Homeowner Feature: Follow-Up with the McGurks

At Wayne Homes, we love to keep up with our homeowners. As you may remember, we left off with the McGurks in their first homeowner feature when we discussed the design choices they had made in their home to be able to age in place and enjoy it for years to come. Now that they’ve been in their Custom Wellington Classic for a while, we thought we’d check back in and see how life is in their new Wayne home.

Moving Day

We asked the McGurks how the moving process was, and here’s what they had to say: “We were very excited when we got the keys and we were able to start moving boxes in,” Terri shared. “We got the kitchen set up, the bedroom, the bathrooms, my pantry, and just started getting things like that set up before all the furniture came.” Terri said she and Bill couldn’t wait to get into their new home.

Happy at Home

We always like to follow up with our homeowners once they’re settled in to see if they would change anything, or if they would have kept everything the same if they had to do it over. The McGurks said they were fortunate to have talked through all of their needs with the Wayne Homes team prior to construction, so they are pleased with the outcome.

“We are very happy we built this home. On our first Easter Sunday here it was the first time that we’ve had my parents in our house for a holiday in three years. We pulled my mom’s van right in the garage and her lift takes her right out of the van. Then we were able to wheel her right up to the table,” Terri shared. She teared up a bit explaining this to us because their new home enabled this reunion with her mom. “Being able to lay the house out how we wanted it, not try to find something that’ll work and then try to adapt it, was wonderful. Having a zero clearance entry is the big thing,” Bill added.

Aha Moments

When you’re building a new home, there are always “aha” moments that happen along the way. One of the biggest ones for Bill and Terri was selecting the floor plan. “Our New Home Consultant was just absolutely fabulous with helping us pick the floor plan. In our minds, we were going for a three bedroom, but the models we looked at just didn’t click. Then she brought out a four bedroom that actually had a lower base price. We turned the fourth bedroom into a den and it’s like – who’d have thought?”

It was a perfect match! The McGurks said the extra space has been an unexpected benefit. “A lot of times in the afternoons, we’ll spend the afternoons in the den. The sun’s just beautiful. It’s also nice just to have your own space. Close but not too close. Keeps the love alive!”

A Functional Floor Plan

We know that when you’re planning a new home, sometimes it’s hard to envision the end product. The McGurks said they had the same hesitations. “When you have to go from here to there, whatever, you wonder – how’s it gonna flow? And it’s just been perfect. I mean, just everything’s worked perfectly.” Bill said he was impressed by how well all of their stuff fits the home, and how it supports their everyday lives. “It’s cool to see how our furniture fits perfectly here. In the old house, we had a choke point in the kitchen that made it very difficult to get by if another person was in the kitchen. Now it’s just, no matter what Terri’s doing, what I’m doing, you know, we can move around each other. And it just works really, really well.”

Advice for Building a Home

As veterans of the homebuilding process, we wanted to ask the McGurks in this homeowner feature for their advice to those getting started. “It’s important to have patience through the whole process. There were times when we were anxious wondering when it was going to get done. You just got to roll with it and know that it’s going to be done – and that it’ll be done properly. Nothing was rushed. We were done ahead of time. We weren’t delayed really for anything other than the exterior doors, but that only delayed putting them on and didn’t stop other work.”

A few of the McGurks favorite parts of their home include:

• Their happy, sunny laundry room. Inspired by Terri’s favorite, Winnie the Pooh, she calls this her “100-acre wood”.
• The McGurks installed a tile backsplash after they moved in, and they love the finishing touch it brings to their kitchen.
• The great room, which is the heart of the McGurks’ home.

We want to thank the McGurks for giving us the opportunity to follow up with them in this homeowner feature and see them in their beautiful home. We have loved getting to know them, and helping them along their homebuilding journey. They are now a part of the Wayne Homes family, and we will look forward to connecting with them again in the future.

If you’re looking to build a home with some of the same features of the McGurks’ home, or if you just want to discuss the homebuilding process with us, we’re just a call or click away.

About Wayne Homes

Wayne Homes is a custom homebuilder in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and West Virginia (see all Model Home Centers). We offer more than 50 fully customizable floorplans and a team dedicated to providing the best experience in the home building industry. For more information, Ask Julie by Live Chat or call us at (866) 253-6807.

Disclaimer: The details of this blog are accurate as of the publish date, but are subject to change.