Katy’s reputation as the nation’s number one “most notable high-growth area” has attracted a major national homebuilder, Columbus, Ohio-based M/I Homes. This top national builder is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (MHO).

M/I Homes now has a model home under construction in Cinco Ranch. It plans to open the model in early April to showcase all-new floor plans and architectural designs created especially for the Houston market after extensive research with local homebuyers.

M/I Homes will offer new homes priced from the $450,000s to $550,000s in Cinco Ranch, with plans ranging from 3,200 to 5,200 square feet. M/I Homes will build on 80-foot-wide homesites in the Cedar Grove Village neighborhood in Cinco Ranch.

Founded in 1976, M/I Homes is one of the nation’s leading homebuilders, currently operating in 10 additional markets outside of Houston, mostly located in the Midwest and Eastern United States.

“With its strong employment base, Houston has one of the most vibrant economies in the United States, and it was a good fit for expansion outside of our current template in the Midwest and Southeast region,” said Dennis Bailey, region president for M/I Homes.

Bailey noted that Katy’s growth was particularly impressive within the Houston region, with the Gadberry Group naming it as the nation’s top high-growth area for 2010.

With its high customer satisfaction ratings from J.D. Power Associates and features such as a 30-year structural warranty on all new homes, M/I Homes is the type of homebuilder that Cinco Ranch developer Newland Communities looks for when expanding the community’s new-home offerings, said Heather Gould, marketing director for Newland Communities.

M/I Homes’ new plans for Cinco Ranch emphasize traditionally styled exteriors with lots of stately curb appeal. With steeply pitched roof lines, these one- and two-story plans blend timeless materials such as stone, brick and stucco. Inside, the plans emphasize dramatic volume spaces such as soaring foyers and wide-open family rooms. The plans combine high-design details with functionality and flexibility.

A rotunda-shaped foyer in one plan, for example, creates a memorable first impression while also providing easy access to several different rooms off the foyer. One plan has a master suite closet with a secret door to the laundry room, providing for convenience while preserving the suite’s privacy!

Japan’s largest homebuilder, Sekisui House, Ltd. and Cinco Ranch’s developer, Newland Real Estate Group, have announced a 500-acre expansion of Cinco Ranch. The land was acquired as a joint venture.

Cinco Ranch is Newland’s top selling, master-planned community. This expansion will add 1,200 new homes. This new section will be delivered in approximately three years as the community’s final southwest neighborhoods are completed.

The expansion is located on the east side of FM 1463 at Corbitt Road in northwest Fort Bend County. With the addition of the land, Cinco Ranch will total 8,092 acres with an expected 14,000 homes at build-out.
 
Located 32 miles west of downtown Houston, Cinco Ranch first opened with new homes for sale in 1991. Over the past 10 years, the community has consistently been rated among the top five best-selling communities in the Houston area. In 2009, Cinco Ranch was the #1 best-selling planned community in the U.S.

Cinco Ranch was the nation’s number one master-planned community (MPC) for new-home sales in 2009, according to a report by RCLCO, an independent real estate advisory firm.

With 887 new-home sales in 2009, Cinco Ranch was one of only two Houston MPCs on RCLCO’s top 10 list to report a sales increase from the previous year.

Sales increased 14% last year in the 7,600-acre community, located at Grand Parkway and Cinco Ranch Blvd. in Katy. The increase helped Cinco Ranch grab the top spot in the study, after ranking number two in 2008 behind a Las Vegas development.

The only other Houston area community with a sales increase for 2009 was Telfair in Sugar Land, also by Newland Communities. With 450 new-home sales in 2009, Telfair ranked fourth nationally in the RCLCO study.

“These results are outstanding for us,” said Bob McLeod, Chairman and CEO of Newland Communities. “This marks the first time ever in more than 40 years we’ve had the top-selling community in the nation, and to do it during a year as tough as 2009 makes it an even bigger achievement.”

RCLCO’s study showed that total number of net sales in 2009 for the majority of the best-selling MPCs dropped from 2008 levels with sales volume declining by as little as 8% and as much as 84%. Newland’s Cinco Ranch and Telfair were a strong exception to this trend, posting increased sales for the third year in a row. Also, 2009 proved to be the best sales year ever for Telfair since opening in 2006 and the third best sales year for the 19-year-old Cinco Ranch.

“Newland’s sales success at Cinco Ranch and Telfair can be attributed to the product diversity our homebuilders offer, the proven established track records of these communities, and a highly focused marketing approach that speaks to our customer needs,” McLeod continued.

“Buyers needs have changed and they will continue to change. The communities Newland creates will continue to adapt to meet those needs. Value doesn’t just mean a lower price, or a smaller home. It means what fits their family and lifestyle needs. The way we market our communities, taking time to really understand our buyers and engaging with them on a more personal level, has changed as well,” he indicated.

Houston’s strong showing in the RCLCO study underscores the fact that the city is a bright spot in the national economy.

Ted Nelson, Central Region President for Newland Communities said, “In the past few months, Houston has ranked very high in studies ranging from the nation’s healthiest housing markets to cities where the recession is easing. Overall, the Houston communities on the top 10 list represented 2,250 new-home sales, more than double those of the second ranked metro, Las Vegas.”

RCLCO has been releasing its top-selling MPC rankings since 1994.

Cinco Ranch offers new homes priced from the $170,000s to over $1 million.

For information about all Katy area homes, you can search the entire Houston MLS from this blog. For questions or to tour any area homes, contact me directly at 713-818-2404 or via email. I have specialized in Katy real estate for over 20 years. Experience does count!

Fifteen-and-a-third acres, located at the intersection of Katy Terrace Drive and Hwy 1093, have been purchased to build apartments in the master-planned community of Cinco Ranch.

According to The Houston Business Journal, Judwin Realty Group LLC has acquired the land. “Judwin’s Jerry Wionograd says the firm is finishing plans for the 316-unit complex.”

Judwin hopes to break ground in the second or third quarter of 2010.

The Houston Business Journal reports, “Houston-based Judwin, which was founded in 1963, owns more than 13,000 apartment units in Texas and Georgia.

For information about Katy area homes, you can search the entire Houston MLS from this blog. For questions or to tour any area homes, contact me directly at 713-818-2404 or via email. I have specialized in Katy real estate for over 20 years. Experience does count!

New-home sales in west Houston’s Cinco Ranch community are up 8% for the first nine months of 2009, compared to the same period in 2008.

A total of 697 new homes were sold in Cinco Ranch during the first three quarters of 2009. That compares to 643 new homes sold during the same time last year in the 7,600-acre master-planned community.

Relocation sales have remained strong in Cinco Ranch, accounting for one in three new-home sales in the community so far this year, according to Heather Gould, marketing director for Newland Communities.

“Now in its 19th year of development, Cinco Ranch has built up strong brand equity and awareness among home buyers and Realtors, which has fueled both relocation sales and local move-up sales,” Gould said.  “In the present economy, home buyers also seem to be finding a greater level of comfort in investing in a large-scale master-planned community like Cinco Ranch.”

Gould said Cinco Ranch has benefited as the largest and most established new-home community near the Energy Corridor, where employment has continued to be relatively stable. Cinco Ranch was also buoyed this summer when the Texas Education Agency gave its top accreditation rating – exemplary – to 12 of the 13 Katy Independent School District campuses serving the community.

Cinco Ranch has also expanded its new-home product offerings in 2009. In late 2008, a model home park opened to showcase the community’s most affordable new homes, priced from the $160,000s.  This fall, Cinco Ranch opened Park Place, a neo-traditional neighborhood with nostalgic architecture and prices from the $280,000s and new builders including J. Kyle Homes. The community also benefited from a custom home showcase that attracted thousands of visitors this spring.

“Offering a variety of new-home styles and price ranges, along with an expanding array of recreational amenities, has also been key to the success of Cinco Ranch,” Gould said.

I am a Cinco Ranch Specialist having sold many houses in Cinco Ranch, both new construction and resale. This includes both working as a listing and selling agent. Call me for more information and for outstanding professional representation.

A new Houston homebuilding company is looking to the city’s past for inspiration, starting out with a new series of designs influenced by homes in historic Houston neighborhoods such as West University and the Heights.

Now building in Park Place at Cinco Ranch, a neo-traditional styled neighborhood in the 7,600-acre west Houston community, J. Kyle Homes has been started by Jason Hammonds, who is serving as president of the new homebuilding company.

J. Kyle Homes has started construction of its Cinco Ranch model home, with plans to open the model in November. J. Kyle is now pre-selling in Park Place at Cinco Ranch, where Highland Homes already has a vintage-inspired model open.

J. Kyle Homes are priced from the $280,000s to $400,000s in Park Place at Cinco Ranch.  Ten one- and two-story plans are offered, ranging from 2,500 to 3,800 square feet.

Called the University Series, the J. Kyle floor plans have nostalgic features such as sprawling front porches, high-pitched gabled rooflines, and shingled siding combined with brick and stone. Most plans also have detached garages, another nod to retro style.

Designed by Austin’s Kipp Flores Architects, the plans are decidedly modern inside, with open, flowing spaces accented by crown molding, columns and arches.

Planned for 120 homes, Park Place at Cinco Ranch offers an appropriately old-fashioned setting for the vintage designs by J. Kyle and Highland. The main street is a wide, esplanade-lined boulevard inspired by Houston’s historic Heights Boulevard. The Cinco Ranch version has a winding walking trail, a white gazebo, benches and flowering trees.

Homesites located along the boulevard are bordered by brick and stone retaining walls. The homesites are raised, with steps leading up the sidewalk, and some of the retaining walls have built-in benches facing the street.

“At Park Place, we wanted to offer home buyers the type of neighborhood and home they grew up in, or always dreamed about living in,” said Heather Gould, marketing director for Newland Communities, the developer of Cinco Ranch.

Gould said variety is one reason why Cinco Ranch ranked as the number one community in Houston for new-home sales last year, and also ranked number two in the nation, according to a report from RCLCO, a national real estate advisory firm.

For information about Katy area homes, you can search the entire Houston MLS from this blog. For questions or to tour any area homes, contact me directly at 713-818-2404 or via email. I have specialized in Katy real estate for over 20 years. Experience does count!

For 2008, Cinco Ranch was the No. 1 community for new-home sales in Houston and Texas, ranking second nationwide, according to a study released by RCLCO, a leading independent real estate advisory firm which has compiled the annual list since 1994.

With 775 new-home sales in 2008, Cinco Ranch was one of only three communities on the RCLCO list to report positive sales gains for 2008 over 2007. Despite the economic downturn, new-home sales in this 7,600-acre community, a development of Newland Communities, increased 7 percent in 2008 compared to the previous year.

The only other communities on the RLCO list with positive sales gains, Telfair in Sugar Land and Eagle Springs in northeast Houston,are also located in Houston and developments of Newland Communities.  Overall, Houston was home to five of the top 10 communities on the RLCO list.

“Another highly positive trend for Houston, not reflected on the RCLCO report, is the fact that 2009 new-home sales for the three Newland communities on the top 10 list are on par with, or even ahead of, 2008,” said Ted Nelson, President of Newland’s Central Region, which includes Texas.

“Continued strong new-home sales in Cinco Ranch prove that during uncertain economic times, homebuyers are choosing quality homes in well-planned, well-located communities with great amenities and lifestyle built in,” Nelson said. “Homebuyers seem to be viewing large-scale master-planned communities as strong investments, especially those communities with strong track records, such as Cinco Ranch, now in its 18th year of development.”

Nelson added that Cinco Ranch had an eventful year in 2008, with the mid-year opening of a new 2,400-acre phase that will ultimately contain 5,000 new households.  Newland Communities has also worked to expand new-home offerings throughout Cinco Ranch, ranging from neighborhoods appealing to first-time buyers with homes from the $160,000s, to custom estate homes priced in the $1 million range. The average sales price was up 11% in 2008.

For more information about Katy area homes, you can search the entire Houston MLS from this blog. For questions or to tour any area homes, contact me directly at 713-818-2404. I have specialized in Katy real estate for over 20 years. Experience does count!

Forget new construction! My new listing at 4602 Ballstonefield Lane, Cinco West is absolutely stunning with a spectacular interior. All furnishings for sale. Call me to tour the property, 713-818-2404!

Stop the car–you’re home! What more could you want? Striking exterior w/ recessed garage. Premium lot at very back of cul-de-sac. Brick fence back & side. Two oak trees in front yard.

Walking from the foyer into the family room, you will discover a room you will not want to leave! Soaring ceilings, art niches, floor to ceiling windows & custom drapes create an ambiance of comfortable elegance. Sophisticated yet livable.

Continuing into the magnificent kitchen you’ll find just what you expected & more! Granite countertops, cherry cabinets & an island. The backsplash coordinates w/ oversized tile floors. There is also an upgraded stove top. Party time!

At the top of the stairs, in what is the gameroom, the owners have created a Hollywood style media room. Even the wall has been painted w/ a large white rectangular screen. Don’t forget that all furniture & accessories are for sale.

For information about Katy area homes, you can search the entire Houston MLS from this blog. For questions or to tour any area homes, contact me directly at 713-818-2404.  I have specialized in Katy real estate for over 19 years. Experience does count!