Vienna Arts & Crafts Houses (McLean, Madison: fit in, for sale, apartment complex)

[DunnLauren]

I have noticed a lot of very pretty Arts & Crafts-style houses being constructed on lots in Vienna (mostly SE). Can anyone answer these questions:

- Are these houses durable? They have many nice decorative touches, but I am wondering whether they will age well.

- Do the neighbors in the smaller, older houses near the new homes welcome newcomers or are they hostile?

- Some of the properties are close to the Cedar Park apartment complex, which doesn't exactly have a great reputation. Is property crime a problem in this area?

I am generally familiar with the local schools, and already know that both Thoreau and Madison have good reputations.

Thanks!!

[Denton56]

I Love those houses and have heard nothing but good things about the builder and the houses. I've never heard any complaints from people in the neighborhood since those big houses make their houses, and lots, worth more.

While there is some crime at the Cedar Park shopping center, it's very little, and it's not strangers but people who know each other who are attacked. I shop there frequently and never felt uncomfortable. But if you want a house like that built in another area, I am sure the builder will accommodate you. Those houses are scattered throughout Vienna. JP Broheny builds similar homes. His homes are fabulous. He has one for sale now, on Cottage Street in Vienna Woods. Pyramid is Vienna Elem/Thoreau/Madison. JP's a great guy, good to work with.
J.P. Brehony - Your Hometown Builder

A friend bought a home by JDA builders, in downtown Vienna. It's gorgeous and they are very happy with it. It's in the same pyramid as the Cottage street house. JDA Custom Homes (http://www.jdacustomhomes.com/index.html - broken link)

Of all the builders in Vienna, I prefer JP's homes, but that's just personal preference. They all build gorgeous homes.

[tankdude]

Originally Posted by Denton56

I Love those houses and have heard nothing but good things about the builder and the houses. I've never heard any complaints from people in the neighborhood since those big houses make their houses, and lots, worth more.

While there is some crime at the Cedar Park shopping center, it's very little, and it's not strangers but people who know each other who are attacked. I shop there frequently and never felt uncomfortable. But if you want a house like that built in another area, I am sure the builder will accommodate you. Those houses are scattered throughout Vienna. JP Broheny builds similar homes. His homes are fabulous. He has one for sale now, on Cottage Street in Vienna Woods. Pyramid is Vienna Elem/Thoreau/Madison. JP's a great guy, good to work with.
J.P. Brehony - Your Hometown Builder

A friend bought a home by JDA builders, in downtown Vienna. It's gorgeous and they are very happy with it. It's in the same pyramid as the Cottage street house. JDA Custom Homes (http://www.jdacustomhomes.com/index.html - broken link)

Of all the builders in Vienna, I prefer JP's homes, but that's just personal preference. They all build gorgeous homes.

Seems like Sekas homes is the dominant new home builder in Vienna and McLean around the 1 - $1.4 mil range (Vienna) and $2 mil range (McLean).

I've visited several when I was on the market, and they were very nice. They usually take over/build an entire cul de sac so those buyers at least have some commonality.

I've also visited a few JDA homes, but it seems to me that they only build onesy twosys. It feels weird living in a 1.5+ mil home when you're right next to a 1960's home in Vienna Woods that goes for less than half what you paid for.

[JD984]

Originally Posted by Denton56

I Love those houses and have heard nothing but good things about the builder and the houses. I've never heard any complaints from people in the neighborhood since those big houses make their houses, and lots, worth more.

While there is some crime at the Cedar Park shopping center, it's very little, and it's not strangers but people who know each other who are attacked. I shop there frequently and never felt uncomfortable. But if you want a house like that built in another area, I am sure the builder will accommodate you. Those houses are scattered throughout Vienna. JP Broheny builds similar homes. His homes are fabulous. He has one for sale now, on Cottage Street in Vienna Woods. Pyramid is Vienna Elem/Thoreau/Madison. JP's a great guy, good to work with.
J.P. Brehony - Your Hometown Builder

A friend bought a home by JDA builders, in downtown Vienna. It's gorgeous and they are very happy with it. It's in the same pyramid as the Cottage street house. JDA Custom Homes (http://www.jdacustomhomes.com/index.html - broken link)

Of all the builders in Vienna, I prefer JP's homes, but that's just personal preference. They all build gorgeous homes.

If the houses and lots are worth more, than presumably the tax assessments go up as well. I've read reports that some long-time residents of the Town of Vienna were concerned that they could no longer afford the taxes, but I have no idea whether this has translated into antipathy toward new buyers.

The Cedar/Park complex is a bit run down, but I wouldn't be concerned about it from a personal perspective as either a homeowner or a shopper. Day laborers tend to congregate at the 7-11, and there are occasional fights in the parking lot at the shopping center, but that's about it. It's directly across from Thoreau Middle, so I think police and community residents try and keep close tabs on the area. Park seems very nice just a few blocks north.

Ayrhill Homes is another builder who has put up a lot of the newer houses in the town. They are very pretty but, like Denton, I prefer the JP Brehony houses. They strike a nice balance between old and new, and seem very well-constructed.

Sekas is also a big builder in the Vienna area - not so much Arts/Crafts, though. They currently have projects underway or planned in both the Madison (Francis Young) and Marshall (Thistle Ridge) districts. Many of the Francis Young houses have been completed; the Thistle Ridge houses (on larger lots) have not yet been built, but at least a third of the lots have been sold.

[DunnLauren]

Thanks to all of you for the additional information. I checked out the Brehony web site as suggested.

Thanks again!

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by DunnLauren

I have noticed a lot of very pretty Arts & Crafts-style houses being constructed on lots in Vienna (mostly SE). Can anyone answer these questions:

- Are these houses durable? They have many nice decorative touches, but I am wondering whether they will age well.

- Do the neighbors in the smaller, older houses near the new homes welcome newcomers or are they hostile?

I love those houses! They have a lot of character. I know someone who lives there and they seem to be well made. As for the neighbors, she says her neighbors are friendly but she's one of those friendly people that people just naturally respond to. I doubt you would experience any hostility, but you might encounter people who are very busy and don't have a lot of time to socialize.

[normie]

Just wondering if these home are part of an HOA. If so, will these homes be called cookie cutter houses?

[DunnLauren]

Hi, Caladium and Normie! I don't recall that the new homes in the Town of Vienna were part of any HOA. We decided to buy in McLean rather than Vienna. The biggest reason was that McLean was a better commute for DH, although we also thought that the newer homes fit in better with the older properties in McLean than Vienna. Some of the new houses in Vienna seem to overshadow the older ramblers in the neighborhood. I think these houses are well built but we concluded the Ayr Hill homes in particular would be very high maintenance. They seem to be very committed to using traditional building materials. We admired their commitment to the old styles but didn't want to incur all the maintenance costs going forward. The Brehony houses were more practical but the ones we looked at were on busy streets that had a lot of car traffic.

[normie]

Originally Posted by DunnLauren

They seem to be very committed to using traditional building materials. We admired their commitment to the old styles but didn't want to incur all the maintenance costs going forward.

Ain't that the truth.

[Alicia Bradley]

Yay.. I'm glad that some new '[fill-in-the-blank] revival'-style homes are being built. (Arts & Crafts itself is really a revival of a hodgepodge of older styles, but that's for the architecture subforum - if one exists. ) It's excellent that traditional materials are being used, too, but yeah, that could get very expensive these days. Cheap artisinal labor isn't exactly easily had anymore.