FINDING THE PERFECT HOME
Three big bedrooms give adult family the privacy they crave in Savanna in Saddle Ridge
Many people would rather pay a mortgage than pay a landlord. First-time homebuyers Rochelle and Ronie Deala are no exception.
“We’ve been renting an apartment for five years and we’re wasting our money,” Rochelle says.
Investing money into a home of their own was important. However, space was another priority. They were desperate for it. With a 28-year-old son and 23-year-old daughter, both SAIT graduates establishing their careers, a twobedroom apartment for four adults was unsustainable.
“My daughter wants her own privacy now. The apartment is downtown, close to SAIT and it’s very close to their work, but a house is better even if it’s farther away,” says Rochelle, who works as a teacher. After a year of house hunting, the family was driving down Metis Trail N.E. one day and noticed a sign for show homes in Savanna, a new residential area in Saddle Ridge.
“I spotted the advertisement for Homes by Avi along the road. It said they were building new houses. When we got home, I checked the website. So, we went on a Saturday to check the price — they were having a special promotion,” she says.
After finding the perfect home, with extra large bedrooms as per the children’s request, the Deala family purchased the Raycroft, a 1,842-square-foot single-family home. Homes by Avi worked with the family to put the deposit together and to source financing.
With approval in place, they chose a lot in Savanna next to a park with a sunny, south-facing backyard. With three big bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms and front drive double garage, the home has nearly triple the space the family has been used to.
“The house is comfortable, especially the kitchen. I’ll have my own pantry,” Rochelle says.
The Raycroft model home has nine-foot ceilings, hardwood floors, stainless steel appliances and upstairs bonus room. The huge bedrooms offer the space and privacy that the younger Dealas crave.
The Raycroft has optional floor plans that extend the living space to 2,005 square feet with an additional 432 square feet available if a buyer opts for basement development.
While Rochelle says she’s not looking forward to moving in winter, she is still excited about taking possession as early as January 2019. She looks forward to hosting gatherings with friends from her church, but declares the biggest benefit of having her own home is the privacy and peace of mind.
“It’s good to have your own house. There is freedom inside the house — no landlord going through your apartment checking things — you have privacy,” she says emphatically.
Reg Lee, Homes by Avi area sales manager in Savanna, worked with the family throughout the buying process to ensure the home was obtainable.
“We helped them navigate different lender options. Often, you can increase the chances of people qualifying for a mortgage when you have multiple people on title,” he says.
“We can also do a staggered deposit structure for the five per cent down payment, to kind of lighten the load. We suggest ways of accumulating that five per cent if buyers don’t have it all up front. We’re comfortable and it works for them,” he says.
Lee says that Homes by Avi works with a variety of lenders, many who will meet with new homebuyers wherever and whenever is convenient, offering flexible options and advice on how buyers can expand their circle of resources.
“It was easier to help plan our finances with them than it was with other builders,” Rochelle says.
The family will feel at home in the multicultural community of Savanna, which Lee describes as a new but developed community.
“As an extension of Saddle Ridge, it’s got the LRT, it’s got buses running through the community, it’s got shopping. There are school sites set aside, but there are also established schools close by,” he says.
Savanna is minutes from the airport, the northeast manufacturing and warehouse hub, the megashopping areas of CrossIron Mills
and the New Horizon Mall.
The exciting Savanna Bazaar retail area is planned for the heart of the community, and developer Genstar has already completed pathways, a storm water retention pond and several parks.
The first four phases of Savanna are complete with 400 homes and space for another 2,200.
It’s a highly multi-generational community, with grandparents, parents, children and extended family members enjoying each other’s company and contributing to the upkeep of a new home.
The Deala family spent several years apart, with Ronie and the children waiting in the Philippines while Rochelle worked for many years as a nanny, building a new life in Canada.
This new home is another step forward.