On the market: A four-bedroom Colonial with a lake view in Coatesville for $749,900
For their second home, the couple switched to Colonial style for energy efficiency.
Very few couples design the house where they expect to spend their working lives and then get a do-over.
But this happened to Dana and Bob Heavey in Westtown Township when the local school district used eminent domain to take the farmland across the street from the house they had designed right out of college.
“We love designing, and we have the same tastes, so it works out well,” says Dana, an IT business analyst.
But there was a major change in emphasis. House #1 was a contemporary, but for House #2, the couple decided to switch to Colonial style for energy efficiency.
And when they saw the vacant site on a cul-de-sac with the view of Chambers Lake, “we knew it was a gem,” says Bob, whose company imports printing software.
It reminded Dana of growing up in Cleveland near Lake Erie.
Now, however, with retirement looming for Dana, the couple is downsizing and has a farmhouse in Delaware County in mind for House #3.
House #2 has four bedrooms and 2½ baths and sits alongside Hibernia Park as well as the lake.
The fenced-in back yard features an inground pool with a new pump and filter, a fire pit, ample flat area for play, and a sound system that extends throughout the home.
The interior has a two-story entryway with hardwood floors extending inside.
In addition to the living room and dining room, the first floor has an office with views of the lake, a powder room, mudroom, and laundry room.
The kitchen, which opens into the family room, has a large island, granite countertops, high-end cabinets with above-cabinet lighting, a gas range, a microwave, a French door refrigerator with a separate wine-chilling drawer, and a Bosch aluminum interior dishwasher.
The family room has a gas fireplace and bench seating. Each of the four upstairs bedrooms has a ceiling fan, and there is a large bonus room with lake views.
The primary bedroom has an en suite bath, walk-in closets, a gas fireplace, and a balcony overlooking the lake.
A whole-house fan circulates fresh air and keeps energy bills as low as possible.
Total square footage of the house, which was completed in 2002, is 3,902.
The house is listed by Katie Gail with Long & Foster Real Estate for $749,900.