House grades
Mood: nostalgic
Posted on 2008-03-27 10:47:00
Tags: house
Words: 435
(before I start, if you're into Lost I found this interesting theory about what's going on - it's long and contains spoilers (and possibly ruins the end of the series if correct))
- Broker/Buyer's Agent: Jane Adsley Chopp: A-
It took us a little while to get on the same page for what we were looking for, but that was probably our fault since our expectations were a little unrealistic. Did a good job showing us houses we'd be interested in, and helped us through the whole offer and closing process. Would definitely use/recommend!
- Mortgage person: Tim Dockery: A-
Nice to be able to apply online, and we were able to do a lot of business over the phone. Got us a good rate, although Jane said his fees were a little high. Would use/recommend.
- Escrow company/title insurance (I think): Alamo Title: B+
Jane handled most of the interaction with them. Had some trouble sending us files. The closing itself was relatively quick and painless. Would use/recommend.
- Home inspector: Advanced Inspection Services: A
Fee was reasonable (I think?), did a thorough job in inspecting and explaining what we should do to fix things and why. Able to view his full report online - a big plus! Would use/recommend.
- Moving company: Blue Whale: C+
As detailed here. Short version: they were 5 hours late. But, once they got there they moved quickly and I've only encountered very very minor things. I'd recommend them again if you won't be time-constrained :-)
- New countertops: Home Depot: C
It was a lot more expensive than we thought it was going to be and we felt kind of pressured at the time of sale. And they make you take out and put the sink back in, and they charge extra for things like "not changing the backsplash". However, they were ordered and installed pretty quickly, and the installers even pointed out a small flaw which they corrected. And the countertops themselves are very nice.
- New carpet: Lowe's: D-
Was a little more expensive than we thought, but not much. The guy at Lowe's was friendly enough, but it took much longer than we thought (and had been led to believe) to come in. There was a pricing error where they were going to overcharge us almost $800 for installation that we had to catch and call them on. When it did come in, I had to call Lowe's to get the installers to call me, which they finally did a few days later. (we bought the carpet more than six weeks ago and it still hasn't been installed! Supposedly Monday, though)
Anyone/thing I missed?
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