This architect-designed newly built contemporary in south Newton is on the cutting edge of green home design, with energy efficient systems and super-insulation that brings the cost of winter heating of this 6,367-square-foot home down to an incredibly low $200 a month.
Built by Hub developer Samuel & Associates, the super eco-friendly home at 99 Littlefield Road sits at the end of a street in the city's Oak Hill area, overlooking some 20 acres of recreational fields for Newton South High School and Brown Middle School.
The home is applying for LEED Gold and EnergyStar Tier III certifications based on its super energy-efficiency and insulation, LED lighting, water conservation, indoor environmental quality and the use of sustainable materials. It features solar hot water, an indoor air exchanger and a 2,000-gallon cistern for rainwater irrigation through a sprinkler system.
Designed by Boston architect Rick Ames, the six-bedroom house has great room flow, high-end materials and appliances, lots of tall triple-pane windows to maximize daylight, bamboo floors throughout and on-demand hot water triggered by motion sensors in the bathrooms. It has 8-inch-thick exterior walls with an R-40 rating and a super-insulated R55 roof. A heat exchanger brings in fresh air, recovering 85 percent of heat loss, and rooftop solar thermal panels provide 65 percent of the home's hot-water needs.
The exterior of the home has a trellised cedar entryway that opens into a two-story atrium with a coat closet.
The first floor features formal living and dining rooms with 10-foot ceilings and wraparound corner windows, plus a very large open kitchen/dining/family room with a wraparound rear deck overlooking an organic grass backyard.
The high-end kitchen has custom white cabinetry, LED recessed lighting, black granite countertops and green mosaic tile backsplashes. All the appliances are EnergyStar-rated Thermador stainless steel, including an electric induction range, two convection wall ovens and two dishwashers. There's a granite-topped island with a second sink and pendant lights overhead and a dining nook with five tall windows overlooking the backyard. Behind the room is a built-in pantry area and porcelain-tiled half bath. And there's a glass-doored den/playroom where children can gather and be seen while parents entertain.
The adjacent family room also has corner wraparound windows, a built-in gas fireplace and glass doors out to the deck.
Behind the kitchen is a mud room with a large wall of closets and direct access to a three-car garage with an electric car charger port.
A wing off the formal living room has a bedroom/home office with a full bathroom with porcelain walls and white marble tile floors.
There are five bamboo-floored bedrooms and four full bathrooms on the second floor, reachable via a front staircase in the atrium and a rear one in the family room.
The rear-facing master bedroom has a private rear deck, and there are two large walk-in closets that need built-in storage systems. The en-suite master bathroom has a Carrara marble raised whirlpool tub and walk-in shower, both with glass mosaic tile backsplashes. There's a double marble-topped wood vanity and a linen closet. Outside the master suite is a laundry room with storage cabinets and a granite folding counter.
Two of the other bedrooms have en-suite porcelain and marble tile baths, and two small bedrooms share a full bathroom.
The home's finished basement sits mostly above grade with a large bamboo-floored entertainment room. There's also a wired media/TV room, a glass-doored exercise room and a full bathroom with a walk-in shower, and a room that could serve as a nanny bedroom. The basement also houses the home's six-zone gas-fired, super-energy-efficient heating and cooling systems, two water heaters and 400-amp electrical service.
For more information or to see this property, call Ezra Stillman of Hammond Residential at 617-721-7007.
