Why building your luxury home makes sense
When it’s time for a new luxury home, which is the best route — building new from the ground up or purchasing an existing home?
While resale homes can be a viable option, building new brings many benefits.
“Buyers might find a home with good bones that needs a kitchen or bathroom update. People will invest upwards of $1 million in a home that needs work, thinking they’ll do ‘this’ later or ‘that’ later. The truth is that they quite often just don’t,” says Kelly Halliday, senior business development manager for Brookfield Residential and Albi Luxury by Brookfield Residential.
“People may not consider the never-ending disruption of home renovations or the cost creep. You might think the home needs cosmetic changes and suddenly, you’re spending significant money on replacing the roof,” she continues.
“People have come to us and admitted that building new may have been a better option after all.”
The process of any type of home purchase can be stressful. When the papers are signed on a resale home, the buyer has little recourse. With a new home, the builder supports the buyer throughout the entire process, from choosing a lot and the floor plan to providing a new home warranty after they’ve taken possession.
Albi Luxury by Brookfield Residential offers a four-prong warranty, key to buyer peace of mind, Halliday explains. The warranty provides a two-year guarantee on workmanship and material, two years on distribution systems, five years on the building envelope and a 10-year structural warranty on the frame and foundation components.
Because new houses are built to the latest codes, homeowners can rest assured their homes are safe and as energy efficient as possible.
“For example, smoke detectors in all bedrooms are now mandatory,” she says.
“From a technical aspect, we install two-stage high efficiency furnaces, triplepane windows, LED lighting, upgraded insulation, smart wiring for new technologies and home security. Overall, there’s a tighter build than there was 10 to 15 years ago.”
Purchasing new also means buyers can choose their ideal layout on their ideal lot.
“With a resale home, there’s usually a compromise. You can find a nice home on a lot that doesn’t work or a beautiful location with the wrong type of home. With a new home, you don’t have to sacrifice one for the other,” she explains.
Communities where new homes are offered follow best practices in urban planning with pathways, ponds, environmental preserves, safer playgrounds and more.
Two modern neighbourhoods Albi is building in are Auburn Bay and Crantson’s Riverstone.
“We’re in our last phase for luxury homes in Auburn Bay. It’s the final opportunity to build in this community where the infrastructure is all done. The lake, the park, major roadways are complete and the South Health Campus Hospital is right next door,” she says.
Cranston’s Riverstone beside the Bow River south of Stoney Trail was launched in 2012. Albi offers bungalow and two-storey, largerscale luxury homes in this riverside community that Halliday refers to as an “oasis.”
“When you take that drive down Cranston Avenue it’s so beautiful and stunning. It’s a true luxury environment and an amazing living opportunity,” she says.
Albi is also building in the communities of Artesia, The Rise West Grove Estates and Legacy.
Another part of the excitement for homebuyers is the interior selections process, where Albi’s designers help homeowners choose the finishing details that really make a new house their home.
“Our staff is well complemented to work with those luxury homebuyers.”
As home prices continue to rise — at least two to three per cent a year due to increased labour and material expenses — the cost of waiting to move up to a luxury home will affect people buying new homes. Halliday says this spring is an ideal time to purchase a new home before the Calgary market truly begins to move.
“This industry is so exciting. We’re not building a house — we’re building a home. When we hand someone the keys to their new home, we have just made their life better.”
For more information, visit albihomes.com.