Put money into the things you can do now that you can't do later that will bring energy savings, build quality and livability to the home for many more decades beyond your occupancy.
You can upgrade to fancier pretty things down the road later. You can't go back and change the framing, insulation, ceiling heights etc without great cost later.
If I were building as you've described these are my first thoughts....
9 foot basement ceilings for sure. They won't actually be 9 feet and you still lose some headroom to ducts and beams.
Main floor as well if not both floors.
Engineered Wood Floor I-Joists glued and screwed.
Ask about using Tstuds. I don't know how prevalent they are now in the building industry but these things should be the new minimum code.
Discuss the location of your utilities entering the property and basement. Builders will just stick anything where every it's easiest. Put all your mechanical in one location even if it costs more to move the electrical panel or main drainage. Create a design for the basement, if not in full at least in partial to plan your mechanical (with option for A/C if you don't add it at initial construction) and bathroom rough in. If possible located under/ear all water runs to the upper floors to reduce the amount of plumbing running throughout the basement.
Also structural supports. My brother has a molley post 2 feet from a wall that makes 3 areas of essentially unusable space in his basement all because the builder went by "code" for where the next post should go and used no logic as to how to best utilize the space even if it took a bit more time/money.
This also goes with your electrical. Many electricians will just stick plugs every code required distance without thought as to usability once the walls are finished and furniture is placed in the rooms. When I re-wired my sister's remodel I used different colour duct tape to mark out plugs, switches and other electrical boxes when the house was just studs. Walked her through as if she was coming into the home and using the lights, plugs etc. We discussed where she'd up her X-mas tree up and put a plug in that corner with 1 outlet switched to make turning the lights on and off easy. Put a plug in an inconspicuous location in the soffit wired to a switch by one door to plug exterior X-mas lights into. I'd also look at landscape lighting/features requiring power and possibly wire another exterior plug to a switch inside.
Hot and cold water manifolds with dedicated runs to the kitchen, all bathrooms, washer, outside (use frost free faucets) and all shut-offs be 1/4 turn ball valves not will eventually leak gate valves.
If your garage is detached look for possibility to run utilities to it. Power obviously but water and sewer in case you want to plumb a sink or bathroom. Gas for heating. Not sure about that area but in McKenzie there are a number of detached garages with lofts above them. My parents have looked at adding to their garage but the utilities installation costs for their property make it super expensive.
Discuss what features you really want to have that are pretty and plan for them even if you can't afford them now. Under cabinet lighting requires additional wiring. My sister installed a heated towel rack in the master ensuite, radiant electric in floor heating in bathrooms and in main kitchen galley. Moisture sensors with timers for bathroom vent switches. In-wall/ceiling wiring for entertainment systems. Wired internet connections for all bedrooms, entertainment areas and other places you might want to plug in a device. Illuminated house numbers. Security systems (look into POE cameras, don't rely on wireless that either required plug-ins or run off batteries you'll forget to change). Don't skimp out on an electrical panel that will be just enough. Have room for future expand ability. I'd also discuss with the electrician what will be on each circuit. Plugs and lights should not be tied together because it's the easier (laziest) way to get the job done. Circuits should feed a single floor not turn off lights in the basement, plugs in the living room and fans in the upstairs bathroom.
It's lot to think about but the best time to do all of that is when you first build. Everything else that goes inside the walls is far more difficult to do after they are built and covered up. I'm spit balling thoughts as they come up as I did with my sister or any other project I've worked on. You can never have took much advice from people who've done things like this, though it can get overwhelming. Take your time and create a workable project book or folder or however you best function to keep track of it all. I'd even recommend learning how to use a program like Sketchup to create your own model of the home you can play with, adjust and tinker before making final commitments. It doesn't have to be 100% architecturally perfect but once you get the hang of it you an convey ideas so much better.
But the granite can wait. Silent floors and comfortable temperatures with low energy costs and intelligent power/network connections are all far more valuable now that squeaks, drafts, ugly cords and a piece of polished stone.
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