Home in the Hills
Frank Aazami’s Featured Listing
The owners have just offered a significant price improvement on this custom cul-de-sac home on 1.6 acres in guard-gated Clearwater Hills, 4129 East Sandy Mountain Road. The European-style residence was designed and built with the highest-quality materials in 2015 and was completely reimagined six years later in 2021 by Kurt Holland, principal of Incline Custom Homes, a design/build firm.
Comprising 5,832-plus square feet, the Contemporary single-level home has five pitched roof lines that stylistically echo Sandy Mountain behind it. Two split masters are included and two additional bedrooms, and there are four and a half bathrooms. One master has a sitting room.
An extended four-car garage offers direct access to the home by stairwell or elevator. Five additional slab spaces are available just beside.
Designed for the indoor/outdoor Arizona lifestyle, the hillside home, built on a north/south exposure, includes a blue-tiled infinity pool surrounded by mountain and city lights views to enjoy the beauty of the desert and the world-famous weather. Four covered patios offer coolness and protection.
“This home boasts the latest amenities for modern living; it’s a true masterpiece and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” says Frank Aazami, RLSIR Brand Ambassador, principal of the Private Client Group at Russ Lyon Sotheby’s in Scottsdale. “And, it’s been completely upgraded in the last few years by a man I think is one of the best hillside design/builders in the Valley, Kurt Holland. So it’s almost a new-build by a top local professional.”
Those amenities include two-pane windows; floor-to-ceiling view windows; hardwood floors; full automation with smart connectivity; a security system; a focal-point glass-walled wine room; three fireplaces; an exterior fireplace; a firepit; and a built-in BBQ outside the kitchen. The home uses natural gas for heating and cooking, a recirculation pump and tankless water heater.
The chef’s dream kitchen features European cabinetry; a large island; extensive entertaining space; a gas range/oven and cooktop; disposal; dishwasher; built-in microwave; multiple ovens; a reverse osmosis system; a breakfast bar and a walk-in pantry. Full of light, the kitchen faces toward the outdoor kitchen patio where a waterfall drops from the granite hillside.
Other spaces include a great room, an office and a sun/exercise room with views toward the mountains.
Making a Good Home Great
In 2021, Holland updated a variety of features including the floors, wiring and plumbing. He completely updated the kitchen and the bathrooms.
He’s been in the building industry for more than 50 years; 45 of these he has designed and built custom homes. Since 1999, he has been principal of Incline, specializing in the technical aspects of hillside building.
“I grew up in Scottsdale and have taken my design cues from the natural desert and topography of the land,” he says. “I have been fortunate enough to have worked for many wonderful and interesting clients.”
He met the owners of the home when they purchased the property a few years ago. They wanted him to design and build the upgrades, which they did in two phases.
The first allowed reconfiguration of the living and family rooms into different spaces; he also relocated the entry. Holland and his team also introduced new materials, restructured the living room fireplace and worked on numerous details including hard surfaces and cabinetry. He also rebuilt the roofline.
In the second phase, he enlarged the garage and decreased the slope of the approach drive. He also extended the front and side yards by building retaining and cantilever structures. Holland also added a primary suite, making the former primary into guest/office space.
“Our main challenges were to concentrate on the view corridors and make the home look as though it was built from the ground up,” Holland says, noting that he is particularly proud of the artwork he did at the exterior entry wall where one color flows upward, transforming into three primary colors to offer guests a warm welcome.
This property has been reduced to $6,500,000. A walk-through is at www.vimeo.com/811853799. To arrange a tour, please email, call or text Frank Aazami, principal of The Private Client group, Russ Lyon Sotheby’s International Real Estate in Scottsdale: frank@PCGagents.com and 480.266.0240. Please share your comments about this property and others he and the PCG are offering by emailing, texting or calling him.
