I am mad. If you live on the west side of Houston, you should be, too. Surely you've noticed the cheapening of Cinco Ranch? One of the most successful communities in the nation has suddenly decided to go cheap.
No, I'm not talking about lot and home prices. Where else in Houston can a "production" home command a base price north of $600,000?? Heck, good luck finding a custom home for less than a cool million.
What I am talking about is the new development going on. There are two items in particular that gall me to no end:
- Newly developed sections.
- Custom homes (or lack thereof).
Newly Developed Sections
Have you seen the new tract off 1463? The tract of land (known as the Davoodi tract, after the previous owner), has long been seen as the next logical step in the development of Katy's west side. The problem, however, was that it was insanely expensive, and that the engineers couldn't figure an inexpensive way to drain the tract. Drainage was available to the east, but the owners of Silver Ranch were charging highway robbery for the right to utilize their drainage capacity. While I certainly don't know what Newland did to resolve the drainage situation, I can tell you it wasn't cheap.
So, we've established the land development, lot, and house prices are high; so, what exactly is cheapening Cinco Ranch? Well, friends drive north on 1463 from 1093 and witness the "fence-crete" fence being constructed in lieu of the traditional Cinco Ranch brick walls. Are you kidding me? Fence-crete? Worse yet, have you seen the street layout? It's reminescent of the dark time when Newland was trying to keep Cinco from competing too much with Seven Meadows (also owned by Newland).
For the uneducated, Seven Meadows was at a much higher price point than Cinco back in the mid 2000's. In order to keep Seven Meadows at a higher price point, Newland instituted some more restrictive (read: expensive) building guidelines in Seven Meadows on larger lots (typically 70's & 80's, and few 65's. By contrast, Cinco West was putting out smaller lots (predominately 50's and 60's) and on much less imaginative street patterns (efficient land planning begets more lots at a cheaper price).
This should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone paying attention. The current man in charge of development at Newland is a former General Homes, KB Home, and Pulte Homes land development professional. It's no wonder that corners are starting to be cut.
So, to sum up the development issue, it's quite simple. Inferior quality community walls are being constructed, the landplan is uber-efficient (cramming as many lots as humanly possible into as small a space as possible), and the lot sizes themselves are smaller. Corner cutting is in full effect.
Custom Homes
Cinco Ranch has had a custom home program since day one. Of course, these homes don't sell as quickly as production homes, but they certainly help with the overall image and value of the community. Sections like South Lake Village, Hollinger's Island, Bayou Oaks, Bayou Pines, Bayou Woods, and the present Reserve at Spring Lake have been as much a part of Cinco Ranch as the Beach Club and Water Park(s). Unfortunately, that will no longer be the case. There are no more custom sections being developed. None.
Once the final 15-20 lots are built out in Reserve at Spring Lake, there will be no other custom lots available in the community. (Unless you want to count the "semi-custom" production work that Partners in Building and even Taylor Morrison construct.)
It makes perfect sense! Why build custom homes when you can cram in as many production lots as possible. Don't agree with me? Well, what other conclusion can be drawn?
Cheapening
Again, Cinco Ranch is not, and never will be a cheap community. No matter how hard the developer tries to cheapen it on his way out the door, Cinco Ranch will always be seen as one of the premier residential developments in the Houston area...
...wait a minute, maybe I am on to something. If your reputation is so strong that a few missteps at the end couldn't possibly tarnish it, then why not go cheap? Maximize your profit on the way out the door, and then move on to the next project, right? Oh brother, how did I not see this coming? This was not supposed to be the conclusion to my post, but the cold, hard facts of the situation has slapped me back into reality. You see with Newland, it's not about making a great community, it's about making as much money as possible...
Don't get me wrong, I am a card-carrying capitalist and Republican, but it kills me to see what is happening to Cinco Ranch. The community deserves a better fate. We can only hope that this new found cheapening doesn't become a hallmark of Newland's communities in Houston going forward...
Until Next Time,
Houston Home Boy
