RBI # 34418

This is what we call service before the sale!

Allow “The Straight Shooter” to give you a F.A.C.T.S. Design!
 

     The site/home planning concept is completely foreign to most dealers and they have no desire to even want to learn how to assist home buyers in this area. Why? It takes time. It takes a willingness to be responsible, something most dealers don’t care about. They want as much of your money as they can get and do as little as they can to get it. Get the most for your money by far. Deal with the Straight Shooters.
     Without having a construction background and training, it would be foolish for most dealers to even attempt to get involved in this aspect of homebuyer assistance. Midway Homes, on the other hand, has the training, knowledge, experience and willingness to provide all the services needed to make your home buying experience rewarding.

Step by Step Explanation of the Site Development Process

Click on the following to view:
A Chronological Pictorial Example Of The
Step By Step Site Development Process.
 

Not all of these steps apply to every situation.

1. Have the site assessment form completed by “The Straight Shooters”.
2. Create scale drawing of lot and site plan F.A.C.T.S. Design for your new home & improvements desired.
3. Have cost of improvement estimated then select improvements that meet your desires, needs and budget guidelines. Finalize all contractual papers and make deposit. Under Texas law, you have three days to rescind this sale; therefore, no work can be started until five days after contracts are signed.
4. Take desired site plan to park management, homeowner association or developer for their approval. This can take up to three days. You can do this yourself or, should you want *Midway to secure park approval, we have a $25 fee.
5. Take a copy of the above approved site plan to the proper municipality and get a building permit. This can take up to five days. We will assist you in getting this permit by providing you with drawings and information or, if you prefer, *Midway will secure the permit for a $100 charge. This fee is over and above municipalities fees. In some cases, there may be a need for permits for septic tanks and / or water wells from the Health Dept. in the case of existing septic systems and/or water wells there may just need to be an inspection of these items or in some cases there may be a need to expand the capabilities of these existing systems. In the securing of permits there may be a need to go from one place to another and then back again. It can take a few days for all the municipalities and different entities to get everything done.
   
   *Not available in all parts of the state.
   
   

6. Financing/Land Home only, record Mechanic's lien. This must be done before any work can be started. Have mechanic's lien drawn up and recorded with county. “The Straight Shooters” can help with this.
7. FHA approved loans require engineered foundations (currently FHA is not funding on used homes). The cost of plans and inspection run approximately $600.00. This is finance-able.
8. Notify sub-contractors when general building permit is secured so they can get their permits-electricians, plumbers, septic tank installers, etc. Homeowner will need to contact utility companies and set accounts in their name or let them know about any needed changes to their service. If you are supplied power by Magic Valley, all your dealings will be with them. If you have power serviced by AEP and a provider other than C.P.L. (Reliant, TXU, Just etc.)you will need to make out an application with A.E.P. or make sure your power provider issues a work order to A.E.P. in order to have actual physical work done on your service. This needs to be done A.S.A.P. in order to expedite this step. You can also contact the gas, water, phone and cable companies ahead of time to pre-schedule. This can also expedite these processes. (Should there be a need to move or remove gas lines, gas company charges $125 and this fee must be in their hand before they will schedule work.  Once scheduled, it can take up to 10 days for them to do what is needed.) Once again, Midway can assist you through this process.
    

Site Preparation

     A. Does site need to be graded? Is fill needed? If so, have it done. Has cost been discussed
          with homeowner? If not, get cost approved.

     B. Stake out home on lot, stake utility drops.

     C. Have all needed underground utilities been run/installed - electrical, water, provisions for water
          filtration system, sewer, septic tanks, leach lines, gas, phone, cable plus any extras and
          chases for irrigation lines.

     D. Meet with concrete contractor to go over plans. Make sure lay out is done correctly.
          Concrete contractor is responsible to pour concrete to drawing. Further, all concrete is to be
          3000 PSI  minimum and reinforced per specifications. No concrete should be poured that will
          have to have home come across it. Once home is delivered, that area can be poured.
          Exception, should concrete be able to be poured and allowed to cure for thirty days and a
          little extra reinforcing and thicker concrete is added where weight of home will be coming
          onto concrete, all concrete can be poured. (Special order homes, in most cases, allow for
          this to be done.)

     E. Deliver, block, level and tie down home.

     F. Have utilities connected to home.

     G. Install/provide the products, service, etc. called for in the contractual agreements. Time frame
          depends on concrete cure time, weather and extent and complexity of Improvement package.

Concrete curing information Approximations (weather can affect these time frames)
3 full days of curing brings concrete to 70% of its strength (10 days 90%, 30 days 99%)

Unexpected Situations, Homeowner Add-ons (Change Order) = Increased Costs
The Site Assessment/Survey “The Straight Shooters” offer, draws on our 25 plus years of experience and thousands of home deliveries. We provide this service in order to address most aspects of your home and site development as well as other existing structures that may come into play so that we can give you an estimate of the cost of your new home and development. Our site assessment/survey is intended to help us to not miss anything (and in most cases we don't miss things); however, we don't always catch, think of or see every aspect. On some occasions, items could come up that will increase the total cost of the development of your new home. (See the Following notes 1 & 2)

1. Additional clarification regarding the State of Texas’ reference to the word “clearances” used on the Retailer’s Limited Installation warranty under #1 of Purchaser’s obligation. Examples would be; securing permission and agreements to cross some ones property, tree removal or pruning, moving irrigation lines, municipality codes, drainage concerns and situations pertaining to working with existing structures. This is not a complete list but a cross-section of the types of unexpected situations that can come up. Should something unexpected come up, the homeowner/buyer will be informed, a plan of action and cost to resolve the situation will be agreed to. These costs are the homeowner’s responsibility and can be paid either by cash or financed into the home loan.

It is rare that we have challenges of this nature.
2. There are times that a situation isn’t realized until the home is being delivered to your site and is being   maneuvered towards or onto your home site. Should a challenge come up during the moving process, it is helpful for the homeowner to be close at hand in order to address and resolve any concerns immediately.

On financed transactions, we strongly recommend that the homeowner/buyer secure a loan amount and approve a mechanic's lien up to as much as $5000 above the estimated amount. In most cases where something was unforeseen, a $2500 amount is more than enough. Please keep in mind that it is easy to take less money than your approval amount but a real hassle to go over your approved amount by even one dollar.

Another situation that comes up much more often than something unexpected is when the homeowner decides to add more features to their improvement package. This is the main reason it is best to secure higher loan amounts and approve higher mechanic's liens. (appraisal values must also be taken into consideration when increasing the loan amount) When all work is completed, we will sit down with you and ask you how much of the additional funds, if any, you want to add to your loan. We will then have your loan papers prepared to your request.

Important note: There are times these steps can be challenging, “The Straight Shooters” do our best to make it as easy as possible. We have many years of experience and have produced this step by step outline to help you understand the involvement of these procedures. “The Straight Shooters” thank you for your patience and flexibility in working with us towards your new home.

The Use of Contractors / Sub Contractors
“The Straight Shooters”, like most businesses in our industry, use contractors to perform most of the work on your home and site development.  Unlike most businesses, “The Straight Shooters” takes the position of a General Contractor ( in the Rio Grande Valley only) who directs and oversees the work. Should there be a concern, you, the consumer, only need to make one call to, “The Straight Shooters”.  We’ll address your concerns. We have used most of these contractors for over ten years and have very good working relationships with them; however, we don’t have total control of these outside contractors and, to that end, there are times that our scheduling is delayed. The following is a list of the types of contractors we use:

We believe the contractors we use are very good, dependable and their prices are most competitive.

If you have a trade involved in your situation, please review the following steps as well.

Trade-Ins
Legal work; Secure tax certificate from proper governing entities. There is a $10 fee for this tax certificate. (This is to show taxes have been paid to home currently on this land.) It is the homeowner’s responsibility to secure the tax certificate. Should there be any unpaid taxes, homeowner will need to pay them in full before tax certificate can be secured and home can be moved off lot. Just ask “The Straight Shooters” for help should you need any assistance in securing your certificate.

Estimated Timelines
Day 1 - Remove skirting, carports, sheds, lower window awnings etc. Homeowner needs to be packing all items in kitchen and smaller items throughout home, setting TV's and stereo equipment on floor. Rule of thumb - If it's at its lowest point of gravity, it won't fall. Movers will walk through the home before they move it.

Day 2 - Home is raised, axles and tires installed, hitch is welded on and home is removed.

          Application # 1

Day 2 continued. Belongings from trade in are moved into new home on the same day and new home is then spotted back on site. (If all conditions are perfect, it is possible for homeowner to camp out in their home that night.)

Day 3 - Home is blocked, leveled, tied down, a/c installed and utilities connected. Homeowner can start unpacking and move in. Electric power companies are beyond our control. We will do all we can to get them there A.S.A.P.

Following day 3 - Install/provide the products, services, etc. called for in the contractual agreements. Time frame depends on concrete cure time, weather, and extent and complexity of package.

          Application # 2

Day 1 and 2 -   Same as application #1, up to the moving of the home off of lot.

Day 3 and beyond (whatever applies, depending on your project plan) - First thing, locate existing septic tank(s). (We don't want any vehicles to fall in.) Site demolition as needed - remove trees, remove old concrete, remove brush and have gas lines removed or rerouted.

Begin the site preparation process.

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See More Pictorial Examples Of Why Site Planning Is So Important