Asheville Achievers – Laura Sullivan ID.ology Interior Design
Laura Sullivan is a woman in a man’s world. It started as a child, when she’d accompany her father to job sites, getting her hands dirty throwing materials in the dumpsters in his investment properties. It continued during school, when she combined her passion for art with her experience in real estate to earn a degree in interior design (and a minor in art). Upon graduation from college, Sullivan invested further in that traditionally masculine world, as she received both her real estate broker’s license and her contractors license.
Expert Interview Series: Sean Sullivan of Living Stone Construction About the Appeal and Durability of Green Homes
Sean Sullivan, the president of Living Stone Construction, is an award-winning builder who specializes in designing and building high-performance green homes in Asheville, North Carolina. We recently spoke with Sean to learn more about today’s green homes and why they are becoming more popular among home buyers.
Tell us a bit about your background. Why did you decide to concentrate on building green homes?
My father was a fighter pilot in the Marine Corps. After he ascended the leadership ladder and finished taking command of different air bases, he began teaching TQM (Total Quality Management) and later formed his own consulting company. I learned not only from his teachings, but also those of others like W. Edwards Deming who said, “It is not enough to do your best; you must know what to do, and then do your best.”
So when we first heard that there was a rating system coming to western North Carolina for ENERGY STAR and Greenbuilt-certified homes, we immediately signed up. We simply believe that if you are going to do something, do it right.
NAHB Honors 5 Young Professionals
NAHB has honored five home builders around the country as the 2016 Young Professionals of the Year. The awards were given Monday evening, January 9th in Orlando, Florida, during the NAHB International Builders’ Show. “David Belman, Robert Fallone, Eugene Graf, Sean...
Downtown with Nancy Brown
Living Stone Wins Green Design + Build Firm for North Carolina
The Watkins Home
The 2016 Southern Living Inspired Home: A mountain home at one with its setting
By Charles Richardson
A timeless setting
The first thing you notice about French Broad Crossing (FBC) is the exquisite Western North Carolina setting: pure, pristine, secluded, and in perfect harmony with the lush, densely forested hills that form a natural amphitheater of majesty and timeless beauty. Residents here liken it “to living in one’s own national park,” yet it’s just a short drive from the dynamic city of Asheville, NC. Indeed, much of the land at FBC is permanently preserved, held in conservation to prevent further development. Families are drawn to an idyllic living experience that can be passed down to future generations, in the same undisturbed state that exists today. It is here, against the backdrop of ancient rolling mountains and the mighty French Broad River—third oldest river in the world according to geologists—that the new 2016 Southern Living Inspired Home will reside.
Growing Options for Seniors Ready to Move
Submitted by Sean D. Sullivan
For many seniors, making the decision to move or downsize to a smaller home can be emotionally challenging. After raising a family or spending a good portion of their adult lives in one home, it is often difficult to think about leaving it. Yet, practically, it may be easier to live in a home that better accommodates their changing lifestyle.
To meet the growing need of these baby boomers, a new industry of “senior move managers” was created to help with the transition to the next phase of their lives. Senior move managers handle many aspects of a senior move. From setting up floor plans and helping determine what furniture to take, to packing the house and helping seniors sell or donate things they no longer want.
The National Association of Senior Move Managers provides resources and a directory of senior move managers across the country. Here are the three key things seniors should consider before they begin the downsizing process:
• It takes time. It is hard to imagine moving out of a home you have lived in for so long. Likewise, organizing all of the steps involved in a move can be overwhelming. Be sure to give yourself enough time to process the changes that will be taking place.
107 Raccoon Run, Marshall NC – Southern Living Inspired Home
$850,000 • 3 Bed, 3 Bath • 2,100 sq/ft • (828) 669-4343 • 70% Complete • License #49058 • www.LivingStoneConstruction.com
“The Water’s Edge is a classic example of how to design+build mountain living to maximize views. This home works for anyone, but especially those who are looking for style.”
Special Features:
A Southern Living model home
Universally designed for main level living and aging-in-place
Master bath wet room with undermount tub
Beams, wainscoting, millwork and built-ins
Second floor suite with adjacent reading loft and ‘ready-to-finish’ basement
Incredible great room with wall of glass and over-sized slider doors
Covered back porch with fireplace and incredible mountain views!
An Energy-Star and Greenbuilt NC certified home
Entry-level Homes Making a Comeback
Submitted by Sean D. Sullivan, Living Stone Construction Inc.
Waist size. College tuition. Kidney stones. Many things in life don’t get better as they grow bigger. Often times, the best things comes in small(er) packages.
In recent years, the tiny-home trend has taken that philosophy to the extreme. But it hasn’t quite caught on with mainstream America. The overwhelming majority of home buyers still prefer to own an abode with ample space in which to live, relax and entertain.
The median size of homes built in 2015 was bigger than ever, and the portion of those homes with four or more bedrooms grew to 47 percent. But so far in 2016, the median home size appears to have reached a plateau, leveling off after several years of gradual growth.
