A Royal Crest Custom Transitional Beats the Big Box

This Royal Crest custom transitional is just what the doctor ordered to cure big box boredom.

Developer Dean Ash was the proverbial white knight on this project. Ash has flown below the radar as an investor and developer, so don’t be surprised if you are not familiar with his name. That’s about to change, however.

Ash has been in financial services, so he understands investments better than most. As the house was underway with another developer and contractor, things went south and it almost ended up on at auction as a construction site. But we all know a little matchmaking and networking is how everything works, especially in Dallas.

“I got it a day before it went on the auction block,” Ash said. “The house sits on a half-acre. The drywall was up, and the windows had been installed. This is weird to say about a construction site, but it felt warm. It felt like home and a place I would want to live. That’s my litmus test. If I can’t see myself there, I don’t do the deal. I could see myself living here.”

Ash has developed several commercial projects, small hotels, and a few homes, but he told me this is the most fun he’s ever had on a project.

That’s clear when you see this Royal Crest custom transitional. Without ever losing sight of the bottom line, Ash treated this project as if he’d move his own family into it. And that’s what makes it different. We see so many formula houses and are very tired of them. When something comes along that displays thought, we are captivated.

One of the interesting things Ash did was embrace a historic traditional ceiling height.

“I like being in houses with eight-foot ceilings,” Ash said. “Tall ceilings feel impersonal, and I want an intimate feeling. So even at 6,021 square feet, you feel cozy here. Another thing I wanted was lighter colors and a happy, bright feeling.”

That was accomplished not just with light paint color but also by George Bass Stage & Design, who worked closely with Ash and Compass listing agent Damon Williamson to add pops of exciting color throughout the home.

When you imagine how a house lives, it’s not just down to flow and ease of entertaining, which this Royal Crest custom transitional has in abundance, it’s also about the practical aspects of living. So, let me tick those off.

1. The mudroom has a nonskid floor. That may seem a no brainer, but most builders don’t think about this. They put pretty floors in that you can easily slip on.

2. The home office is located upstairs. After months at home, we’ve all see the drawback of the home office next to the front door. Non-stop Amazon deliveries create non-stop dog barking. Not brilliant for Zoom meetings!

3. That office is across from the media room. Have you had the extreme pleasure of holding your Zoom or WebEx meeting on a large screen? You’ll never go back!

4. Ash put a 3-400 square walk-in space above the garage. It’s easy to drywall and run heat and air into the area. You never know as years progress, when you may need extra space so to have that already thought out is a huge bonus.

5. The principal closet is astonishing. “I call it the She-Shed,” Ash said. “It was originally going to be a home office. It’s wired and has windows, but we decided to do a huge closet.”

I’ve said this for years. Closets sell homes. Anytime you can have natural light and space to pack your suitcase, inside a closet, you’ve hit a home run with me.

Williamson has listed a lot of luxury homes and told me this Royal Crest custom transitional has the most spacious rooms he’s ever seen. “Every room is large,” Williamson said. Every secondary bedroom is the size of a typical principal bedroom.”

Ash is beyond pleased with the outcome. “This house blossomed into something better than I’d ever imagined.”

Williamson has this Royal Crest custom transitional at 11005 Lawnhaven, listed for $1.99 million.