give erroneous information.
We have built all of our homes. The most difficult one was when our children were in school. We had to be in our new home within three months of the start of the school year, otherwise we had to pay tuition. We were late moving in by a month, the school district worked with us on the matter of tuition.
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Post by just PEAchy on Apr 23, 2016 0:34:48 GMT
Our house was professionally cleaned before we moved in. Regarding schools, in our district, as long as you could provide a contract with a closing date, you could enroll your children in the schools. Our kids attended school for several months before we moved in.
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Post by redrulz on Apr 23, 2016 0:59:18 GMT
when we built, we changed our address at closing. Our closing was set up for a couple of weeks after the school year started, but I remember that we were able to show paperwork to the schools and were able to enroll before closing.
And the house was "builder clean", but not spotless. I had it cleaned before we moved in.
As for curtains and blinds, we had a few companies come in and give us estimates. It's been so long I don't remember who went went with though.
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Post by mlynn on Apr 23, 2016 1:18:32 GMT
The Post Office will not deliver to a vacant premises. As for curtains, I have been very please with curtains from www.countrycurtains.com/
I would talk to your contractor about how much cleaning they do. I imagine each contractor has their own ideas. |
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Post by Merge on Apr 23, 2016 1:25:57 GMT
Our builder had the house spotless before we moved in. IME, the post office doesn't care if you own the house yet or not - you can fill out a change of address form online without proof of anything. I would think you might have trouble if the subdivision is new and no one else is having mail delivered yet, but otherwise, it probably won't matter. The school thing would depend on how your district works. Here, we have to show proof of residence (like a utility bill at the address in our names) to register a child in the district.
I love Overstock.com for curtains.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Sept 29, 2024 22:29:25 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Apr 23, 2016 1:46:31 GMT
I think mail delivery might depend on the mailman/post office in your area. Here, it doesn't matter if a place is vacant or whether you show ownership or not. They will deliver as long as it's a valid address and there's a place to leave the mail.
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Post by lisacharlotte on Apr 23, 2016 1:48:52 GMT
When we moved here I was able to enroll my son in the HS he would attend for the house we were buying by taking our contract to buy when I enrolled him. We didn't move into our house until 2 weeks after school started.
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Post by shannoots on Apr 23, 2016 1:53:33 GMT
When we built our house, we are moving to a new state and of course, district. School started a couple of months before our house was done. We just had to show proof that we were building in the school boundaries and my boys were able to start school with everyone else.
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quiltz
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,840
Location: CANADA
Jun 29, 2014 16:13:28 GMT
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Post by quiltz on Apr 23, 2016 2:37:00 GMT
If you are planning on buying new furniture the store may have an in store decorator that can help you pull it all together.
Usually this service is complimentary with the purchase of furniture.
You want the colours to compliment with an easy flow throughout the house, especially if you are painting the rooms different colours & a decorator will help with this & help with the window coverings.
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Post by mcscrapper on Apr 23, 2016 3:02:31 GMT
I'm a fan of custom window treatments with the help of a decorator. They really aren't too expensive and can really help make a room look great! The builder may have someone he can suggest, too.
And usually a builder will have the home cleaned prior to you taking possession. If it were me, I would schedule someone to come clean a few days after you get stuff moved in. Moving is a messy job!!
meredith
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Post by cmhs on Apr 23, 2016 10:48:02 GMT
Our school district requires proof of residency but there is some leeway if you have a signed contract and closing date.
I don't know your taste or budget but custom curtains can be crazy expensive. My taste is definitely not formal and I like the choices at Ikea. J C Penney also has nice curtains. I found some at 70% off when our local stores was closing. I've been very happy with them.
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Post by coaliesquirrel on Apr 23, 2016 11:32:55 GMT
We didn't change ours until we were living at the new house, but we're in a 1 house/1 mailbox area, and I don't think they would have started delivering there until the house at least *looked* finished. It's probably different in an area where there's a community mailbox.
We had our house custom-built and did lots of things ourselves, both to save $$ and because we knew we wanted a certain finish carpenter, etc. One of the things we elected to do ourselves was the final cleaning, which saved us $850 (in 2007, in the midwest). It was a BIG job, but like you said, we were going to end up doing a whole-house once-over ourselves before we moved in anyway, so I'm not sure it was that much worse. So, my understanding is that a final clean is standard, but if you're interested in saving some $$$, you might see about whether you can have that deducted and just DIY it.
My MIL makes custom window treatments and did all of ours, so I can't help with that.
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sweetpeasmom
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,652 
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Post by sweetpeasmom on Apr 23, 2016 11:41:48 GMT
If it's an issue of enrolling in schools, you should be able to take something showing you are in the process of buying. When we built, it was the deed to the lot. We bought and closed on the lot and then we built (dh was building it). Keep in mind, you don't actually own the house until you close, so having mail delivered there may not be popular with the builder.
My husband is a builder and yes they have the houses professionally cleaned before closing. When we built our house, we had the lady that was cleaning for his company at the time do ours. It was an amazing job! Not just a dusting. It really shined.
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Post by sincity2003 on Apr 23, 2016 12:51:56 GMT
We just closed on a new build. We could not change our address until we went to the post office and showed the deed in our names. We also have community mailboxes and our keys were in our assigned box - the mail lady had to bring them to our door and hand them to me - it was the only way to get them.
Our builder had out house "cleaned" 4 times before we moved in. I still cleaned it the day prior to moving our stuff in because his cleaning lady sucks.
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Post by auntkelly on Apr 23, 2016 13:31:29 GMT
I have a friend who makes custom window treatments.
When we moved eight years' ago, she knew that I wanted the look of custom window treatments w/ out the high price tag. She suggested that I order silk dupioni drapes from Pottery Barn and then she added a little trim to each side of the drapes to give them a custom look.
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Shel
Full Member
Posts: 408
Jul 16, 2014 0:32:12 GMT
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Post by Shel on Apr 24, 2016 3:53:04 GMT
Thanks so much for all the great info!
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Post by anonrefugee on Apr 24, 2016 15:38:41 GMT
Home ownership is irrelevant with USPS.
I suggest you confirm school policies with both your local school and the district.
Ask the builder if they have referrals for custom window coverings. It's also a good ice breaker question to meet others in the neighborhood. There might be a local designer with a work room in your area they can recommend.
For more generic spaces we've had success using a combination 3 Day blinds, Smith and Noble, and Home Depot custom orders.
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