High-end home in Sunset Mesa a perfect fit for a couple

Most people follow a certain real estate pattern in life. You start in your parents' house, sharing a bedroom with your siblings, and then have a place of your own, which you don't really like but can afford. Then you spend years in a house with your own children, where you pick up their messes and referee battles over morning bathroom time. Though these various homes provide warm and happy memories, there's nothing in the real estate world to compare to your next decadent (and deserved) move into a home built just for you. No compromises, no settling and no excess.

"We used to drive by and dream about having a lot up here," says the seller of this week's featured property in Sunset Mesa, which is listed by Bobbi Price of Prudential Professional Realtors for $425,000. The sellers built the two-bedroom, three-bath home in 1997 and have continued updating it ever since. "We'd rather have more quality and less house.

"It's hard to find a high-quality smaller house in an upper-end area. People are so square-foot conscious, yet others don't want bigger and bigger and bigger," explains Price, touring the 2,959-square-foot floor plan. "It's a great option for a retirement home that's not a patio home."

With the fantastic natural surrounding, this stucco rancher is certainly not a patio home. Situated on a 0.38-acre lot on a ridge, professionally planned rock walls and xeriscaped terraces step down to the street. Scrub oak and natural open space cushion the home from its neighbors, and flagstone paths meander through native grasses and perennials, all fed by a drip watering system.

The outdoor space, visited by local wildlife, is one of the home's key features, according to a seller who loves the back patio.

"It's so private back here. We have flowers all over and can put out the awning," he says. "We eat outside whenever we can and all you hear is the birds."

Even when indoors, the home's ample windows and position on the lot catch both the sun and Pikes Peak views, bringing the outdoors in. Warmth and light fill the entryway and flow with the hardwood floors into the main living area, which consists of a connected eat-in kitchen, living room and formal dining room.

Graceful archways and crown molding accent the dining room, while the living room boasts a gas fireplace with a tile surround and wood mantel. The 23-by-10 kitchen includes slab granite countertops, crisp white cabinets, a smooth-top range, a breakfast bar and an eating nook, which walks out to the patio.

The open layout and modern styling belie the fact of the property's 1997 birthday. "For a 12-year-old house, it could have been built last year," says Price, who explains that the sellers have continually updated and renovated over time. "It's just high quality. There was a lot of thought put into the custom design, and that shows."

Follow those glowing hardwood floors further into the home to find an office with French doors, built-in shelving and crown molding, and the main-level laundry. Completing the vision of main-level living is the ample master suite, which measures 17-by-15 and offers a walkout to the peaceful patio, a five-piece bath with a jetted tub, and a walk-in shower with a bench.

Ever wish that when the kids head off to college, you could bust out a wall to use their room as your personal closet? In this home built only for you, there's no need: The massive closet could fulfill the dreams of the biggest clotheshorse.

"You don't even have to see each other in the closet," laughs one of the sellers. "I still got the bigger side, though."

The main level feels like a space you can take a deep breath in, with enough room to luxuriously spread out in a way impossible in an overpopulated family home, but with no extra square footage just for show.

That doesn't mean there's no room to entertain. Accessed by an open and curving staircase, the finished basement includes a guest bedroom, a double-vanity bath with a walk-in shower, and a 30-by-14 family room.

The latter boasts all the best features, including a wet bar with a minifridge and a large media area with a built-in surround-sound system. Far from dim or dreary, this sunny lower level offers 9-foot ceilings and lots of bright garden-level windows looking out at lovely planting beds.

Taking in the thoughtful layout and brilliant use of space, the home, says one of the sellers, is ideal for "people who have become empty-nesters or want to retire but still want a house - and a life!"

"It's so easy to entertain," agrees his wife. "We have the grandkids here all the time."

Everything seems to be a breeze in a home so full of low-maintenance amenities: the automatic watering system, the stucco exterior, the handsoff xeriscaping, a central vacuum system, a house-wide speaker system, a partially heated driveway to aid snow removal and more.

For the sellers, it all came down to getting exactly what they wanted out of this immaculate and unique custom home.

"We liked the area of Sunset Mesa," she explains, looking at the mountain views. "We always wanted to be here."

You can view this home at 4005 Saddle Rock Road during an open house from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. today and from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday. For more information, call Bobbi Price of Prudential Professional Realtors at 719-499-9451.