About Us

A native of Durham, Eugene's interest in older homes was sparked back in the 1970s when he moved to Washington, D.C., to work on Capitol Hill. While living in Washington, he bought his first home, a historical 1910 row house on Capitol Hill. Eugene and Signe were married in 1975 and moved to Denver, Colorado, where he served as Director of Communications for the National Conference of State Legislatures. There, the Browns bought and restored yet another 1910 home on Denver's Capitol Hill. The Browns moved to Durham in 1980, where they saw a niche in the market for selling older homes of character.

Over the years, he has restored many homes and received numerous awards including the Historic Preservation Society of Durham's Architectural Conservation Award, the Greater Chamber of Commerce's Community Beautification Award, and the Historic Preservation Foundation of North Carolina's Award of Merit. Today, Eugene is broker-in-charge at Distinctive Properties. He was elected to the Durham City Council in November 2004 for a four-year term. Signe, an attorney, is a third-grade teacher at Forestview Elementary School. A former president of the Historic Preservation Society of Durham, Eugene continues to be active in the Durham community. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Carolina Theatre, Museum of Life and Science and is an advisor for Habitat for Humanity.

For 25 years, the Browns have lived in the 100-year-old John Spencer Bassett home in Trinity Park, across from Duke's East Campus. Eugene is a member of First Presbyterian Church and Signe is a parishioner at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church. The Browns have two children. Brian is a graduate of Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn.; and Christine is a graduate of Mary Washington College in Fredricksburg, Va.