24 • Thursday, April 4, 2013
By Keysha Drexel Journal editor
V
isitors to a home in Liberty Park on the 2013 Greater Birmingham Association of Home Builders Parade of Homes will have a chance to see what a home in the $1 million range can offer in customized luxury. The house at 4388 Kings Mountain Ridge Road was built to showcase what builder Jeff Rusert of Rusert Homes said is the latest trend in new home construction. “People don’t want cookie-cutter houses. They want houses designed and built just for them and they want all the luxury touches to go with it,” Rusert said. The six-bedroom house with six and half bathrooms will be open on the Parade of Homes on April 20-21 and April 27-28. Sitting atop a hill on Kings Mountain Ridge Road with stunning views of Liberty Park’s natural areas, the home’s exterior features a split driveway and carriage-style main and lower level garages. The patios are tiled with Travertine, and the main patio has an outdoor fireplace perfect for entertaining year round. Rusert said the home’s design is aimed at evoking the atmosphere of an upscale mountain retreat. “With the stone accents and the outdoor fireplaces, it is kind of that Colorado feel,” he said. Inside, the home has tongue and groove ceilings with cedar beam accents in the hearth room. There’s
home
OVER THE MOUNTAIN Journal
Million Dollar Listing Liberty Park Home Features Custom-built Luxury
“People don’t want cookie-cutter houses. They want houses designed and built just for them.’ Jeff Rusert
Above: The six-bedroom house in Liberty Park’s Kings Mountain neighborhood will be featured on the 2013 Greater Birmingham Association of Home Builders Parade of Homes later this month. Right: The house, built by Rusert Homes, features built-in book shelves on either side of the fireplace in the great room. Below Right: The main back patio has a fireplace perfect for entertaining outdoors and features Travertine tile. Journal photos by Lee Walls Jr.
a coffered ceiling in the living room and a vaulted ceiling in the master bathroom. A chandelier loft in the foyer highlights the house’s dramatic ceilings. Rusert said a good example of the customized luxury available in the home can be found in the main level study. The handsome room features a
fireplace and a full private bathroom. “More and more people are working at home today, and that’s one of the custom projects that we are seeing people ask for a lot now. They want a nice home office, a study or library where they can work and have everything they need,” he said. Another area where homebuyers
want custom touches is the kitchen, Rusert said. “The kitchen is a big area for cus-
tomization. People want lots of storage options,” he said. To that end, the Liberty Park home features two islands and a copious amount of cabinet space. The luxury touches come with the Viking appliances, stone countertops and rubbed-bronze fixtures. The kitchen also has a computer nook, something that points to the growing role of technology in new home design and construction, Rusert said. While the home may give visitors the feel of being on vacation at a luxury mountain resort, it also keeps them plugged in with the latest technology. The home has sound and data zones throughout, he said. “You can control the lights, your music, the thermostat, the security system, just about everything through your computer or phone. That trend is only going to continue to grow,” Rusert said. Even doing laundry takes on an air of luxury in the Kings Mountain Ridge Road home. The laundry room features granite countertops, a laundry sink and a large folding area. “People want those luxury touches, even in the laundry room,” Rusert said.