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David Weekley Homes has expanded into Indianapolis in April at a time when it is unusual for homebuilders to enter new markets. Houston-based David Weekley Homes purchased assets of established homebuilder Estridge Homes for an undisclosed amount. Founder Paul Estridge will run the new market operations for David Weekley Homes, said Chairman David Weekley. The acquisition made sense, said Weekley, because the two companies are similar...

CDS Market Research shows Indianapolis, like Houston, did not have big jumps followed by large dips in housing prices over the past few years. The firm shows 3,720 permits for single-family homes were pulled in 2010 in Indianapolis, up slightly from 3,604 single-family permits pulled in 2009.

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Coventry Development Corp. plans to create a master-planned community near acreage Exxon Mobil Corp. has acquired for a possible campus.

Springwoods Village is designed as a sustainable development in a forest-like setting on 1,800 acres south of The Woodlands, and the newcomer will rival its neighbor to the north with a similar mix of residential and commercial...

Springwoods Village will directly compete with The Woodlands in the residential and commercial realms. The new community in Houston’s extraterritorial jurisdiction plans a residential mix of single family homes, townhomes and apartments from the onset.
The properties will go up against those in The Woodlands, one of the fastest-selling master-planned communities in the country. 

Charlie Savino, executive vice president with CDS Market Research, says The Woodlands sold 635 homes during the first six months of this year, and closed a total of 1,260 homes in 2009. 

Savino, who was hired by Coventry to do a residential market analysis for Springwoods Village, says The Woodlands is selling homes at a rate that will build-out the community within seven years if no more land is acquired. That bodes well for Springwoods Village, which Savino says could fill 5,000 residences by 2025. “Our forecasts are not outrageous,” Savino says. “We’re confidant that the project will be successful.” Coventry is planning 8.5 million square feet of offices and medical space for development at the same time the residential properties are being built.

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The Galleria, queen of all retail, is getting a neighbor who could soon have her own commanding presence. Local developer Wulfe & Co. announced Thursday that 21 acres of prime Galleria-area land will become a major mixed-use site for retail, office, hotel and condominiums, anchored by Houston's flagship Whole Foods Market.

In recent years, the U.S. has seen an increase in "pedestrian-friendly" mixed-use developments where people live, work, eat and shop. Several are planned for Houston, including at Kirby and Westheimer; downtown; Memorial City; and the former Central Ford site on Westheimer.

"Several are on the drawing board, but this could be one of the first ones out of the gate," said Kent Dussair, president of CDS Market Research, a real estate market consulting firm in Houston, referring to the proposed mixed-use projects.

Major mixed-use urban projects like BLVD Place are being built in competing cities across the country, Dussair said. "Dallas, for example, is ahead of us. We're anxious to see a quality development like this in Houston," he said.

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Houston-area home buyers appear to be ignoring a steady stream of dark reports about the faltering state of the national economy.

Sales of new homes in Houston were up 13 percent in July over the same month last year, according to CDS Market Research.

"Houstonians as a whole appear to be more confident about their future than people in other parts of the country," said Kent Dussair of CDS Market Research.

The Federal Reserve has been slashing interest rates this year, attempting to reverse the fortunes of a nation with widespread declines in corporate profits, layoffs, reduced business spending and a slumping stock market.

The rate cuts have helped to keep mortgage rates low. Thirty-year fixed-rate mortages are available at less than 7 percent. Across the nation, housing starts are up, one of the few bright points in the national economic picture.

Despite the negative national trends, Houston builders are having an excellent year, with new home sales at their highest level in almost 20 years, Dussair said.
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In year-to-date sales through the end of July, Houston's new home sales are up 18 percent over the comparable seven months of last year, CDS reported.

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