Another Step....

Eureka!  We have found a block of land.. South West Sydney in the Camden area.  510m2 ... not too shabby..

The aspect is great with the long sides N and S with the back facing W (that leaves the front facing E :)  Our living areas will all be situated on the North, all bedrooms on the South.  The Master is at the rear (our preference) and by moving the existing stacker doors from the rear to being off the alfresco and putting in a high long window on the west wall (above the headboard so to speak) - will minimise the heat from the west but allowing airflow.  As there's only the 2 of us - we really wanted to have the Master opening onto the alfresco... giving us a sense of connection.

17m frontage and 30m long... gave us plenty to play with.... the sunset date on our block is November 2015... seems such a long long way away.... the developer says we should register in the first quarter of 2015 - we aren't holding our breaths... we'll aim for November 2015 and anything earlier is a bonus!

So.. having found our block, paid a holding deposit... we reviewed (again) our choice of house layouts...

We had already decided to use a project builder... and narrowed it down relatively quickly to a toss-up between the Masterton Cello and the McDonald Jones Homes Santorini - The Santorini has won out... giving us the layout we really liked in combination with our block requirements and potential landscaping....

Having been quoted now by MJH we are on our way to signing up!  Our Sales Consultant has been brilliant.. giving us some fantastic advice.

Our land conveyancer has been equally as helpful - her biggest advice.... Your eyes should be fixed on the sunset date as being registration date... anything earlier is a bonus... but that is when the developer has to "put up or shut up" (my words not hers!)

We have also had a preliminary meet with a landscape design company to ensure our layout is compatible with our proposed living arrangements / lifestyle - where shall we put the pool?  What should we put down the "dead" side of the house - where should the water tank be situated?  How about extending the alfresco?  Some things we need to consider prior to signing on the dotted line with MJH is the extension (or not) of any of the house "parts" ie garage, alfresco roof etc.

I have so much going on in my head - trying to picture what our house will look like - We're not thinking "let's do it all in white like the show-home" - so envisaging the final outcome is a tricky one for me - I'm hoping the magic "Colour Consultants" will show us the way in this regard.

Next up is to sign on the dotted line for our "preliminary agreement" based on our estimate.. then the ball will be well and truly rolling.  That and paying the deposit on the land .... and we're off!!