Changing real estate market leads local builder to offer “lot shopping” to home buyers
Ted Mason Signature Home Central catalogs all vacant lots in Ada and Canyon counties, allowing buyers to have a Ted Mason home in the site of their choosing
Ever find the exact home you want, but wish you could put it somewhere else?
Ted Mason Signature Homes thinks it’s found the answer. At its new Home Central, the company has mapped the location of every buildable vacant lot in Ada and Canyon counties. If you find a lot you like, there’s a good chance Mason will be able to build you a home there.
“Home Central allows us to bring the combination of location and builder that the buyer most wants,” said Dan Clark, development director for Ted Mason Signature Homes. “We want to give people the ability to customize the location of their home and pick the location that appeals to them most.”
It’s always been common for builders to build in different subdivisions, but Home Central is intended to shift the decision-making process by to customers by allowing them to put the house they want on the lot they want.
Upheaval in the real estate markets is also opening opportunities. While construction costs stay fairly constant between builders, land prices have been falling, making it easier for people to shop for lots.
“More than ever, people have opportunity to choose their lot, because land is negotiable and many of the lots are in a distressed situation,” Clark said.
Home Central consists of three homes next to each other in Ted Mason’s Hightower subdivision. The main office, at 6150 Saguaro Hills Way, is a sales office, staffed between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m., while the two homes next door are models to give people an idea of how Ted Mason homes can look and feel. All the floor plans are on display, along with photos, drawings and pricing information. The floor plans are exclusive to the company, designed by Ted himself.
But the key feature is a 3-foot-by-6-foot map of the valley showing where available lots are located. While the information on the map isn’t proprietary, it is assembled with considerable effort and must be updated regularly. The map includes a list of the characteristics of the lots, including dimensions.
Some developers won’t allow other builders to build on their lots, but Clark thinks there’s a chance the current economy will pressure them to open up, which will add to the attraction of Home Central.
“In this economy, a lot of developers would be happy just to sell a lot and get it out of their inventory, even if they’re not chosen to build on it,” Clark said. “There is a huge oversupply of lots and that opens up opportunities for all builders.”
Clark estimated that as of early July, there were about 4,000 buildable lots in Ada and Canyon counties – enough for at least a couple of years.
“The Ted Mason name and brand is driving the potential for Home Central,” Clark said. “Many people want the quality, reputation and three-year warranty of a Ted Mason home, but they want it in a non-Ted Mason subdivision.”
Related Posts:
Tags: home, Home Central, information, location, office, Ted Mason
