Why Is Telfair So Expensive

[mrfootball]

[chuckie]

You say that, but my wife and I drove through and looked at homes in Telfair Sunday. I can tell you that there seems to be no shortage of buyers just based on the number of homes under construction.

Overpriced is all relative. Being right off 59 is priceless. I bought one of the overpriced homes and my morning drive to work at the BW8 and Westeimer takes about 20 minutes. Driving to First Colony Mall takes about 5 minutes.

From previous experience, it takes 15 minutes alone to get to 59 from some of the more "affordable" neighborhoods...

[westguy76]

thanks for the photoes MrFootball. I like the one looking across the pond to the bridge.

Looks like a nice place. Last time I drove that was it was open fields with a couple of bridges they had built.

[TheNiche]

It is another phase of Telfair

Are you sure? I don't think thats accurate.

[Jeebus]

Are you sure? I don't think thats accurate.

I believe the undeveloped section inside Unversity Drive, south of US59 is the final section of Tel-Fair. I think the University owns most of the land on the outside of University Drive for future expansion.

[Subdude]

Can we merge this with the original Telfair article?

Done

[eduag]

That section has a sign "future Telfair development"

Right across the street from UH sugar land

[sifuwong]

You say that, but my wife and I drove through and looked at homes in Telfair Sunday. I can tell you that there seems to be no shortage of buyers just based on the number of homes under construction.

Some builders build homes before buyers even take a look. That has happened in the Canyon Gate and Riverpark area . I remember seeing people, including myself, look at inventory homes in this area. Granted this was about 2 yrs ago, but i suspect many builders will go ahead and build anyway with confidence it will sell. Eventually, it will all sell, but not so sure with the market now if it will sell that quick.

[sifuwong]

They are nearly finished with the highway out until just before the Brazos River (i.e. just past University exit).

Currently the road reduces to two lanes at Highway 6; it looks like the lane reduction will now occur about 2 miles further down. This should allow the Telfair and New Territory people to get off the freeway without much of a problem. It will definitely reduce evening commutes.

But you are correct in that the rest of the construction job (i.e. from University to Grand Parkway) is still a year away from completion. The construction of the 10-lane bridge over the Brazos River will take forever to complete.

Somehow i don't think the traffic will be much better even when construction is finished because of Telfair. Once Telfair plan closes out, i think traffic will be just as bad.

[eduag]

Does any one have a clue when the Hwy 6 / Hwy 90 overpass will be finished??

[ProHouston]

Does any one have a clue when the Hwy 6 / Hwy 90 overpass will be finished??

No, but you'd get more visibility into your question if you made it its own topic.

[icon7]

Telfair Phase 2 is open...

Question:

The Agent for one of the builders told me that the area across from the new section is marked as mix use commercial. What does that mean? I asked him if there was a possibility that new apartments would be built there, and he just looked at me and said that all he knew was that it was labeled mix use.

Anyone know for sure? My wife really likes one of the plans in Telfair and loves the fact that Telfair is close to the mall, first colony, etc, etc, etc...

I do not want to buy a new home...and find out in 2 years that some apartments will be built a BLOCK down from us.

one more question:

Anyone here that live in Telfair...Can you give me dimension of the 80 Foot section? is it 80 x 100, 80 x 120, 80 x 150?

Thank you.

[natrius]

I do not want to buy a new home...and find out in 2 years that some apartments will be built a black down from us.

Freudian slip?

[ProHouston]

Freudian slip?

Way to make a first impression on HAIF... If you're M.O. is to create drama where there is none, please don't stay long.

[icon7]

Freudian slip?

It was a typo...geeeeez i fixed it.

[icon7]

Btw,

I went to Telfair and stopped in to see some of the custom homes. I was shocked that almost half the lots for the custom homes are already sold. The agent told me most of the homes are going to be around 850K-$1M of the ones that were already sold! Yikes. Also the plan for the commercial mixed use maybe similar to Sugar Land town center with shops on the first floor and luxury apartments on the floors above.

[aapchad]

Just to update folks with a view from a current resident, all of the remaining lots in our section area are sold (60 foot lots, $275-475k), with the exception of one used by a builder for hits construction office. Everything else is sold. There are some flippers who thought stupidly that you could flip a house in a new neighborhood and so there are new homes for sale that have never been lived in. The original buyers were from California and NY, at least of the three that I tried to make a profit only to have to drop their prices back down to what they paid. There is one builder who does have most of his lots in a neighboring section. He was way over priced and his staff were rude and from LA and looked down on people who didn't think buying $50k of upgrades was a good idea.

Now the next large section of "affordable" homes is open and it appears to be selling moderately well. There is a custom section with just crazy prices but i guess if you can afford a 1M dollar home, you probably aren't too price sensitive.

What does surprise me is that many of the houses have small backyards. Buyers have selected homes that eat up much of the lot, giving some homes a townhouse feel in terms of green space. Seems odd to me to do that in the suburbs, but to each his own.

Overall, we like the hood so far, its quiet, our elementary school is a five minute walk and construction seems to be moving to the new areas. There are no plans for apartments, per the developer, but there will be a center section of the neighborhood that will have businesses below, townhouses above in a setting like that of Sugar Land town center.

[sifuwong]

Just to update folks with a view from a current resident, all of the remaining lots in our section area are sold (60 foot lots, $275-475k), with the exception of one used by a builder for hits construction office. Everything else is sold. There are some flippers who thought stupidly that you could flip a house in a new neighborhood and so there are new homes for sale that have never been lived in. The original buyers were from California and NY, at least of the three that I tried to make a profit only to have to drop their prices back down to what they paid. There is one builder who does have most of his lots in a neighboring section. He was way over priced and his staff were rude and from LA and looked down on people who didn't think buying $50k of upgrades was a good idea.

Now the next large section of "affordable" homes is open and it appears to be selling moderately well. There is a custom section with just crazy prices but i guess if you can afford a 1M dollar home, you probably aren't too price sensitive.

What does surprise me is that many of the houses have small backyards. Buyers have selected homes that eat up much of the lot, giving some homes a townhouse feel in terms of green space. Seems odd to me to do that in the suburbs, but to each his own.

Overall, we like the hood so far, its quiet, our elementary school is a five minute walk and construction seems to be moving to the new areas. There are no plans for apartments, per the developer, but there will be a center section of the neighborhood that will have businesses below, townhouses above in a setting like that of Sugar Land town center.

Aapchad

Nowdays, you don't get much of a backyard in many subdivisions from alot of builders. Something that i've seen over the past several years. Also, have you noticed that the construction looks like it has slowed down over the past couple months? It doesn't seem like alot of frames are up yet. At least from my view when i am driving on 59s past First Colony.

[aapchad]

Aapchad

Nowdays, you don't get much of a backyard in many subdivisions from alot of builders. Something that i've seen over the past several years. Also, have you noticed that the construction looks like it has slowed down over the past couple months? It doesn't seem like alot of frames are up yet. At least from my view when i am driving on 59s past First Colony.

Yes and no. On the "no" side, Telfair opened the new section on New Territory Blvd. According to David Weekley builders, who have their trailer on the lot next to us, once the new section opens, the builders are obligated to build out the previous section. So I think there has been activity just because of this reason. The big question I see is what will happen with Darling Homes' section which is near empty. This builder had a strategy of pushing expensive upgrades and not including much in their base home. Their designs were more "California" (the words of their agent to me) and while nice, seemed to be more aimed at empty nesters, not families. Their pricing was high and I would have to agree that if people were comparison shopping, this builder probably fared poorly. I don't know anything about their quality, but I assume its in line with other builders. I had heard from friends that their agents weren't particularly enthusiastic. I guess if nothing is selling and you're on commission, its hard to be cheerful.

The big surprise is how many of the mega homes are going up. I continue to be amazed that there are so many people who can or *want* to live in $1M homes. I would assume that a good majority are "spec", if you can call them that, because I think the builders like to have a few to show off. I don't know how many of us need a media room, a library, a study, a wine room and on and on. I guess some people have lots of furniture.

In the new section, I see about five or six frames going up, but I wouldn't call it a frenzy like it was last year. Last year was nuts. The "lifestyle patio homes" section (love that marketing terminology) appear to be going slower than I think most of us expected. I have gone in a few of them and they are nice, but small. I guess that's the point.

The big surprise for us is that the elementary school has a rudimentary playground at best. There is no playset other than some swings. Its my pet peeve that school districts think the PTAs should raise a bunch of money to pay for this. Its not like Texas has low property taxes and it seems more than intentional to not build what I would expect is a fairly common feature of any decent school. There is a baseball diamond, basketball court and soccer field, but that seems to require organized play, like in PE class, rather than just unstructured play. Oh well, I'm showing my age and my dislike of using children to hawk a bunch of crap like candles, cookie dough, popcorn, etc.

[Pumapayam]

Btw,

I went to Telfair and stopped in to see some of the custom homes. I was shocked that almost half the lots for the custom homes are already sold. The agent told me most of the homes are going to be around 850K-$1M of the ones that were already sold! Yikes. Also the plan for the commercial mixed use maybe similar to Sugar Land town center with shops on the first floor and luxury apartments on the floors above.

Even now I still don't see the draw of it. The neighborhood looks very typical, just itching for suburban decay to take over in ten years.

Houston has too many of these, and Telfair, even the name itself, seems boring and plain.

[icon7]

I purchased in the "itching for suburban decay". I already met a few of the neighbors on my street. Nice people with similar backgrounds and professions. My house will be completed by Sept./Oct. I see it becoming another Avalon in 10 years.

Decay usually happens in starter home communities. There aren't any starter homes in Telfair with prices ~$300K to $1.2M+. It is close to everything in Sugar Land.

Even now I still don't see the draw of it. The neighborhood looks very typical, just itching for suburban decay to take over in ten years.

Houston has too many of these, and Telfair, even the name itself, seems boring and plain.

[Jeebus]

Decay usually happens in starter home communities. There aren't any starter homes in Telfair with prices ~$300K to $1.2M+. It is close to everything in Sugar Land.

Key word is usually. Location comes in to play as well as average neighborhood home price and neighborhood layout when helping to determine which neighborhoods will ultimately be the victims of suburban decay.

Because of three factors, I too think Telfair will prosper in 10 years. Much more so than say, Riverstone. The only thing that could hurt Telfair is the impending Sugar Mill community development adjacent to it on US90 at SH6. If it is developed as has been talked about during its initial charrettes, then it will ultimately pull homeowners from Telfair.

[houstonmacbro]

Even now I still don't see the draw of it. The neighborhood looks very typical, just itching for suburban decay to take over in ten years.

Houston has too many of these, and Telfair, even the name itself, seems boring and plain.

Wasnt Telfair a group or something from the 60s-70s ... had that weird synthersizer sound.

[aapchad]

Wasnt Telfair a group or something from the 60s-70s ... had that weird synthersizer sound.

The subdivision is named for one of the public park/squares in Savannah, Georgia. Savannah is considered one of the best designed cities in the world because of its devotion to lots of public green space. There is no mistake why the developer chose the name.

[agent mike]

Telfair is comming along nicely, but is experiencing some slow down like the rest of the market which should be totally expected. For the area you are looking in around Hwy 59 and Hwy 6, that is First Colony. I live in one of the older sections of that area now, its great and convenient. Hard to find a place less than 3 years old. Some homes in Telfair are already turning 2. Look into Greatwood if you dont mind the extra commute. Also Englewood Place, Colony Cove, Colony Meadows, and Edgewater. These are a little older neighborhoods but they are well maintained and hold thier value with consistent and steady appreciation. Personally Ive been looking to buy something in Edgewater on the lake. Water lots are a premium these day. I specialize in First Colony if you have any questions.

[DT5]

Name some of the other places nearby where you saw similar housing for less. Then we could possibly tell you why.

I can tell you from my initial outlook, that the prices seem on par with other developments around.

I am also looking at Telfair as well. Does anyone know what kind of discounts these builders are giving...especially Newmark Homes and Trendmaker??

[icon7]

Best thing is to go visit each section and ask. It also depends on the section too. Because of brisk sales in Telfair, I noticed that several builders raised prices on June 1. Lots of people are relocating to the Sugar Land Area. Fluor, Schelumberger, etc. are hiring a lot of people.

I am also looking at Telfair as well. Does anyone know what kind of discounts these builders are giving...especially Newmark Homes and Trendmaker??

[DT5]

Best thing is to go visit each section and ask. It also depends on the section too. Because of brisk sales in Telfair, I noticed that several builders raised prices on June 1. Lots of people are relocating to the Sugar Land Area. Fluor, Schelumberger, etc. are hiring a lot of people.

I visited all the builders and it seems like every builder was willing to work with me....except for Trendmaker Homes. They pretty much said take it or leave it. Are their homes that good? Trendmaker Homes also has the worse lots of the whole development....power lines galore! I cant believe a city such a Sugarland would allow a development like Telfair to be developed like that. Does anyone have any ideas on what a typical and/or good discount is for Trendmaker?

[kcoole]

I think a great way to get a good deal is to work with a Realtor. We know what builders are willing to do. Also, if you aren't too "hard to work with" I usually pass part of my commission and all of any bonuses I receive. Most people think they can do better on their own, but it typically isn't true. Realtor commissions usually come out of a builders marketing budget and don't affect the price you pay. Find someone you like and who knows the area, and they'll get you a good deal.

[Timnwendy]

I think a great way to get a good deal is to work with a Realtor. We know what builders are willing to do. Also, if you aren't too "hard to work with" I usually pass part of my commission and all of any bonuses I receive. Most people think they can do better on their own, but it typically isn't true. Realtor commissions usually come out of a builders marketing budget and don't affect the price you pay. Find someone you like and who knows the area, and they'll get you a good deal.

I totally disagree. I just finished a build without using a realtor and I negotiated just fine. I got good extras and incentives from the builder. It was nice to be able to make my decisions without running everything through a realtor. It was also nice to avoid the pressure realtors often bring to 'closing the deal'.

You say 'find someone you like and who knows the area', but I say your time is better spent in researching the builders in that area to find out their reputations, their floorplans you like, and what incentives they offer. Learning the incentives is very important since it can be used as a negotiating tool between competing builders.

Sorry to steer this thread into O/T waters, but I felt an alternate viewpoint to kcoole was needed.