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NEWS RELEASE 

“Smart Home” Development Opens in Signal Hill  
Comstock Homes, Inc. takes lead offering digital lifestyle features in
Westbluff Estates community opening this weekend

Los Angeles, CA

Tuesday, March 18, 2003

Opening this weekend in Signal Hill, Westbluff Estates is a progressive 51 single family community by Comstock Homes whose standard features and optional systems create smart homes.

“Comstock Homes strives to satisfy and serve our homebuyers by continually improving the cost effectiveness and quality of our homes,” said Ms. Tabassom Ayazi, Director of Sales and Marketing. “To that end we continue to build upon our understanding and implementation of technology in our developments.  The Westbluff Estates community is another example of that dedication to our homebuyers.  This community has a comprehensive structured wire system in each home.  Additionally, we demonstrate in our professionally decorated models home automation systems our homebuyers can adopt in the options phase to fit their lifestyle.”  

Westbluff Estates is located in Signal Hill, off the 405 Freeway.  Exit off the 405 at Cherry Avenue East. Make a left off Cherry at Hill.  Comstock Homes started in Signal Hill with Promontory Estates Homes, a community started in 2000, located at the top of the hill off  Cherry Avenue at Skyline Drive.

A “smart home” is made of several systems integrated to suit the lifestyle of the homeowner.  The structured wiring system is the first layer of a smart home.  This component prewires the home with Category 5E and other high capacity cable to enable digital age communications throughout the home.  Westbluff Estates homes are constructed with a structured wire package offered by the technology integrator on the project, Home Tech Works.  This package is a standard feature built into every Westbluff Estates home.  It includes award winning components manufactured by OnQ Technologies and designed by Home Tech Works to meet the parameters of the builder to the project floor plans integrating all the low voltage functions. 

“These homes are wired with a residential structural prewire system designed to meet the needs of a lifestyle wherein the Internet and digitally driven entertainment options are important,” said Erik Vidrio, CEO of Home Tech Works, the company which designed and installed the digital infrastructure.  “Traditionally we have seen such wiring in much higher priced homes, but as the price of technology has been driven to mass market price points, and as consumers have become increasingly savvy, we are seeing a great shift in the way homes are wired,” continued Vidrio, who has over 12 years of experience automating residential properties. 

According to industry analysts Park Associates, key adoption drivers for consumer acceptance of “smart homes” include: access to high speed Internet for all the computers throughout the home; the ability to monitor and manage the home, including saving energy, security and away-from-home Internet access; and entertainment access throughout the home.

The Westbluff Estates package wires each home for all low voltage specifications, including:

• Multi Line Telephone Distribution: High capacity CAT 5E cable throughout the home enables homeowners to have multiple phone and fax lines.  
  
• High Speed Internet Distribution: Access the Internet from several rooms in the house.  More than one family member can “surf the Net” at the same time! This also saves money by distributing one household Internet account to the whole family.
  
• Computer Network: The computer network allows homeowners to put all computers and peripherals on one network in the same way offices are set up.  This saves money because they are not purchasing additional printers for each room, or buying expensive aftermarket home networking systems.

• Cable TV & Entertainment Distribution: Enables the free movement of entertainment throughout the home including cable, satellite or DVD movies.

• Surround Sound for Home Theater: Each home is prewired for surround sound in the family room.  

• Security System: Homes at Westbluff Estates are prewired downstairs for security as part of the standard package.

The next layer of a smart home is made up of the systems to control the home and its functions.  The areas or sub systems in a smart home include entertainment distribution, whole home audio, home automation and security, energy conservation, lighting control, and communications. Comstock Homes has included the operating modules for telephone distribution, Internet/computer networking and passive video for cable TV distribution and will offer other option upgrades in all of these areas, thus giving homeowners a wide variety of systems to create their own version of a smart home.  In fact many of those systems have been installed in the builder’s model homes for the project, including the award winning Omni system by Home Automation Inc., a leading home automation systems manufacturer.  Home Tech Works has created these options in concert with Comstock Homes and will install them as ordered. 

“Many homeowners are increasingly asking for smart home features in their homes and wanting to understand how these features can serve their lifestyle,” explained Ms. Ayazi. “Information is an important key. There will be several ways our homeowners can learn about the systems installed in our three models and available to them, including printed materials and a ‘Smart Home’ seminar that will be announced.”

Vidrio communicated the Company’s enthusiasm for this project by saying, “Comstock Homes is demonstrating that builders can readily and cost-effectively embrace smart home technology.  By installing the structured wire system before the walls are closed as a standard feature they are insuring the homes they build are wired for today’s lifestyle.  At the same time they are making sure appropriate systems are being offered to their homeowners to build upon the structured wire system so the technology fulfills the needs of each family.” 

The Westbluff Estates Grand Opening is Saturday, March 22 and Sunday, March 23, from 10:30 am to 6pm.  The Westbluff Estates sales phone number is (562) 981 2421.

For More Information:

About Comstock Homes:  Comstock Homes was established as a residential housing division for the development of single family dwellings.  It is a division of Comstock, Crosser & Associates, a development company founded in 1979, who has successfully developed and leased approximately 3,000,000 square feet of office and retail space; and, in 1994 the firm created a residential housing division, Comstock Homes. For more information, visit the company’s Website at http://www.comstock- homes.com.

About Home Tech Works: Home Tech Works provides smart home services to the residential construction industry.  For more information, see www.hometechworks.com.

    The statements made in this press release, which are not historical facts, contain certain forward-looking statements concerning potential developments affecting the business, prospects, financial condition and other aspects of the company to which this release pertains. The actual results of the specific items described in this release, and the company's operations generally, may differ materially from what is projected in such forward looking statements. Although such statements are based upon the best judgments of management of the company as of the date of this release, significant deviations in magnitude, timing and other factors may result from business risks and uncertainties including, without limitation, the companies’ dependence on third parties, market conditions, technical factors, the availability of outside capital and receipt of revenues, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the companies mentioned in this release.  Each company disclaims any obligation to update information contained in this press release, and readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statement.

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