The Pointe at Amelia Village Condos

Why should I buy a brick home?
Nothing else can match the classic beauty and elegance of a brick home. Building with brick says, "You have arrived." But there's more to brick than just looks. Brick offers lasting value. It can enhance the resale value of your home by as much as 6 percent. Brick is virtually maintenance free. It doesn't rot, dent, or need to be painted, and it won't be eaten by termites. Brick is also energy efficient, keeping you cool in the summer and warm in the winter. In short, brick offers you a combination of advantages not found in any other siding material. The world's most beautiful and most practical homes are built with brick.

Is brick that much more expensive than other siding materials?
Bricks cost more than some other commonly used siding materials because brick is a premium product. Other products, such as artificial stucco, are far less durable and require much greater maintenance and upkeep.

What kind of maintenance does a brick home require?
A brick home is virtually maintenance free. Brick is one of the oldest building materials in the world, and one of the reasons it's still so popular is brick's ease of upkeep. Brick never needs painting, never rots, will never be eaten by termites and will never dent or tear. Brick homes built hundreds of years ago still stand today.

Is brick energy efficient?
Brick is a build material that has exceptional "thermal mass" properties. Thermal mass is the ability of a heavy, dense material to store heat and then slowly release it. For you, this means that during the summer months your brick home stays cool during the hottest part of the day. During the winter, brick walls store your home's heat and radiate back to you. Vinyl, aluminum, wood or EIFS (artificial stucco) are all thin, light building materials that don't have good thermal mass properties. The superior thermal mass qualities of brick have been known for centuries. Most notably, the Pueblo Indians in the Southwest used adobe masonry to moderate weather extremes and keep their home comfortable.

How does brick impact my home insurance costs?
A brick home is fire resistant, pest resistant and weather resistant. Brick is such a strong and durable building material that insurance companies may even offer you a discount on your home insurance costs. Check with your agent for more details.

Do brick homes have a better resale value?
Take a look through this Sunday's real estate section of your local newspaper and read the home listings. Notice how people always list brick as a primary selling point. Brick's beauty and practicality are always a plus when you resell. On average, a brick exterior adds 6% to the resale value of your home.

(Source: Brick Industry Association, www.gobrick.com)