Lifestyle Builders Blog » Style Post

New Homes Construction – Top 5 Countertop Choices

Diane Coughlin — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 22:42:41 +0000

As the final aesthetic preferences are made to your new home, you may find yourself making the hardest decisions in the kitchen. As a popular gathering area, the kitchen takes center stage for the new home, with the countertops often snagging the role of lead star. But while the glamour and beauty of a countertop may grab our attention, it isn’t just about looks alone. The material’s durability, maintenance and overall fit into your lifestyle are also key factors to consider when making your final selection for your new home. Here is a list of the top five best solid surface counters with both their advantages and disadvantages listed to help you decide.

Marble—A natural stone made from a form of hard crystallized metamorphic limestone. Viewed as the luxury class of countertops, this expensive stone is known for its beautiful appearance and light reflecting finish. You’ll often see it featured on cooking shows, as it is coveted by pastry chefs as a great surface for baking or working with chocolate. While it is heat resistant and won’t chip or dent, it can be susceptible to scratches and stains, even if sealed. It’s a little on the expensive side, but will bring beauty to your new home and last a long time with the right care.

Granite—A very hard, crystallized igneous rock consisting mostly of quartz and mica, it is often used as a building stone. One of the most popular countertops in new homes today, granite adds value to your home, making it great for future resale. It is more durable than marble and still gives off that natural glow of the stone. When cooking it won’t scratch and is heat and water resistant, but it must be sealed once a year.

Corian®—A brand name for solid surface material made by DuPont™, the counter is made of natural materials combined with acrylic polymer and has become popular in new homes. It comes in a range of thickness, colors, patterns, designs and finishes. Customize it to your exact preference. The non-porous material and one piece construction avoids dirt and bacteria traps, and keeps stains from setting in. While it is heat resistant, it is always a good idea to use hot pads to avoid direct contact. Best of all, DuPont™ offers a 10 year warranty.

Silestone or Caesarstone—An engineered surface made from natural quartz. It is available in over 60 colors and patterns, providing great flexibility when building a new home. Its non-porous quality makes it resistant to bacteria. It is also highly resistant to scratches, heat and stains. Plus, it’s maintenance free!

While there are a variety of countertops to choose from outside of this list, solid surface countertops remain the most popular—and it’s easy to see why. They are non-porous, heat resistant, scratch-resistant, easy to clean and maintain, long-lasting and will add not only beauty, but value to your new home. Richmond area home builders, Lifestyle Builders & Developers have put together a team of highly trained professionals who have been actively building homes for over 25 years in Midlothian, Henrico, Chesterfield, New Kent, Powhatan and the West End to insure you get the best options and quality you deserve. And don’t forget to check out their nationally award winning design studio to help you add all the personal touches you’ll love.

Style Posts: “Don’t Believe Everything You Read!”

Kevin McNulty — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 09:40:13 +0000

When you were little, do you remember your mom telling you “don’t believe everything you read”? The media may not be reporting it, but there are a lot of POSITIVE things happening in the Richmond Region these days. Did you know that we have ADDED jobs over the past 5 years?^* Did you know that wages have GROWN over the past 5 years?^* Did you know that the number of homes sales in May of 2011 were up 52% from May of last year?^†

This is probably news to you, if you get your “news” from the traditional media sources. They are not focused on these positive stories and trends. Despite the “doom & gloom” reporting so prevalent in our news reports today, there are many positive things happening locally. We have seen a definite shift in the residential real estate market. People who have been sitting on the sidelines, waiting for the right opportunity to buy, have been starting to make the move forward with their purchase decision.

Here at LifeStyle Builders & Developers, we have seen a strong trend of people who are interested in building a home from “scratch” and personalizing it to be their own. We have also seen an uptick in corporate relocation buyers coming into the Richmond region. For many of these individuals and families, a completed inventory home is just the thing they are looking for. A couple of years ago, there were almost no corporate relocations happening anywhere. But today, we are seeing more activity in this arena as companies are beginning to transfer their talent around the U.S., and specifically here to Richmond.

New homes sales and prices appear to be stabilizing and are beginning to show positive trends upward. Interest rates are still incredibly low. Data going back to the mid-1900’s show that approximately every 10 years, housing prices double, even with periodic downward price adjustments. Is now the best time to move forward with your new home purchase decision? Only you can decide that, but the indicators are strong for buying now, before the prices and interest rates begin their inevitable climb upward.

LifeStyle Builders & Developers has been building new homes in the Richmond, VA area for over 20 years. Stop by one of our many communities, or our award-winning Design Studio to see what we have to offer. We are currently building new homes for sale in Chesterfield County, Henrico County, Hanover County, New Kent County, Powhatan County and the City of Hopewell, plus we can build on Your Land.

Sources:
* Data from Virginia Gateway Region – Economic Development Organization
† Data from Richmond MLS – Pending Sales

Style Posts: Grand Opening – New Model Home – Harper’s Mill

Kevin McNulty — Thu, 05 May 2011 13:36:07 +0000

This Sunday, May 8, we will be hosting a Grand Opening at our new decorated model home in Harper’s Mill. Come out and see this fabulous new floor plan – the “Bronte.” The craftsman exterior includes open rafter framing at the front porch, stone veneer, and a variety of siding materials. The kitchen features granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, and huge island, and is open to the Family Room. There is a first floor guest bedroom with a full bathroom. Take in the huge master suite and master bathroom, that includes 2 large walk-in-closets.

At the Grand Opening on Sunday, you can preview all of the unique decorating ideas and trends; register for a chance to win a gift card from Bonefish Grill, Salon Del Sol, and Total Wine. While you are there, enjoy an ice cream on us!

Style Posts: “Home Automation – Are We Ready?”

Kevin McNulty — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 12:02:33 +0000

Over the last couple of years, the technology wave has been building in all of our lives. We have seen things become available at our fingertips – on our smartphones – that we never dreamed were even possible. We quickly become accustomed to those conveniences, and forget what life was like “before”.

The integration of these technologies continues to grow, and has even moved into our automobiles. Who hasn’t seen the recent car commercials demonstrating the newest wave of integrated technologies that have moved into our vehicles:

Are we ready for these same tools in our homes? For years, “experts” have been predicting the rise of the “connected” home, with formerly disconnected systems working in integrated fashion, all controlled from one easy to use interface. For years, however, the cost of the technology was out of reach, because of the hardwiring and infrastructure required to implement it.

With the introduction of wireless technologies and devices, the infrastructure requirements and costs of the “connected” home have been dropping. With more and more people having smart phones, table computers and wireless routers, the cost of home automation is starting to come within reach of the everyday consumer. Check out this video and get an idea of how it can work, and how it can improve your lifestyle:

Is the time right? Have the costs finally reached a point where the average consumer will make the investment? We’d love to know what you think of these ideas. Is this something you would be interested in having in your next new home? What kind of costs would you expect to be involved with this type of technology?

Style Posts: “2011 – A Great Start”

Kevin McNulty — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 09:47:20 +0000

News Flash: The real estate market has begun to show signs of improvement. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal outlines some of the reasons why.

The Richmond market is one of the healthiest in the nation, according to Builder Magazine’s annual rankings of major metropolitan areas.

Here at LifeStyle Builders & Developers, we are seeing a lot of renewed activity in new home sales. We just finished the first quarter of 2011, and we have recorded more sales in that period than we have seen since the first quarter of 2007.

So, what are people buying? Most of the activity is in the “pre-sale” arena. People are deciding to move forward and build their “dream home”. They sense that now is the right time to contract for the house that can be built the way they want it. By taking advantage of great pricing and interest rates, along with our wide array of floor plans and the convenience of our Design Studio, our buyers are putting together a “once in a lifetime” opportunity to build their next home.