advice please
 

We just picked out a new house and just got an email about upgrades that we can have done before we move in. We live out of state and bought the house having never seen it - via a FaceTime video.

My husband is very handy and we have tons of tools, though we are probably selling most of them since the garage is so small.

There are several upgrades that we are considering, but is it better to have a handyman do it afterward?

We are considering solar tubes - they charge $800 each. Has anyone ever had them

Attic stairs - they charge $750. I looked on Amazon and they are less than $200. Can anyone tell me what the attic access looks like when you get it? Is the door already on a hinge?

The price for solar tubes sounds pretty good. Check with The Solar Guys for competitive prices. I don't like solar tubes, but many people do.

The price for attic stairs is high. The standard attic cover will not have a hinge. It will just be a piece of drywall. But, you may not even want to install attic stairs. The attics are so hot, that almost anything you store in the attic will probably be destroyed by the heat. Good luck.

Agree solar tubes are about right, you may want to check and see if they void the roof warranty.

The attic stairs are high. I paid $500 and that includes putting in 5 sheets of plywood as "flooring" to stack boxes on (storage). Beware, the attic gets HOT and if you use it as storage it can ruin somethings,. Putting in Attic ventilation helps, but does not stop it from getting hot.

I have 6 solar tubes in my house - love them - never have to turn the lights on at all during the day, and they really brighten the room. Be wary of putting them in places like bedrooms and living rooms - hard to relax with the glare in your face! That's high for attic stairs, and frankly, I just kept the pull-down attic ladder. As previous posters mentioned, you CANNOT store much up in the attic, the heat in the summer is incredible and damages many items. Had a neighbor who put a box of candles up there - at the end of the summer, they had a box with ONE candle - one large, melted mass of wax with multiple wicks in it!! The heat can fade colors, melt glues (used in suitcases), etc. Be careful! However, it is good to do "as much as you can do" before you move in - after you move your furniture, etc. into the place, it's not always as easy to work around it! Good luck!!

Question about those attics (we bought a manufactured for our first Villages home, we'll probably have a site-built for our second in the next 10 years). Are exhaust fans allowed? I know window air conditioners are against the rules, but I don't recall seeing any rules about attic exhaust fans. We had one in my split-level when I was growing up in the north, it saved us a fortune on air conditioning in the summer (it would sometimes get in the upper 90's with over 60% humidity, so yes we understand what "hot" means).

Yes, exhaust fans are allow. Nothing shows.

Consider also garage ventilation (ala Solar guys) which sucks ambient air into garage and blows it out into attic, which then exhausts out through attic vents. Helps reduce garage heat and attic heat. You can then add an additional attic exhaust fan if you need to, but I don't think I am going to need one.

We do not have solar tubes. Because of the design of our house (Laurel Oak) and the angle it is situated on our lot, we get plenty of light in our house.

Several of our neighbors have solar tubes because they do not get a lot of light into their houses.

I suggest you move into your house and see if solar tubes are needed.

We had our attic stairs installed when we were having our garage epoxied by Tim Miller and I think they only cost $200 or $250.

All we store in out attic are some of the plastic boxes we saved from our move.

we store some of these items in our attic: suitcases, xmas decorations, extra golf clubs, dry vac, extra ac filters, etc.

to me attic stairs were worth it

Attic stairs are worth it, per DH. He is a handy man, too. Stores all kinds of parts and tools and pieces of wood up there and has been known to make several trips up and down per day. I know there are wire shelves installed there, the ones we took out of the closets. However, I've never gone up the ladder, myself, afraid to.

Solar tubs are great. I would put them in the baths, laundry and kitchen. Great light. Yes to the attic stairs also.

Interesting WHO sent the email about upgrades? If not from the villages directly, I would be very suspicious. As mentioned above, I would move in, then decide what you would like to change, this will allow you to meet the installer, sign a contract and inspect the final product. Also, your new house is covered by a 1 year warranty (some items need to be reported in the first month), so doing some of this work MAY void or complicate any warranty claims. You should have your warranty inspection scheduled (use Frank DeAngelo he is excellent) 1 or 2 months before the 1 year is up.
As for solar lights, I could never see the economics of these, $600 and up per solar tube, versus $200 or else for an additional light if absolutely needed, and you can easily control the light. Once again this is such a personal decision, you need to be living in the house BEFORE you make this decision.
Hope this helps.

Wait
 

I would wait to see if I wanted or needed those upgrades until after I moved in. Especially the solar tubes.

Besides, you want the sales price of the house to be as low as possible. That is what your property tax is based on.