Little things
Did you know that in the Chinese culture if your house numbers add up to 8 it's good luck, but not so good if the house is facing north? Do you know you can get a coloured glass back splash for your kitchen made by a lady in Saskatoon? Almost any colour, like turquoise or hot pink,but the nice one I saw was a caramel, taffy colour. Do you know that a new hot water heater has what looks like a motor on the top of it? New houses nowadays have built-in sump pumps and you have no choice in the matter. Good thing, because even in these new homes, the water table is high and you can hear it running.
Some builders will create door designs to your liking. They take a plain wood door and set the computer and saw to make whatever designs you choose (basically straight lines, but it's your artistic ideas that count). One way to personalize your space. Do you know that some of the new houses may have several different ceiling heights? A modified bilevel might have a huge entryway with 16' ceilings, then big, 6' wide steps leading into a living room with 9' and 10' ceilings and two levels of recessed lighting. Do you know about steam showers where you can sauna first to open up your pores then soothe yourself with a shower after? The controls are digital and light up the enclosure so that for all the world, the thing looks like a space ship. Today's houses are truly unique.
Let's go back in time. No such thing as a laminate floor...they had hardwoods and later something called battleship linoleum. They had big, old rugs and rug beaters that you might see if you go to a museum like the Western Development Museum (WDM) in Saskatoon. Old houses might have concrete basements without any cracks, dumb waiters (a type of elevator), three storeys with attics full of stored old antiques, verandahs, bamboo outdoor furniture, stained glass windows, beautiful, ornate woodwork and leather furniture. Does any of that sound familiar today? Absolutely!
Buildings used to get measured strictly by using a measuring tape....now there's this fancy laser measuring device you can buy at Home Depot or Princess Auto. I like it :-). You still want to have a 100' measuring tape and a nail to drive into the ground if you're measuring by yourself and don't have anybody around to hold the other end! You used to have to pull out the paper map to find a place, but now you can check Google Maps, use your GPS device, or look at the app on your phone.
Did you know that some of the new thermostats are wireless and you can check them remotely? Sellers and buyers are very sophisticated with technology nowadays...Remember, if you are a buyer, somebody could be recording everything you say to see what is being said about their house. Babysitters, this also applies to you!
Crime mapping is something you can do to check the crimes in any neighbourhood. Be sure to check the city's website for such information. In my city it's http://map.police.saskatoon.sk.ca
Do you know that the garage footprint cannot be bigger than the house? This news may be of interest to some guys who would rather forego the big house in favor of a massive garage. No woman should ever hook up with this fellow who wants a teeny little house...so once again, let me say that in fact the garage footprint can only be 30%. :-) Do you think a woman had something to do with this rule? This gets you back men for being involved in the invention of high heels and pantihouse...I mean hose.
Have you experienced any random acts of kindness where somebody ahead of you in a line-up pays for your coffee and leaves their business card? Nice idea to pay it forward, don't you think?
Remember at one time, basements could be dirt, or plain wood cellars, or concrete. Then the fad was for treated wood basements, but that kind of wore off. Now there are insulated concrete form basements where they pour concrete into insulated blocks. Apparently, the R value is excellent! The idea is a little more expensive but the payback is worth it. A family won a million dollar lottery at our lake and built a brand, new two-storey year-round home/cabin with the insulated concrete...they could afford it.
Sellers, has it ever occurred to you that people might not want your gigantic big-screen TV and your massive deep freeze from sometime prior to the 1950's that both weigh as much as two buffalo's in a sack? This may not be the gift you thought it was after all.
If your area doesn't have a back alley - remember you don't own about the last three meters up against the back fence. So, don't build a structure there unless it's movable. I mean you can, but it could be torn up because that part of the lot belongs to the city.
These are just a few of the tips I received from a great teach named Tim....and in some cases embellished...
Did you know that in the Chinese culture if your house numbers add up to 8 it's good luck, but not so good if the house is facing north? Do you know you can get a coloured glass back splash for your kitchen made by a lady in Saskatoon? Almost any colour, like turquoise or hot pink,but the nice one I saw was a caramel, taffy colour. Do you know that a new hot water heater has what looks like a motor on the top of it? New houses nowadays have built-in sump pumps and you have no choice in the matter. Good thing, because even in these new homes, the water table is high and you can hear it running.
Some builders will create door designs to your liking. They take a plain wood door and set the computer and saw to make whatever designs you choose (basically straight lines, but it's your artistic ideas that count). One way to personalize your space. Do you know that some of the new houses may have several different ceiling heights? A modified bilevel might have a huge entryway with 16' ceilings, then big, 6' wide steps leading into a living room with 9' and 10' ceilings and two levels of recessed lighting. Do you know about steam showers where you can sauna first to open up your pores then soothe yourself with a shower after? The controls are digital and light up the enclosure so that for all the world, the thing looks like a space ship. Today's houses are truly unique.
Let's go back in time. No such thing as a laminate floor...they had hardwoods and later something called battleship linoleum. They had big, old rugs and rug beaters that you might see if you go to a museum like the Western Development Museum (WDM) in Saskatoon. Old houses might have concrete basements without any cracks, dumb waiters (a type of elevator), three storeys with attics full of stored old antiques, verandahs, bamboo outdoor furniture, stained glass windows, beautiful, ornate woodwork and leather furniture. Does any of that sound familiar today? Absolutely!
Buildings used to get measured strictly by using a measuring tape....now there's this fancy laser measuring device you can buy at Home Depot or Princess Auto. I like it :-). You still want to have a 100' measuring tape and a nail to drive into the ground if you're measuring by yourself and don't have anybody around to hold the other end! You used to have to pull out the paper map to find a place, but now you can check Google Maps, use your GPS device, or look at the app on your phone.
Did you know that some of the new thermostats are wireless and you can check them remotely? Sellers and buyers are very sophisticated with technology nowadays...Remember, if you are a buyer, somebody could be recording everything you say to see what is being said about their house. Babysitters, this also applies to you!
Crime mapping is something you can do to check the crimes in any neighbourhood. Be sure to check the city's website for such information. In my city it's http://map.police.saskatoon.sk.ca
Do you know that the garage footprint cannot be bigger than the house? This news may be of interest to some guys who would rather forego the big house in favor of a massive garage. No woman should ever hook up with this fellow who wants a teeny little house...so once again, let me say that in fact the garage footprint can only be 30%. :-) Do you think a woman had something to do with this rule? This gets you back men for being involved in the invention of high heels and pantihouse...I mean hose.
Have you experienced any random acts of kindness where somebody ahead of you in a line-up pays for your coffee and leaves their business card? Nice idea to pay it forward, don't you think?
Remember at one time, basements could be dirt, or plain wood cellars, or concrete. Then the fad was for treated wood basements, but that kind of wore off. Now there are insulated concrete form basements where they pour concrete into insulated blocks. Apparently, the R value is excellent! The idea is a little more expensive but the payback is worth it. A family won a million dollar lottery at our lake and built a brand, new two-storey year-round home/cabin with the insulated concrete...they could afford it.
Sellers, has it ever occurred to you that people might not want your gigantic big-screen TV and your massive deep freeze from sometime prior to the 1950's that both weigh as much as two buffalo's in a sack? This may not be the gift you thought it was after all.
If your area doesn't have a back alley - remember you don't own about the last three meters up against the back fence. So, don't build a structure there unless it's movable. I mean you can, but it could be torn up because that part of the lot belongs to the city.
