RCH99

.....I'm pretty sure this guy knows he's being a tool. That's why it bothers me.

It's a spout down low, that lets you test the water temperature with your toe before you step into the shower. .....If it has an escution plate or trim on it, you may try pulling that away far enough to determine if you can simply shim it tight with something ( against the tile ). If so, then you could seal it with silicone and slide the trim back down and silicone the outside edge water tight.

There is a store in Old Town Spring that has a pretty good selection of vanity cabinets. It is called Metals,Petals, and More. They have an in stock selection of many different styles and sizes. Some are fairly inexpensive, others....not so much.

That is perfectly stated.

That's what counter depth refrigerators are for.

I think it looks fantastic, as well.

The gentleman that posted the comment stated he is an attorney. That's why I asked the question. We know that you are not an attorney.

They are trying to buy a property without an agent, not sell one. I think flipper's advice is spot on.

Any chance that you could clarify what you meant by this? It has become relatively difficult to purchase anything of significance today without having an binding arbitration agreement as part of the contract. In that you stated you are a two attorney family, I'm curious about the "unknowingly signing a confidential binding arbitration" part... Maybe I'm simply misunderstanding what you meant, but, if you, an attorney, felt that you signed something that wasn't what it seemed to be, where does that leave the rest of us that choke on legalese? I'm not trying to be antagonistic, I really want to understand how this happened.

"whether or not you can slip the changes past the form inspector"....is probably not the best way to proceed. If the property is as tight as you describe, I would be very diligent about having a form survey done as soon as it is set. The problems you have now will pale in comparison, if you proceed with slab placement and then find you are encroaching, be it a building line, set back or an aerial easement. CenterPoint doesn't entertain variances like they used to. Surveying companies are typically fully covered by "errors and omission" insurance, if there are in fact damages incurred. I guess it would be most important to discover why the initial six year old survey was inaccurate, if indeed it was.

There are many different reasons that the roof on a particular structure could end up complex and cut up.......but, the idea that that shingle manufacturers influenced whether that became prevalent is ridiculous.

It's ACQ pressure treated material. It's identifiable by its color ( blue-green....not pink ). It is copper based treated vs. arsenic-based treated. The previous ( dark,wet,heavy ) arsenic based treated materials have been deemed unsuitable for residential use since 2004 or there about. It is still available for industrial or agricultural use, and maybe ground contact use ( not positive ). The main issue regarding the ACQ material is that it is highly corrosive to fasteners ( mud sill anchors and/or anchor bolts. nails, etc. must be galvanized or SS ).

Me,too. And that's in spite of how visually unattractive they are. I don't think I've ever finished one without grease dripping on my shirt, try as I might. They are tasty though.

If you're seeing pink plate in any of the pictures in this thread, it may be time for a new monitor....

.....maybe by the time you would finish installing "by yourself". Any and all wood flooring has the potential to get scratched up. Bamboo flooring is a great product. Kids can crap out any flooring they set their sights on. Keep some extra pieces from the same lot for repairs later, and go for it.

Garage Door Services builds and install quality wood faced doors. www.gdsofusa.com 713-983-8771 Wayne Dalton are great doors, and priced accordingly. Stewart Door makes wood doors as well. 281-859-9339

That looks like Ike debris that has been turned into mulch. Maybe?

Actually. cost-plus contracts for true custom homes are quite common.

......I can't wait to hear this.

After reading this post and all of the replies, I thought I would propose a scenerio that would possibly explain the proximity of the cables and wire ties to the finished floor surface. If this home is in a typical entry level price range, the slab pour was probably tailgated, meaning that the mixers all backed up to the form and the concrete was placed directly into the form via the truck chute. Most production builders forego the $650.00 - $900.00 expense of a pump truck. As a result, the pour is a lot more labor intensive and difficult from the concrete finishers standpoint. It requires them to drag the wet mud around with with rakes and screeds to get to the center and any other area that the chutes can't reach. The pour takes a lot longer because they have to orchestrate the movement of the trucks in and out. As a result, one of their favorite things to do, in direct conflict with the engineers specifications, is to add as much water as they can get away with to the concrete while still in the truck. This facilitates two things, it turns the concrete to "soup" ( as described by the posters neighbor ) and it makes it much easier to work with for the finisher. It will flow throughout the beams and therefore relieve them of the need to drag and place it as necessary. I would propose that the exposed cables and their close proximity to the surface is the result of them being displaced from their starting locations ( hopefully straight, firmly tight, and sitting on 2" chairs ) by the finisher allowing this wet mud to be blasted into the form from the truck chute with little regard for what was happening to the integrity of the slab design. Unfortunately, the pour was scheduled for "late at night" per the poster. It was probably one of several, and ran late. Everybody was probably more concerned with going home than taking care to insure a proper placement. In addition to the displaced cables, the addition of significant amount of water, changes the way the concrete cures. Once the finishers have done their work and remove the finishing machines from the slab, things probably looked pretty good. The results of the excessive amount of water in the concrete don't show until later in the form of shrinkage cracks, which are evident in the pictures that were posted. They result from the excess moisture trying to find its way out of the finished surface. As any engineer will quickly state..."they don't impact the structural integrity of the slab", but they sure look crappy. These statements are my opinion only, based on what I had read above. Unfortunately, I don't know what to do to help you get your builder to acknowledge that they did a poor job in supervising the placement of your slab. Edit: I went back and re-read that you did have a 10 year warranty on structural components provided by Home of Texas. To my knowledge, all 3rd party warranty providers require the builder to provide a pre-pour, pour ( with an engineer or inspector on-site during placement ), tendon stress , cover-up, and a final (with slab elevations shot and documented ) inspection in order to issue a warranty to the homeowner. Therefore, it's curious that the builder stated that "nobody" has to provide these inspections. Did you receive a package of information explaining the parameters of the warranty from Home of Texas. The only reason this is important is that your builder will probably take little to no action on the issues you have now, however, if in the future ( 5,7,9 years from now) you do have a slab failure you will be dealing with Home and not your builder.

oops.

This info you added makes it pretty clear to me that ..."if it sounds to good to be true.....". I would steer clear of any company with "500 addresses...lot's of alias's"...etc. The actual risk to you may be zero, or it may just as easily be huge. There are many, many variables in the way mortgage brokers package and present loan terms to their clients. What a loan will actually cost you at closing may look very different than how it's is presented to secure your business initially. Basically, everything you stated in your second post would be more than enough to make me throw that unsolicited "pre-approved" offer in the trash.

Hi Flippper.... Can you start and tell us what you thought? My wife asked me twice over the weekend if I wanted to go. We didn't make it, but will go next weekend if you have a favorable review. Thanks!

What you are saying is theoretically correct, however, it's not very realistic. I think what you will find is that the vast majority of sellers will have no interest at all in mustering up the patience necessary for you to proceed with your " come on, friend, make me feel good about your price" approach. If both parties have agents, I would speculate that the majority of transactions go to closing without any direct buyer / seller interface.

So...........just how well are the homes really selling in The Woodlands?