The 2010 Gold Nugget Awards Honor Pardee Homes Southern California New Home Projects For Green Building, Distinctive Style & Affordable Designs

    SANTA BARBARA, CA, June 19, 2010 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Pardee Homes has earned four Awards of Merit in the 2010 Gold Nugget Awards. Winning projects include both of the home builder's new LivingSmart Homes neighborhoods in Lake Elsinore and Beaumont, California. Also a winner is Terramar, a new design line of upscale family homes in San Diego. All three projects provide a range of stylishly designed, detached homes to Southern California buyers.

LivingSmart Homes at Tournament Hills in Beaumont was noted for the architectural design of Plan 3 and for bringing high quality design to the market at very affordable pricing. Its sister neighborhood, LivingSmart Homes at Canyon Hills in Lake Elsinore, received a Merit Award for architectural design of its Plan Six.

Priced from the upper $100,000s, both of these new design lines address the pricing needs and style preferences of first-time home buyers, particularly Gen-X and Gen-Y profiles. Focus group research of these prospective home shoppers inspired such features of the LivingSmart Homes designs as great room layouts, flex spaces, extra storage and sleek, contemporary finishes, such as stainless steel and Shaker style birch cabinets for kitchen and bath.

The new homes also emphasize Pardee's LivingSmart brand and its integration into modestly priced homes. The award-winning LivingSmart program exceeds local, state and national standards for green building. It offers more than 30 included and optional green features, materials and systems that boost energy efficiency, save water, improve indoor air quality and encourage material conservation and the use of recycled or sustainable resources in new homes.

"Our commitment to greener, more sustainable homes that also offer exceptional style has been a hallmark of Pardee Homes for more than a decade," said Pardee Homes President and CEO Mike McGee. "We sincerely appreciate being recognized for this dual achievement by the prestigious Gold Nugget Awards competition."

Pardee Homes' Terramar Plan One earned a Gold Nugget Merit for architectural excellence. Part of an upscale neighborhood geared to move-up families, it is situated in the popular Torrey Highlands community in San Diego. It, too, appeals to environmentally conscious buyers, with Pardee's eco-friendly LivingSmart features and the appealing natural setting of coastal preserves and rugged hills that characterize Torrey Highlands. Bassenian/Lagoni Architects of Newport Beach designed both of Pardee Homes' award winners.

"Our Gold Nugget winners demonstrate Pardee's commitment to eco-friendly new homes and neighborhoods for home buyers searching for their new home across a range of prices," said Joyce Mason, Pardee Homes Vice President of Marketing. "We are delighted to add that our winners are also garnering strong sales in Pardee's San Diego and Inland Empire markets."

Now in its 46th year, the Gold Nugget Awards competition draws entries from throughout 14 Western States and internationally and is the nation's oldest and largest program of its kind. Ceremonies for Merit and Grand Award winners were held June 10 in San Francisco at PCBC -The Premier Building Show. PCBC is the nation's largest regional conference and trade show for the real estate development field. See www.goldnuggetawards.com.

Pardee Homes is a multi-regional home building company that is widely recognized for quality construction, customer service, green and sustainable building practices and dedication to the educational and civic goals of the communities in which it builds. Green Building Advocate of the Year, Pardee's most recent accolade, honors "body of work" achievements in green and sustainable home building; it is part of the Green Building Awards, sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders. Also see www.pardeehomes.com and www.pardeehomes.com/living-green/

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