A beautiful way of life

  • By Mark Weaver
  • July 1, 2011
  • 295
                        
Don’t think a custom built home in a beautiful East Holmes neighborhood means a high maintenance estate, or a condominium, or your life savings plus a 30 year mortgage. The neighbors at Hawks Landing know better. This community of custom built homes on small, easy to maintain lots, with curbed streets and a gorgeous entrance, is the first of its kind in East Holmes. It’s off the beaten path, but minutes from town. It’s a neighborhood that’s planned to stay beautiful not just for resale, but for the next generation. It’s an upscale neighborhood where homes are surprisingly affordable. The homes are all built by Ivan Yoder Builders, the developer of the project. The company has been building for 34 years, and not just homes, but building a reputation for the quality of their homes. But with the quality and beauty of these homes in this setting comes an illusion of high price. “When we started, people’s initial impression was that this is way too expensive, we can’t afford it,” said Yoder. “There are more expensive homes here, but you can have a custom built home complete for under 200,000 dollars.” This is a community that has been well planned, with a lot of thought put into what it should look like in five years, and in twenty years. Professionally designed and maintained landscaping will keep the neighborhood beautiful for decades, while experienced design and construction of the infrastructure is done with an eye to the future. In the past five years, the company has clearly demonstrated the quality of home and the type of neighborhood that can be expected in this community. Yoder knew from the start that they wanted to create a community of beautiful homes, with enough regulations in place that the neighborhood would stay beautiful. Expectations are clearly laid out for the houses to be built, the landscaping, and how the exterior is to be maintained. When Yoder and his partners started the project in 2006, it was about more than creating a beautiful community in which to live. They were preserving part of what makes this area special. “Holmes County is considered farming country,” said Yoder, “and people were taking 100 acre farms and splitting them up into ten acre plots, so out of 100 acres you get ten home sites. Here you can do 100 home sites in 40 acres. That was part of our original goal, to conserve the land. We talked about how much land was being sold, and when that land is gone, then we’ve really lost what this area was built on.” The smaller size of the lots is a key attraction for many homebuyers. Less time taking care of the house and the yard leaves more time for family, friends and the rest of life. With no outbuildings, owners are finding it a good way to downsize the clutter in their life. Many of the homes have two and a half or three car garages, giving sufficient storage for a small lot. While the average home is less than 2000 square feet, there are some homes that are considerably larger. All of the homes will be built by Ivan Yoder Construction, so the quality of design and construction is assured. With a homeowners association set to be put into place, the neighborhood will be one that looks out for each other. Over all beauty is considered, such as uniformly tree lined streets, and details, such as requiring brick or stone covered foundations. There will be no detached outbuildings or above ground pools in the neighborhood. The streets are publicly maintained, and wastewater treatment is part of the public system. All homes will have gas heat, and are built with energy conservation in mind. Ivan Yoder has been in the building trades his whole life, with over three decades as a general contractor. One sign of his stability and quality is the fact that many of his suppliers, subcontractors, and craftsmen have been with him for decades, and know the level of quality he expects. Long time suppliers such as Keim Lumber, Mullet Cabinet, and his partners in this project, Schlabach Excavating, are part of why his homes have such a good reputation. Many of the homes in Hawks Landing are custom built for the homeowner, although a few have been built for sale, including one that’s just completed, and is available now. For those who do want to choose their lot and design a house from scratch, sites are available starting at less than 40,000 dollars. Like all hidden treasures, this one is best seen firsthand. It’s worth a drive into the valley just south of Berlin, off Township Road 356. See more at hawkslandingberlin.com or contact Ivan Yoder Builders at 330-893-2015.


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