[villagetinker]

We bought a lot and built, 7 years ago. We knew the model we wanted, a Gardenia, we also knew the direction we wanted the house to sit. We then asked the agent to find a lot which she did. We built the largest house we could on that lot, got 3 of 4 stretches. Once the lot was purchased, we met with the designer to pick all of the stuff inside the house. If you want carpeting, get the best grade you can afford, NOT the builders grade. Tile on diagonal looks better (IMHO) we missed this one. We stayed with the builders interior paint, and have repainted several rooms at our on pace and colors that took many months to decide on. Get items installed immediately that are big ticket, like additional golf cart garage, to stretches to the house (basically structural changes). Go for upgraded cabinets, and if you do not want the dust and dirt upgraded counter tops. We also included whole house alarm system wiring and wiring for cameras (this saved LOTS of money when actual alarm system was installed).
There were probably more items, I will add if i think of them.
Good luck with your project.