Houses with Value

The Parade of Homes is a great opportunity to see a variety of homes and features that can add value, comfort or fun to a house. This year, there was quite a variety of price points to review and I am really pleased at how Brytan measured up. I think the three greatest features of Brytan, besides the truly green aspect, are the great gathering spots in each home, the craftsman detail and the fiber optic network. I will start with the fiber network first because I think that is sort of a sleeper. It is not discussed very much because most homes don't have a true connection. But if you think of the impact on the internet and the speed at which communication is occurring, the one thing that we all know is that homes need to have this capability or be very "dated" in a short time frame. Why buy a home today that is not going to handle the conveniences of tomorrow? The other feature that I appreciate in the Brytan homes is the trim around the windows and the finish detail. EG Gonzalez built a wonderfully detailed home to feature in this year's Parade. Everything was high quality from the way the kitchen cabinet and drawer doors closed to the flooring in the garage. Talk about value for your money! Finally, there is what I like to call the great gathering spots in a home. Brytan homes have porches where you can actually have a chair, swing or rocker...not just a concrete slab that is barely large enough to set a potted plant. There is also grilling areas or enclosed patio areas that are more "private" than the front porches. Then there are the many benches in the parks and close to sit, relax and catch up with a friend. Go ahead, relax...you don't have to spend your afternoon mowing the yard or trimming the hedges!

Brytan does not feature the least expensive homes...that has never been one of the objectives of the community. Rather the objectives are to provide a great deal of value, regardless of the square footage and to provide a variety of price points in a variety of homes. If you are buying a home today, buy one that will retain and increase in value. In Brytan, you will get not only the home you can afford but the home that will truly improve your life and lifestyle!

The lots are too narrow...

"The lots are too narrow..." is a comment that we hear frequently. We often find that it really isn't the size of the lot, it is the fact that these lots "looks" different from other typical lots. If we start to ask people about how they use the lot that they currently live on and what they like about it, we find out some interesting points. First, they want an area for their kids to play. Second, they enjoy gardening. Third, they view the yard as serving as a privacy boundary for their home. Those points were common themes but also common was this point: very few people enjoyed the time, effort and expense of maintaining a yard. They either spent their leisure time mowing, weeding and trimming rather than actually enjoying the yard or they had to pay a landscape crew to take care of the yard. The actual amount of space that people would garden was relatively small compared to the overall yard size. People were paying for a large yard in order to garden a small 8X10 or 4X6 area.

The narrow lots in Brytan and the way in which homes are sited on the lot allow for privacy yet also allow for gardening. The gardening can occur in the front beds or in the private courtyard between the home and the garage. Pots can be used that allow a person to easily change the plants depending on the season. Working on rosebushes or annuals is fun; mowing a yard is a great deal less fun, especially in the heat of the summer months!

What about play areas? Brytan has one of the best parks in the area. Your family can take advantage of the play equipment and the green spaces as well as walking trails. You will no longer have to buy expensive equipment that your children will outgrow in a couple of years.

The other key point and it is one that is going to become more of an issue in the future is the costs associated with irrigating lawns. Water and charges for wastewater have continued to increase each year. Brytan has worked with GRU to utilize reclaimed water in Brytan but the water management districts are going to encourage conservation of water resources. Brytan yards are designed to minimize water required for irrigation and to utilize those plants that work well without requiring an abundance of water.

Yes, the lots are narrow but all the ways in which you use your lawn are still available. You spend your time and money on your family and your home, not your yard!