EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST
Both downsizers and first-time buyers taking note of Epic Homes’ Fern Grove in Maple Ridge
Getting some financial help from the bank of mom and pop is not uncommon today for young people struggling to buy a home in Metro Vancouver. But Mike and Kayla Fenton have gone one step further, with Mike’s parents in an arrangement that is a win-win for both the parents and them.
After the young couple determined that their 900-square-foot Maple Ridge condo was worth almost double what they paid for it four years ago, they started thinking it was time to upsize.
“So my husband’s parents have retired now, and they have decided to move back from Nanaimo to the Mainland,” Kayla said. “We have made a decision together that we want to buy a place where they can live in the basement suite, but also still drive around the country in their RV.
“Mike and I can live on the top floor, and they can pay us rent (for downstairs) and we’re all in it together. It’s a good deal for all of us.”
What they bought is a singlefamily home in Fern Grove, one of 34 houses Epic Homes is building on six acres in a neighbourhood called Silver Valley in the Fraser Valley community. The main floor living space measures about 900 square feet, while the top floor is about 1,200. The basement suite will be reserved for the parents.
“The builders have been very accommodating,” said Kayla, a human resources worker who serves a large downtown Vancouver law firm.
“The home that we bought was supposed to originally have two bedrooms in the basement, but they (the parents) have negotiated with the builders to have one larger bedroom.”
Kayla said most of the single-family homes in Maple Ridge seem to sell for prices comparable to what they paid for a Fern Grove home.
“It doesn’t make sense to buy a house built in the 1990s or the 1970s when we can get a brandnew one with a warranty. Yeah, we have to pay GST, but if anything goes wrong, we have someone we can contact. We’ve got a lot more safety in buying the new unit.”
Fern Grove homes are covered by a new home warranty with two years for materials and labour, five years for the building envelope, and 10 years for structural defects.
Sales manager Norm Jones says Epic’s newest development — it has been building in Maple Ridge for more than 20 years — is attracting a lot of local attention from both first-time buyers and older couples looking to downsize.
“Fern Grove is a very special and unique location,” he said. “We have been able to locate this development in an area that is pretty well untouched by normal development. It is right next to the rainforest and a few minutes from Golden Ears Provincial Park right alongside the Alouette River.”
“It is beautiful to drive up there. You take a winding road full of tall cedars and you can’t believe you are coming up on a development. It’s not too big at 34 homes.”
Maple Ridge has grown more popular over the last 10 years because of the projects that have increased access, including the Golden Ears Bridge, the widening of the Pitt River Bridge and the new Port Mann Bridge.
“We’re getting a lot of people cashing in on their homes in Burnaby, Coquitlam, Tri-Cities, Vancouver and Richmond and coming out here because the commute isn’t as bad as it once was. Condos and townhouses are attractive, but to find single-family homes under a million dollars is very hard,” he said.
Epic offers several models ranging from three to six bedrooms and up to more than 3,800 square feet.
The Craftsman-style homes have welcoming front porches and pitched roofs with exposed rafter tails, natural stone accents and decorative brackets.
The builder has kept time-conscious modern families in mind with low-maintenance premium vinyl siding and aluminum fascia mount gutters. The roofs are made of durable fibreglass shingles. Homes come with double or triple garages, landscaped front and rear yards and exposed aggregate rock concrete driveways.
The kitchens feature custom Shaker wood cabinetry in painted white or maple stain. There is a stainless-steel appliance package, undermount stainless steel double sink with chrome faucet. Countertops are quartz and there is a generously sized island.
The living area is an open-concept design with 10-foot-high ceilings on the main level and features wide-plank European-made flooring throughout and stain-resistant polyester carpet elsewhere. There is a natural gas fireplace with a floor-to-ceiling tile surround, which has been HDMI wired for tech and cable.
Oversized dual-pane windows provide optimal insulation, block UV rays and fill the homes with natural light.
There is a powder room on the main floor and two full bathrooms on the upper floor. The master ensuite comes with Italian ceramic tile, frameless glass shower enclosure and a stand-alone soaker tub.
Motion-activated ensuite lighting makes visiting the bathroom much easier in the middle of the night.
Besides offering options for completing the basement either as a family room or a rentable suite, Epic offers “a tankless on-demand hot water heater.”
Homes are also roughed in for security and central vacuum and have a tech hub in the basement for internet, phone and cable systems.