Wow House

A $4-million home features new ideas that could be coming soon to a neighborhood near you

House Doctor | Gary Dymski

January 19, 2006

What can a 10,023-square-foot Caribbean-style Florida mansion possibly have in common with a more modest new home that's perhaps one-fifth the size and one-tenth the price?

That's a major question for home builders and remodelers after touring the New American Home 2006 last week in Orlando, Fla. They're wondering what building and design nuggets can be plucked from the showcase home and displayed in their smaller, less expensive models.

For the 23rd consecutive year, the New American Home was the showcase of the International Builders' Show, a trade event that annually attracts more than 100,000 construction industry professionals. In addition to the official opening of the showcase home, the event - a cross between the Olympics and the Super Bowl of new construction techniques and materials - featured more than 1,600 exhibitors at the city's Orange County Convention Center.

Everything - and we mean everything - from roofing shingles to carpet squares is on display.

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But it's the New American Home that often furnishes the show's "wow" factor. This year's two-story structure, which hints of a British Colonial, could be an exterior set for the next "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie.

Nearly 3,000 square feet are dedicated to two loggias, outdoor entertainment areas with miniature kitchens, plasma televisions and weatherproof furniture that overlook Lake Burden in southwest Orange County. The home is expected to sell for $4 million.

"This home is like the exotic vehicle at a car convention," said John Orgren, the project's lead designer and an architect at WCI Architecture & Land Planning, a Florida development company. "Like the exotic car, which is not something many people will drive, the show home has all the bells and whistles in one package.

"We're saying to the industry, 'Here in one home are all the new and most interesting products and a lot of ideas that are going to make it into production, sooner or later.'"

Features of the future

So what's new? How about a coffee bar and mini-laundry room in the master bedroom suite? Or an automated wireless electric system that allows the addition of outlets and switches without running wires inside walls? Or an air-conditioning system that beats minimum efficiency standards by more than 60 percent?

"This home - wow," said Ray Accettella, an executive with Jarro Building Industries, an East Meadow remodeling firm, and the Long Island Builders Institute. "It's incredibly big and has so many things to offer." Accettella was among 80 or 90 construction professionals from Long Island attending the show, said builders institute executive president Bob Wieboldt.

For Accettella, one intriguing component was the house's wireless electronic system. The wire-free technology by Pennsylvania-based Lutron Electronics uses radio frequency to control lights and electronic devices. "From a remodeling standpoint, that's an unbelievable advantage," Accettella said. "You can add outlets virtually anywhere without tearing out walls to run wires."

Both Accettella and fellow builders institute executive, Victor Irizarry, owner of Whitford Homes in Ronkonkoma, appreciated the use of outdoor space. "Because of our weather on Long Island, such outdoor space would be more of a seasonal feature," said Irizarry, whose new homes typically sell in the $500,000 to $800,000 range. "From May through September, I could see the appeal, but more in high-end homes."

Another attraction is the combination main laundry room/hobby room. At about 100 square feet, the room - one of three laundry rooms in the home - combines counter space, shelving and storage for an area where ironing as well as pottery-making could take place. Such a multifunctional room would play well on Long Island or in Peoria.

Irizarry also said he liked the home's use of narrower and longer impact-resistant windows by Loewen. The windows, which meet wind ratings for hurricane areas, also contain specialized coatings to let in sunlight while restricting the loss of indoor air. They, too, could make a dent in the Long Island market, especially in remodeling and construction along the shorelines. "Because we like outdoor light but are concerned about keeping heat or cool air indoors, depending on the season, I can see where we could put these windows to use," he said.

Maximum amenities

One concept most impressed Irizarry during his tour: attention to detail. "We typically deliver new homes with white paint on the walls and a couple of flooring surfaces," he said. "This home specializes in the amenities, which we know consumers want."

With high-end attractions like a game room, a lakefront spa room and a guest suite, there is an admitted over-the-top extravagance, said Orgren, the lead designer. But there was an emphasis on using environmentally responsible products and reducing energy consumption.

Appliances, including the water heater, and high-efficiency heating and cooling systems meet standards set by the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Star program. The home is "certified green," or environmentally friendly, by the Florida Green Building Coalition.

But Irizarry expected a little more emphasis to energy concerns. For example, the home doesn't use solar power to either furnish electricity or hot water. "We don't see it on Long Island, either," he said. "Buyers don't ask about energy usage or insulation; they want the countertops and floors."