From left, Dan Tartabini, Laura Kornaker and Tom Prior with
M/I Homes. The company is building a 125-home development on the site of the former Western Row Golf Course in Mason. Interest from prospective homebuyers is so high the builder expects to hold a lottery on Dec. 7. The Enquirer/ Tony Jones
Demand among homebuyers is so high here that a builder may hold a lottery to decide who gets to purchase homes in a new residential community.
M/I Homes’ new Alverta development on the site of the former Western Row Golf Course in Mason is drawing more interest from homebuyers than there are available lots, company officials say.
- Photos: Alverta development
An artist’s rendering of the new Alverta community near the intersection of Western Row and Mason-Montgomery roads in Mason. Provided
Sales representatives have met with more than 550 prospective buyers since the company began marketing the 125-home development in May, said sales representative Laura Kornaker.
Money magazine ranked the community of about 33,000 residents the nation’s seventh best small town this year. The 52-acre site at the southeast corner of Mason-Montgomery and Western Row roads is one of the last opportunities for new homebuyers, Kornaker said.
“In this price range to build in Mason is impossible anymore,” she said. “If you’re going to build in Mason, you’re going to the outskirts where the location just isn’t as good anymore.”
Homes will start at $320,000 and range from 2,200 to 3,800 square feet. Construction is expected to begin next month with the first homes ready for occupancy by early summer, said Dan Tartabini, the company’s vice president of sales and marketing.
Alverta will feature a mix of two-story and ranch single-family homes as well as smaller “neo-traditional” houses, which feature garages at the rear of the lot accessed by an alleyway.
Development plans include 12 acres of green space, an eight-acre community park, walking trails, tree-lined streets, landscaping and two ponds.
While the homes’ modern open-concept floor plans appeal to buyers, it’s the community’s location in downtown Mason that’s driving interest, Tartabini said.
Within miles of the development are some of Warren County’s top employers – Procter Gamble’s Mason Business Center, Cintas and Luxottica – as well as the Deerfield Towne Center shopping center and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center’s Mason campus.
Add to that a school district consistently rated among the top districts in the state, a top-of-the-line fitness center that rivals private, for-profit facilities, the city’s low crime rate and local attractions such as Kings Island and the Western and Southern Open.
“You always hear the adage in real estate that it’s location, location, location. In this case, that can’t be more true,” Tartabini said. “It doesn’t get much better than downtown Mason.”
Mason real estate agent Sandra Peters credits Mason’s housing market to her title as Ohio’s top-selling real estate agent from 2010 to 2012.
Between July 2012 and June 2013, the Comey Shepherd agent sold 69 homes worth almost $32 million in Mason alone.
“The majority of my business is all Mason,” she said. “It tells you I’m in a good area.”
The market has encouraged builders to construct more new homes in Mason than in the recent past. As of Oct. 31, 73 new building permits had been issued in Mason, more than double the 36 permits issued in 2008, according to city of Mason.
In addition to Alverta, Ryan Homes this week received the green light from Mason city council to proceed with the second phase of development in its Meadows of Willow Brooke community.
Home prices in the 112-home subdivision off Mason-Morrow-Milgrove Road range between $380,000 to $420,000, according to documents filed with the city.
While average home prices in Mason dipped slightly from $318,000 in 2008 to $300,000 in 2013, the number of home sales this year already has outpaced 2008 sales by about 17 percent, according to data provided by MLS of Greater Cincinnati.
With inventory scarce and demand strong among buyers, some homes in Mason have been selling almost as soon as they hit the market. The average Mason home sold in 47 days in 2013, compared to 85 days in 2008.
“I listed a $325,000 house in Mason on a Friday, and we had 21 showings over the weekend,” Peters said. “When you have updated houses or move-in ready homes, they go into multiple offers very quickly.”
Newer homes built within the past 20 years prove most popular with buyers in Mason, she said.
The majority of her clients are young families, who’ve relocated to Mason for employment and don’t have the time or extra funds to renovate fixer-uppers after plunking down a 20 percent down payment.
Mason councilwoman Char Pelfrey has seen the city’s population nearly triple in size since moving to Mason 28 years ago. Despite its growth, Mason has held fast to its small town roots, she said.
“We have amenities other communities would love to have one to two of, and we have an abundance,” she said. “Who wouldn’t want to be a kid and grow up here?”
Tartabini said if interest in Alverta remains high, the company will hold a lottery for the development’s first 28 homes on Dec. 7.
To enter, prospective homebuyers must first qualify for loans, individually meet with the builder, have a home and lot selected and bring a deposit of $3,000.
“We’re not going to do an auction. We don’t want people to camp out in the cold,” he said. “We’re going to put everyone’s name in a big bin, give it a twirl and pull people’s names out. It’s the fairest, most non-partial way to do this.”