A North Carolina homebuilder with a presence in the Cape Fear Region is introducing a national firm's one-story product to Wilmington-area neighborhoods.

McKee Homes, headquartered in Fayetteville but with a design center and office in Leland, owns the Wilmington area franchise rights to build Epcon Communities concepts. That's why McKee is launching an Epcon product in three local neighborhoods: Bellaport in Wilmington, The Courtyards at Mallory Retreat in Leland and The Courtyards at Scotts Hill Village in Hampstead. 

The Epcon homes are designed for low-maintenance, one-story living, according to a McKee news release.

"There's a huge contingency of people that constantly move in every year looking to retire in the Wilmington area," said Pat McKee, owner of McKee Homes, on Thursday. "For the most part, we have found that builders are building houses for everybody, but they're not doing the best of jobs building homes for retirees.

"The retirees that are coming down, the active adults, they're settling for the homes that are out there ... and hopefully that works for them. There's very little all one-story product. ... The homes that we're building are catered toward that market and allow people to age in place."

Each Epcon floorplan is laid out with open-concept spaces, minimal steps to the outdoors, resort-style courtyards and upscale features, the release stated. The hallways are wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs and walkers.

Most floorplans do offer a Bungalow elevation that adds a second-story bonus room with full bath and optional kitchenette for extra guests, entertainment or storage space, according to the release. 

The Epcon homes available vary by neighborhood but they start in the low $300,000s, ranging from 1,681 to nearly 3,000 square feet.

Overall in the region, McKee Homes builds houses from the Shallotte area to Porters Neck, McKee said, specializing in houses for active adults and first-time homebuyers at prices ranging from the $200,000s to $450,000.