Status Report

I know I was so excited to get my land clearing permit so we could start clearing some land, but after reading the permit more carefully, I found that I can't use it until I get my building permit. So, the land clearing will have to wait.

Paul and I are meeting with our contractor and draftsman on Wednesday. That way the contractor can let the draftsman know what changes he needs to make to avoid change orders later. I am really hoping everything goes smoothly and that there aren't too many changes. I would love to be able to file the building permit by the end of the month. Is that unrealistic?

On Friday, we are going to New Mexico to visit my father. I'm really excited to see my dad, the snow and the southwestern architectural and interior design style that Paul and I love. Maybe we'll come back with some more inspiration.

Home Building in the Virgin Islands Blog

I just found this blog, Home Building in the Virgin Islands, about a couple building a house on St. Croix. Their blog documents the entire building process, beginning with the permitting process. Don't look for any updates though, because their house was completed in 2007.

Christmas Came Early

"Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" and I have proof. I called the Department of Planning and Natural Resources this afternoon and guess what..... You got it. My Earth Change permit is waiting for me all I have to do is pay $77.49 and I can start moving some earth. So, I guess I girl can dream and this girl is going to keep dreaming.

Status Report- What Earth Change Permit?

So, I haven't written anything in a while. The truth is I get tired about telling you about how things aren't going how they are supposed to. Being off schedule is really frustrating for me, Paul and our relationship. Every hiccup we encounter is so upsetting and makes me wonder if I should just give up on building. I wonder if all of the hiccups are some sort of sign. Right now we are still planning on building, but I am doing so with great uncertainty.

So where are we?

We decided to stick with the downstairs apart. Although we got a great quote for the upstairs from Caribbean Affordable Housing Company (CAHC), I don't want to be stressed about making my mortgage payments, so I think we will stick with the downstairs for now and plan to build the upstairs in a few years.

We don't have an Earth Change permit yet. Paul called the Department of Planning and Natural Resources (DPNR) earlier this week and they said they had no record of our application. I was in shock. I called the draftsman, who was supposed to have filed the application and he said he would look for the receipt. He emailed me the receipt yesterday. It is dated 9/21/09. So, Paul is going to take the receipt copy down to DPNR and see what is going on. I am going to keep my fingers crossed that they say "oh yeah, we have been holding your permit for you here. You can take it with you now. Sorry we never contacted you. We'll make it up to you by rushing your building permit." A girl can dream can't she?!

Mr. Wheatley from CAHC, said he needs to make some changes to the plans, to prevent having to get change orders approved by DPNR after we start building. I told the draftsman and he said we can meet in January to make the changes. I hope that we get all the changes done by the end of January and we are able to file our building permit application then.

I'll be back soon.

Two Estimates and Counting

I'm so sorry I haven't been on regularly, but my personal life has been kind of crazy lately. So, we got two estimates within the last week and one was significantly higher than the other. I am still waiting for two more estimates, but I think we have our contractor already.

On another note, the whole financial part of building a home and paying a mortgage is making me very nervous. Even though the bank thinks that we can afford to build, I am feeling very uncertain. I think its probably a natural feeling considering the magnitude of debt we will be getting into and that I can't stand owing my credit card company even $200 for 10 days.

Status Report

Contractor Estimate
Is it us? So, we were expecting to get a final estimate from Caribbean Affordable Housing Company several weeks ago, but Mr. Wheatley seems to be MIA. I got in touch with him a week after he said the estimate would be ready and he said he was working on it and would get back to me. I think he said he needed another week. Several weeks later and no word. I tried emailing him, but haven't heard back. It is really weird because he was so reliable in the past. I hope nothing has happened to him. I contacted another contractor who I had spoken to before and he is working on a bid. He said we should have his bid by early next week. We are also planning on contacting a few more contractors next week for more estimates.

Land Clearing Permit
We are still waiting for our land clearing permit. The permit was submitted in mid-September, and we were expecting to get our permit within 4 weeks. We heard that the permit process was slow, but we didn't know it would take this long.

This is really an exhausting process and we haven't even really begun. Aaaargh!

I Miss You!

I just moved to Fortuna and haven't had any internet service, so that's why I haven't posted anything lately. Right now, I'm in Miami hanging with my family and checking out some home supplies. I'll be back soon to give you an update on our progress or lack there of.

Can't wait to talk to you again. How is your journey going?

Use What Comes Naturally Part 1.5

When I saw this on Desire to Inspire I couldn't help but post it on this blog. It's no palace, but it definitely fits in perfectly with the Use What Comes Natural theme. The builder of his house worked with and around nature to build this home.

I especially love it because our land has some huge rocks on it. We are hoping they were all identified on our topography, and that we selected a rock-free spot to put the house on. However, after seeing this picture, I know that if need be, we can work around it, because I'm not paying $20,000+ to move any one rock.

Use What Comes Naturally- Part I

In case you don't know, St. Thomas and St. John are very mountainous and rocky. That's the reason we have such beautiful views. If you go up high you can see far and wide. The mountains also add to the natural landscaping, in particular there are some beautiful large rocks. At this moment, I have mixed feelings about the rocks. The rocks can be beautiful, but they can also be very expensive to move when clearing your land. Anyway, some people here use them in wonderful ,beautiful ways. This will be a 2-part post. In this post, I am going to show you some pictures I found on the Internet that show great ways to use rocks for your home's exterior and as part of your landscaping. In Part II, I will show you some images of how people on St. Thomas are using our rocks to add natural beauty to their property. Unfortunately, I had to send my camera away for repairs, so if my camera phone's pictures aren't clear, Part II may take a while. We shall see.

The Rock House Hotel in Negril, Jamaica. From WhereToStay.com

From the Cote de Texas blog

From Twin Oaks Landscaping

From Beco Landscapes

From MLe Wallpapers

From Greenville Daily Photo

From the Cote de Texas blog

Wanna see a rock retaining wall get built? Check out Luc's Lively Landscapes blog.

Tropical Homes: Autumn 2009

The Virgin Islands Daily News published it's Autumn 2009 edition of Tropical Homes yesterday. The publication is basically just a way for the newspaper to sell more ads- the ads are targeted at home owners. It took me a minute to get past the feeling that the magazine was just trying to sell me stuff (but then again that is what all magazines do, right?!), but when I did, I saw that there was some good information about local vendors:

• Furniture Stores
• Real Estate Agents
• Countertops, Cabinets, Sink, Faucet and Tile Supplies
• Door, Window, Glass and Shutter Supplies and Services
• Lighting, Paint, Electrical and Hardware Supplies
• Air-Conditioning Services
• Water Conservation Systems
• Nursery and Landscaping Services
• Generators
• Insurance Agents

The publication also had several articles that I think will be useful. I liked Choosing Appliances for Your Lifestyle. The article reminds you to do your research before you buy. You need to read reviews, consider the appliance's energy use and think about whether you really need a warranty. According to the article, extended warranties are really a waste a of money.

Beer Bottle Countertops? Latest Trends in "Green" Home Decor, is going to make me find out more about Elements by Durcon countertops. I love the idea of using recycled materials especially if they are durable and safe. I just hope that Elements has a recycled price.

Paul hasn't had a chance to check out the magazine, but I'm sure he will really like Fight Moisture Problems Around the House being that it suggests using louvered doors to improve air circulation and reduce mold. I am not a fan of louvered doors and he is. I guess I'm going to have to consider them for the closets.

I guess I shouldn't complain about the Tropical Homes magazines.... it was free with my purchase of the newspaper and it did give me some useful information. What do you think?