A family farm gets a pool that fits right in

This 300-acre Afton property had been the family’s country “home away from home” for more than 40 years. When a new generation took over in 2016, they decided to update the original farmhouse while keeping its character; the additional garage and guest house had been arranged around the central drive/parking area to keep the feeling […]

The big idea

Each year for more than 35 years, Southern Living magazine has partnered with builders, architects, and designers to create custom “idea houses.” In 2024, the home was in South Carolina; in 2023, Tennessee.  In February, the magazine announced that this year’s Southern Living Idea House would be just down the road—in Keswick. The selection marks […]

Going from good-enough to a perfect fit

A couple came to Charlottesville looking to buy a condo for their weekend cycling getaways, but they ended up buying a house that became their age-in-place home. One spouse had always dreamed of one-level living, while the other wanted a home that was intimately connected to its setting. “Within minutes” of viewing this 1950s one-story house […]

Revisiting a home design for a new owner

How often do architects get asked to redesign their own work? For long-time Charlottesville architect Robert Paxton, principal at Dalgliesh Gilpin Paxton Architects, a home he had designed near Ivy in the late 1990s had been purchased by a new owner who loved its style but had some other elements in mind.  The qualities that […]

Can the city grow its lagging percentage of under-25 homeowners?

New survey data shows that only 2.8 percent of Charlottesville’s homeowners are under the age of 25—a number that’s notably lower than state and national averages. According to a recent report from the web-based consultancy Construction Coverage, the share of home purchase loans that originated in Virginia in 2024 was 4.4 percent. That ranks 29th […]

Local design firm works with PVCC for environmental milestone

Charlottesville is home to the country’s first net-zero community college building after the recent completion of a project nearly seven years in the making. Piedmont Virginia Community College’s new Woodrow W. Bolick Advanced Technology and Student Success Center wasn’t supposed to be a landmark environmental structure when multiple design firms presented the school with bids […]

Real estate/design team helps homeowners with unique approach

A local homeowner and her husband wanted the kind of home that wasn’t on the market if you didn’t know where to look. But with a little help from a realtor and a designer, both with extensive architecture expertise, the family willed what they wanted into being. In 2017, the homeowner was casually working with […]

Home sweet test drive? It’s this local firm’s business model

Have you ever wished that you could test drive a home? Or that you could hire someone to move in and get the first-time kinks out? Meet Mike and Isobel Sadler of Charlottesville Area Builders. Charlottesville Area Builders is a third-generation design/build business now in its fourth decade. Mike found his Marine Corps background in […]

Honoring both sides of Charlottesville

Visitors come to Charlottesville to explore its long history and enjoy its thriving contemporary culture. So why not stay somewhere that offers a taste of both? That’s the ethos behind the Jefferson Guest House, a newly renovated 1920s residence in the heart of downtown.  Owner Reid Nagle wanted to renovate the building as a short-term […]