I'd go with his choice, because even if it wasn't 'my' style, I'd rather feel like he's taking an interest and equally invested in our home together. Plus, if I'm being completely honest, I think his taste is probably better than mine. ;) He rarely has an opinion on anything house-related, so when he puts his foot down, I go along with it: and on each occasion, it's been exactly the right decision. Example: I wanted the whole house painted out in ecru and antique white because it looks awesome with oak floors and I'm kind of a minimalist. Hubby insisted on painting the lounge room in yellow. YELLOW. I thought he'd lost his mind... but I went with it, because I get my way 99.9% of the time, so why quibble about the 0.1%? He insisted that 'in Winter, you'll be glad we have this warm, cozy colour'. And you know what? Every Winter, I love that room. It's an odd duck compared to the rest of the house, but damned if it doesn't actually work surprisingly well. It'd definitely be too much to take as a house-wide theme - but contained as it is, it's pretty great.

We are in a warmer area however put in undertile (inscreed) heating in the bathrooms. It is great. As it is not in the slab it does not take long to heat up and we have it on a thermostat which works well. It cost about $1000 for two bathrooms. A larger area would be cheaper as much of the cost was in the timer, thermostat and controls. We then did not bother with a tastic thing on the ceiling which is inefficient and just have a nice light fitting and a plain exhaust fan. I would see it as a must have. You might only have options for underfloor heating under a tiled floor with an existing slab. Have a think about slow combustion. They are dirty and dusty. The wood is a lot of work and can be expensive depending on your area. They may also take up a lot of space in your house and you need to have them close to a door to bring the wood in. They work for us at the moment as I am at home with young children. When I was at work it was an insufferable chore to get the fire going of an evening when I got home from work and there was washing to be brought in. I would see it as a "nice to have if you have the space, time and wood" Think about your lifestyle are you at home a lot or just after work? This will impact on what you need. I would go gas if I had access to it. Just make sure whatever system you have has zones and a programmable timer to reduce cost. Reinsulating your roof goes without saying and will make a big difference.

I was 23 years old and our first home (1982) was $42,000 but interest rates were 21%!!! It was in Otorohanga NZ and mortgages were tough to get. Best decision ever though. We had second hand everything, even using an old beer crate as coffee tables and book shelves lol. Over the years we have owned only 3 homes though, and if we were to start again we have learned to not over capitalise on homes we have bought instead upgrade sooner. Finally we are ebarking on our first new home build ... bettter late than never though definately!

Neighbours- the most convenient as my family live too far away. Also you know where they live! We look after our neighbours pets and plants, hold deliveries and mail and they do the same for us.