TRADING SPACES
Townhomes, inspired styles draw buyers to Cypress.
Bridgeland zoomed to the No. 1 position among Houston’s most active communities for homebuilding in 2019 as modern architectural styles, expanded offerings and low interest rates lured buyers.
The Cypress community, developed by Howard Hughes Corp., reported another record year of home starts, rising 61 percent to 729 starts in 2019, according to Metrostudy, a housing information consultancy.
Sienna, a Johnson Development community in Fort Bend County, slipped to No. 2 as starts fell 11 percent to 527 in 2019.
In Bridgeland, buyers were attracted by new townhouses on 28-foot-wide lots, and neighborhoods with 40-, 45- and 110-foot-wide lots, as well as farmhouse, prairie and Craftsman-inspired styles, said Heath Melton, executive vice president, master planned communities residential at Howard Hughes Corp.
Hughes designates about 28 percent of the land in its communities, which also include The Woodlands and The Woodlands Hills north of Houston, for open space and outdoor amenities, which has been popular during the coronavirus pandemic.
“We’ve seen a huge spike in activity in and around our green space,” Melton said.
Companies look to relocate to master-planned communities to offer their employees short commutes to work and proximity to lifestyle amenities, Melton
said. The best know example is The Woodlands.
The Woodlands, where only about 500 singlefamily houses remain to be built, has become a destination for companies such as Alight Solutions, Anadarko Petroleum (now Occidental), Huntsman and Chevron Phillips Chemical since it opened in 1974. Bridgeland has 900 acres set aside for a future town center development that would include major employers, retail and residences .
“More people commute into The Woodlands for work than they commute out of The Woodlands,” Melton said. “That’s what we envision in Bridgeland.”
In addition to lakeside amenities, bird watching towers and central event lawns, connecting with nature along hike and bike trails has proven to be an amenity of choice at area master-planned communities.
“The walking trails really became focal points for life in those communities,” said Lawrence Dean, Metrostudy’s regional director for Houston. “That’s led several developers to really emphasize more walking trails in future sections of neighborhoods.”
Balmoral, a 750-acre development in Humble, jumped to No. 5 with 436 starts in 2019, up 140 percent for the year. It did not crack the top 30 in 2018.
A project of Houston developer Land Tejas, Balmoral features a twoacre Crystal Lagoon for swimming, paddle boarding or beachside relaxation.
Land Tejas recently opened its second Crystal Lagoon, spanning 12 acres, at its Lago Mar community in Texas City.