Must have Upgrades in new home

San,

Where it snows, the mud room is a blessing! A couple of things you could do -

1. I don't know where your washer/dryer are - this could be a place for that. If they are upstairs, keep it there.

2. You could keep this for school stuff and mail. Many people have a nook in kitchen where they sort it out...you can make this your nook. Don't know how old your kids are but....the paper from school will be monumental!! If they are younger, use for toy/creative stuff storage.

3. Finally, I am with Laks, use just as an extension of pantry.

 

I agree, Puja room may not make sense for that room. That said, for this here -

I would urge you to check out Ikea - they have many many storage ideas (including the one you want) both stand alone ones and wall mounted ones and less expensive too. Beaded curtains are a good choice and I have used sheers where I feel it is necessary. So don't rule it out. I have also used cafe rods to hand the sheers...earlier. Works well without nailing for lighter material and till you figure out if you like the look.

 

Op, Drain for laundry is an option. Its never given by builder. It will be worth having one. Sink is something you can opt for although not necessary.

How did you negotiate with the builder.Directly or thru agent. If you did it directly, dont proceed in this manner. do it thru an agent. My friend bought a house directly thru builder and ended up paying 25k more than us and her house is having only hardwood floors in 1st floor as an upgrade whereas we bought the same plan with bigger lot on cul de sac and have plenty of upgrades and cheaper by 25 k becoz we had a fantastic agent.

If you are directly dealing with the builder stop and get an agent who has a good know how of your desired area and builder.Good Luck.

 

OP, Then I will say pay for the upgrades. These are well worth it. We paid maybe 15 k above the floor model to get what we want.Ultimately all these worked in favor becoz our house appraised for 30k more than what we paid. Thats only appraisal but comps in the area are atleast 100k more than our purchase price. The niceties do count.If the area is in demand do the upgrades upto how much you can afford.tiles instead of vinyl/linoleum and kitchen upgrades like stainless steel appliances and granite countertops are some basic upgrades. Also a big enuf kitchen is also something basic.Here galley style kitchen is famous but I feel that is like a queue and not much space. I opted for a kitchen which was big and had an island in b/n. Also in terms of appliances look in Sears. I did for my refrigerator and washer -dryer combo. Put in on layaway. When the builder took our offer we placed order for appliances we liked on layaway. We took delivery after we moved in and housewarming. Moving in can be expensive and this made our move little bit stress free. If you have cash to spend try in Searsoutlet. you get amazing deals there too. Good Luck.

 

Whatever brand of appliances, DO NOT get they through the builder. Builders buy builder grade stuff and it is the absolute bottom of the line. Get your own appliances including dishwasher and have them installed. Just a warning.