Spec builders: Still filling a need for new homes
This home at 2846 Grand Falls Drive was built as a spec home by Miller, Marais LLC. The home has four bedrooms and three full baths. It’s listed by Steve Schiff with Coldwell Banker Homeowners Realty for $289,000.
This home at 2846 Grand Falls Drive was built as a spec home by Miller, Marais LLC. The home has four bedrooms and three full baths. It’s listed by Steve Schiff with Coldwell Banker Homeowners Realty for $289,000.
Nate Porter with Porter Homes has started three homes on Wemberly Drive in Fruita as spec homes, with prices ranging from $195,000 to $235,000 for the Energy Star homes. Two have become pre-solds and one is still available.
Nate Porter with Porter Homes has started three homes on Wemberly Drive in Fruita as spec homes, with prices ranging from $195,000 to $235,000 for the Energy Star homes. Two have become pre-solds and one is still available.
Although this home is not a spec and isn’t available for sale, it’s indicative of the type of home Mike Zagrzebski with Zag Built likes to build. He’s planning on starting two more spec homes at 708 and 710 Roundup Drive, just down the street from this Zag home currently under construction.
Although this home is not a spec and isn’t available for sale, it’s indicative of the type of home Mike Zagrzebski with Zag Built likes to build. He’s planning on starting two more spec homes at 708 and 710 Roundup Drive, just down the street from this Zag home currently under construction.
Dennis Phillips with Liberty Homes continues to build spec homes at Red Rocks subdivision because he continues to sell the Energy Star homes.
Dennis Phillips with Liberty Homes continues to build spec homes at Red Rocks subdivision because he continues to sell the Energy Star homes.
Darren Davidson continues to build spec homes like this one in Garfield Estates off 26 1/2 Road north of H Road because they continue to sell. This home is listed with Steve Voytilla for $324,900.
Darren Davidson continues to build spec homes like this one in Garfield Estates off 26 1/2 Road north of H Road because they continue to sell. This home is listed with Steve Voytilla for $324,900.
A few years ago, during the national housing boom and the corresponding natural gas drilling frenzy, new houses popped up locally more frequently than dandelions in summer.
From Orchard Mesa to Fruita, builders were selling spec homes as fast as they could build them.
Then natural gas prices dropped, lenders quit lending and the demand for new housing disappeared. Subdivisions were scrapped, plans were put on hold and some builders got out of the business. Those who remained in business built pre-sold homes or built one or two homes at a time when they could get financing.
Some builders made an effort to up their game and offer buyers something they couldn’t find in an existing home.
“We differentiate from a foreclosure by offering a highly energy efficient home,” said Dennis Phillips whose company, Liberty Homes, is building new spec homes at Red Rocks subdivision in Fruita.
“I walk into a non-Energy Star home and think, if I have to go back to that, I’d get out of the business. I feel that strongly about it,” Phillips said.
Since the beginning of winter, Phillips has started seven spec homes and is now down to one. Buyers usually sign contracts before the home is finished. Since he sold his model home in the subdivision, he’ll be starting a new model home soon.
“We’ve had fewer warranty items since we’ve been doing Energy Star and fewer complaints,” Phillips said. “We have happier buyers.”
Nate Porter is another builder who has enjoyed success building Energy Star spec homes in Fruita in the last few years. He built 10 homes in the last two years that started out as spec homes but became pre-solds before the homes were finished.
“Buyers are getting good quality for the price,” said Porter, who acknowledged that builders are competing against less expensive foreclosures. “I think the energy efficiency is a factor, but it’s also kind of nice to live in a home that no one else has ever lived in — some people just want a new home.”
Mike Zagrzebski with Zag Built homes has built two spec homes in the last two years, and has started, designed or built six custom homes in that time frame. His spec homes sold before they were finished. He’s planning to start two more specs on Roundup Drive in Independence Ranch in the Redlands.
“We’re doing a lot more pre-planning on the engineering side of it,” said Zagrzebski, who has also embraced Energy Star. “It’s basically a higher standard.”
Zag’s spec homes have sold for about $500,000, which is a pretty hefty price for a spec home in today’s market.
“We have to be very savvy on the finishes and keep them upper-end,” he said. No two Zag Built homes are alike, and each one has custom features that are unique to that home and that lot. Competing against foreclosures hasn’t been a huge issue. Builders market their building methods, the value of Energy Star and other custom features.
“It’s like seeing a car off the showroom compared to a used rental car,” Zagrezebski said.
Other builders agree that there are buyers who want new homes. As long as the demand is there, the builders will continue to build new homes.
Darren Davidson with Davidson Homes has built 10 homes in Garfield Estates off 26 1/2 Road north of H Road in Grand Junction in the last four years. Each one started as a spec home. There are currently three available for sale.
Steve Voytilla with Hill and Homes Real Estate, the listing agent for the properties in Garfield Estates, says the location and the value have continued to attracted buyers.
“Homes are $100,000 cheaper than they were three years ago,” Voytilla said.
Davidson Homes is planning to start three more spec homes in a former Village Homes subdivision near 25 1/2 and F Roads.
“There’s a demand for new homes,” Voytilla said. “Bank-owned homes can’t compete.”
Location is what drove Andrew Marais with Miller, Marais, LLC to buy the lone remaining lot in Grand Falls subdivision and build a spec home. The neighborhood is off 28 1/4 Road south of Patterson Road, and the super-sized lot had nice views and close-in convenience. The 2,000-square-foot home is listed for $289,000. When asked why his home stood out, Marais didn’t hesitate.
“The price, the location and the finishes,” he said. Finishes include hardwood floors, tile, a large walk-in shower in the master with two showerheads and an open, spacious floor plan. The second-story balcony off the master suite gives buyers views of Grand Mesa, the neighborhood and the entire Grand Valley. The home was designed specifically for the lot and makes the most of it.
Although bank-owned properties might be like finding a diamond in the rough, they may take too much time, work and money to be brought to a gem-like condition. Some buyers have been there, done that with earlier homes and are ready to treat themselves to a new home. Other buyers know their own limitations and don’t even want to try remodeling.
The bottom line is that some buyers want new homes. So spec builders continue to build great spec homes.
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