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Builder Syroos Mohsenzadeh takes a home from boring to beautiful

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Home of the Week, 49 Old Orchard Grove, Toronto. Asking Price: $2,189,000. Infill builder Syroos Mohsenzadeh bought a one and a half storey, three-bedroom house on the lot several years ago aintending to build a new home. ‘I had a feeling that people wanted something different, because most of these houses [nearby] look the same,' says Mr. Mohsenzadeh. 'I thought going modern would be nice.'Larry Arnal

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Mr. Mohsenzadeh has been working as a builder and designer of homes for more than a decade in Canada. In the past, he had done some modern designs, but usually just interiors cloaked in a traditional façade. But not 49 Old Orchard Grove. This time he was set on doing a total modern, eye-catching home. And with its boxy shape and linear details on its exterior, it stands out on the street.Larry Arnal

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Because this house has no traditional levels the rooms aren’t on the same plane, allowing for the absence of walls and a seamless flow.Larry Arnal

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Like a lot of modern houses, the inside is largely white and defined by clean lines, glass partitions and big windows. But unlike a lot of these houses, there is a great deal of subtle detailing that pulls it together.Larry Arnal

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An angular theme runs through the house. From the windows – which are varying sizes of rectangles – to square cut-outs in the ceiling that hide LED mood light to the rectangle designs on doors, four-sided shapes are all over. ‘Everything is square in this house,' says Mr. Mohsenzadeh. 'And all of the fixtures, mirrors, faucets are the same, too. I wanted to have some harmony in the house.'Larry Arnal

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Mr. Mohsenzadeh says the family room and kitchen area is his favourite space in the house because it is totally open and thus perfectly suited to be the hub of the household. The kitchen appliances include the standard dishwasher, microwave and oven as well as a food warmer and a Miele range and a glass hood that cost more than $3,000. ‘Honestly, I didn’t try to spare any expense,' says Mr. Mohsenzadeh. 'Whatever the space needed, I spent the money.'Larry Arnal

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'The wall of windows [in the family room] is beautiful and designed in such as a way that it’s private from the neighbours and allows for great light,' says agent Jeff McCann. Mr. Mohsenzadeh thinks he spent more than $80,000 in windows, which Mr. McCann says is more than double what is spent in a conventional new build.Larry Arnal

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The sitting room looks out onto the street.Larry Arnal

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The upper level includes the master bedroom with 12-foot ceiling and his and her walk-in-closets as well as three other bedrooms and a study.Larry Arnal

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The master bathroom includes a shower stall that doubles as a steamer and a sauna.Larry Arnal

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