Chino Hills, Calif. Private Residence, Cornell Builders

Builder Toby Cornell grew up in a building family. His father, Tom Cornell, owned a luxury home business in the Inland Empire from the 1970s through the early 1990s. The younger Cornell cut his teeth in the trades as a superintendent before launching his own custom home building firm in 1997.

Driving through parts of Chino, he remembers when most of the surrounding land was home to large dairy farms. Today, nearly every GIANT production builder — from KB Home and Lennar to Barratt Communities and Richmond American — is queuing up projects across miles of flat, rich land perfect for building homes.

Meanwhile, the market for the kind of luxury homes that Toby Cornell builds is only getting stronger. This 8,000-square-footer perched on top of a hill in a gated community will be the residence of a technology millionaire with two teenage children. Every room in the home is oriented toward a panorama of east- and southeast-facing views for sunny mornings and afternoons.

Click on the pictures below for larger version.

A meandering floor plan follows the hilltop views. Here, a secondary bedroom with typical views.	Two kitchens: a large one for family and friends and a second one next to the formal dining room used for final preparation and serving.
The roof line over the garage was originally sloping, but the owner saw the potential for a large deck off of the master bedroom study. A large chimney and fireplace were added to anchor the deck.	Upscale laundry facility including hardwood cabinetry and a granite center island for folding clothes.
A particularly grand entrance with marble steps.