By Carolyn Crist
For the AJC
Carol Pontius wanted to stay in the same school district for her kids, Jackson, 13, and Emmie, 10, while going through a divorce. She didn’t want to move far from friends and looked for a community where they could make friends as well. She found new construction in Harmony on the Lakes at Holly Springs, just 2 miles from her previous home.
The priority
Pontius, 50, an administrative assistant for the Cherokee County School District, prioritized schools in her search. The search process moved quickly because choices were limited in the Rusk Middle School and Sequoyah High School zones. “I had friends and family support right here locally and found that this community would fit me,” she said.
The search
When Pontius first considered Harmony on the Lakes, where homes range from the low $200,000s to low $400,000s, she thought it would be tough to afford a new home. However, when she heard from friends who live in the neighborhood about the different home styles and price points, she decided to look. She liked the rear-entry garage and the neighborhood's village-like layout. She was surprised to find granite countertops, upgraded molding and an open layout offered as part of Fortress Builders' (builtbyfortress.com) new construction design. She chose a four-bedroom, three-and-a-half bathroom home with 2,400 square feet. "Everything was visually appealing, and this was more than I thought I could get," she said.
The home
Pontius enjoys the large kitchen with a butler’s pantry, along with the laundry room and mudroom on the first floor. In the master bathroom, she asked the builders to remove the jetted tub and add a large window, dressing table and cabinets. In the fourth bedroom, Pontius created a “flex room” for TV time, and the kids’ rooms are large enough to feature Jackson’s baseball memorabilia and Emmie’s arts and crafts. “The design makes so much sense for us, and the builder was great about being flexible with the design,” she said. “At lower price points, you don’t always get that.”
The lifestyle
Pontius moved during Halloween and apologized to neighborhood kids for having only empty boxes to offer, but several kids even offered to help unpack. She enjoys the family-friendly community with two elementary schools nearby — Indian Knoll Elementary and Holly Springs Elementary — a fitness center, pool, tennis courts and green space for kids to play and ride bikes. “I always tell people to look for schools first,” she said. “Whether you have kids or not, that’s going to sell your house in the future.”
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