When you shop for a new home, you're seeking more than a place to hang your Stetson.

You want affordability, sure, and great location. But you're after the quality surroundings, the personal touches, the welcoming atmosphere that makes your home – even when it's new as a freshly minted coin – the most comfortable place in town.

You also want assurance that the builders have done their job with your own best interest in mind.

It's why first-time shoppers and veteran buyers alike have been profoundly impressed with the way Landstar Development Corporation does business.

Above, The Portico will be close to the downtown. Below, some of the quality finishing to be found in the kitchen.

A relative newcomer to the Calgary real estate scene, Landstar Development Corporation has created an area-wide buzz of approval because of:

(A) Landstar's close attention to every minute detail of preparation and construction, and

(B) Landstar's stubborn insistence on researching the most innovative and efficient methods for servicing its market. For example, how many builders do you know who've taken the pains to canvass neighbourhood residents, to seek and to implement their ideas regarding a project's proposed exterior design, BEFORE finalizing the blueprints?

Landstar Development did exactly that during preliminaries for a residential development that's proposed for southwest Calgary.



And how many builders refuse to cut corners when outfitting the interiors of a condominium complex that combines a drop-dead gorgeous urban location and view with a price range so reasonable that it's almost startling.

Again, the answer is Landstar Development.

Most of the buzz has been generated by The Portico, 55 condo units to rise on the north side of the Bow River, at 5th Street and 5th Avenue N.E.

The Portico won't take its place as part of the exquisite riverscape of the Bridgeland escarpment until next summer. Yet several choice units have already been spoken for.

Clearly, the excitement shared by the Landstar sales team is contagious. "This has got to be one of the best locations in Calgary," exulted Landstar's Brent Piercy, a city MBA whose business credentials are second to none.

"Fantastic. It's in close proximity to downtown, yet it's so far removed from the congestion on the south side," he said.

"It's unbelievably quiet, a character neighbourhood. Yet you can jump in your car and be downtown in about 60 seconds."

Prices start in the $150,000 range and climb to slightly more than $250,000. At those prices, you can't afford not to get a foothold in one of the last affordable riverfront communities in Calgary.

With its bejewelled evening views of downtown and its entry-level purchase price, The Portico sounds like the real estate bargain of the year. Yet we haven't even touched on the grace, the beauty and the warm functionality of these units.

The innovation-focused Landstar team based many of The Portico's interior amenities and floor plans on preferences expressed by serious home buyers who registered via the project website: www.the-portico.com.

Landstar analysed the data and acted on it. Among the results are a standard six-appliance package: professional grade stainless steel range, convection oven, fridge, dishwasher, ice-maker as well as restaurant-style hood fan.

"People are fed up with bare-bones condo units. Frankly, they drive customers crazy," said Piercy. "So to prove we are different, we spec'd out this project at a comparable level to what you'd see in the $350,000 range," he said, though The Portico unit "footprints" are typically smaller, with suites ranging from 700 to 1,243 sq. ft.

Piercy spelled out just how Landstar could afford to include such high-end features. It boils down to basic merchandising principles: volume, volume, volume.

"When we're outfitting 55 units, obviously we're buying these components in bulk," he began.

"When you have that kind of purchasing power, you can negotiate terrific prices."

The Landstar philosophy is brilliant in its simplicity: Give the people quality from the outset, then reap the rewards of positive word-of-mouth, and, ultimately, return business.

"We like to make our customers' decision as easy as possible," Piercy grinned.

Other amenities include high-speed Internet, supplied by a service provider that promises speeds 10 times faster than cable; cork floors; custom cabinets; heavily profiled mouldings; thick berber carpets and a variety of floor plans.

Landstar invites you to learn more about The Portico by calling 403.261.6848. Better still, stop by their newly opened presentation centre at: 1030 16 Avenue N.W. or register on the website (www.the-portico.com) to remain in the loop.