1 Story "Green Built" Traditional Housing for Active Adults

Front Porch Homes & the Cotton Crossing Development in Woodway are introducing a new series of house plans geared to the Empty Nester & Retiree crowd. The houses will feature many of the standard "Green" practices, including spray foam insulation, tankless waterheaters, and Low E vinyl windows. All of the houses will be designed based on traditional architectural designs, such as Bungalow, Colonial, Farm House, French Country, Shingle and many others.

"We had such a positive response to the houses that we were building in Phase I at Cotton Crossing, however, the number one comment we recieved was 'we love your concept and building product, but we want it in a one story, that is energy efficient and doesn't sacrifice the curb appeal of the house." Well, we listened, and that is what we have now begun to offer. Front Porch Homes has already begun the design of a single story custom in Phase II that will be located on a corner lot that backs up to the new "Charleston Park".

We have numerous single story plans to choose from. Typically, we use our floor plan library as a starting point. We will review hundreds of plans and narrow it down to a few plans that most agree with the customers style and taste. From there we will typically, custom draw a new plan that incorporates all of their wants and needs, all the while maintaining their unique style.

Other market research that we found useful was that the Empty Nester, Active Adult, Retired crowd are all interested in cost savings & energy efficiency, but are not very knowledgeable about "Green Building". As it turns out, the single best way to gain the cost savings in your energy bills in a new house is basically through some of the more popular "Green" practices. These would include the spray foam insulation and tankless water heaters. One story houses in Cotton Crossing, built by Front Porch Homes will start in the 190's and range into the mid to upper 200's. Front Porch Homes will also build on an individuals lot on a case by case basis and depending on the price of the lot, the total cost can actually go down quite a bit.

For more information you can reference the websites below or Contact Mark at 254-495-1241

http://www.cottoncrossingtx.com/

New Waco Houses Emphasize Design & Architecture

Houses built by Front Porch Homes feature traditional architectural styles, unique color combinations, and creative floor plans and layouts. Front Porch Homes is an annual participant in the HOTBA Parade of Homes and is building in the Cotton Crossing & Rancho Lorena master planned communites to name a few. They will also build on customers individual lots as well.

Rancho Lorena Nears Completion of First Phase

The Rancho Lorena subdivision is nearing completion. Almost 35% of the lots have been pre-sold to builders and individual homebuyers. The roads are being prepared for base and asphalt as we speak. Rancho Lorena is Lorena's premiere subdivision offering acreage lots from 1.4 to 4 acres. It is situated in the perfect location development wise. The property is in the Lorena School District, it has Spring Valley Water, and is in the City of Waco ETJ, so residents will basically have no city taxes until it is annexed. Lorena has been a very desirable school district for over 20 years, however, families wanting to relocate there have only had a few options as to where the could move. Now with the great access to Spring Valley Rd. and Old Lorena Rd., Rancho Lorena is poised to be best place to live in the Lorena area.

Country Estate Living at its best. Rancho Lorena will allow you to have an animal such as a horse. You can build a barn or out-building as long as it matches the construction of the house. There is a 2,000 sq/ft minimum on houses. All buyers will submit there plans to the Architectural Control Committee for review and approval.

Lots are very affordably priced and are going quickly. A model home will be built sometime in 2008. For more information, you can go to http://www.rancholorena.com/ or for contact information.

Mark P. Felton

Keller Williams Realty 254-495-1241 .

fronteradevelopment@gmail.com

Mark Felton offers buyers looking for houses in Waco a full suite of professional services. As a licensed realtor and co-owner of Keller Williams Waco, he can assist you with any of your real estate needs. Mark also is a Custom Home Builder and Developer. His home building company is Front Porch Homes which builds in and around the Waco area. And his development company is Frontera Development, which is a full service real estate development firm based in Waco, Texas. The primary focus is residential, master planned communities that emphasize the values of New Urbanism and Traditional Neighborhood Development.

Frontera Development is also the developer of the Cotton Crossing subdivision in Woodway as well as Lost Oaks in Bosqueville.

New Urbanism in Waco & Texas

The following article was recently published in the Waco Tribune Herald and is written by the nationally renowned economist, Ray Perryman, whose Perryman Group is based in Waco. He briefly cites how New Urbanism is sprouting up in Waco and all over the State of Texas.


Ray Perryman: 'New urbanism' changing cities' faces

Sunday, March 16, 2008
Ongoing projects relating to “new urbanism” in Austin have resulted in that city being selected as the host for the 16th annual Congress for New Urbanism scheduled next month.
The assembly will focus on methods for enabling communities to expand living and business opportunities in a responsible manner.
Waco will be paying attention as well.
Austin, with a variety of endeavors ranging from a new rail system to downtown high-rise residences, is typical of cities across the country that are facing population growth, employment expansion, and the resulting transportation and congestion issues.
New urbanism, which began a few years ago, is a movement that focuses on developing more compact communities, somewhat similar to small European neighborhoods. In these areas, pedestrian traffic is often preferred to automobile travel.
New urbanism also includes endeavors to provide diverse, vibrant and pedestrian-friendly living and work environments. In almost all cases, along with the construction of specialized residences, generous space is allocated for multi-use purposes, including retail operations.
New urbanist projects
Currently, more than 4,000 new urbanist projects are planned or under construction across the U.S.
The transformation of the Waco Square into a mixed-used, high-density development is one such effort.
Until fairly recently, new urbanism had not attracted a lot of attention in the Lone Star State, even though it has been popular in other states for quite some time.
However, last year, the demand for luxury living led to construction of high-rise apartments and condominiums in many of Texas’ major metros.
Nearly $400 million was authorized for these kinds of facilities in Dallas, Austin and San Antonio. Commercial, public and residential facilities recently completed or planned in Houston will likely far eclipse that amount.
These and other cities are also considering further needs and opportunities for the future. Included are those designed to rebuild neighborhoods to stave off decay, diminish crime and provide economically attractive living quarters.
Recent housing problems in Florida, California and elsewhere have tended to slow urbanism activities in those areas. As a result, greater interest and investment are being directed to the Third Coast, the name by which the Texas Gulf Coast area is sometimes called, because beach-front property is still available at more reasonable costs compared to the other coasts.
This wave of new urbanism spans oceanfront sites from Galveston to South Padre Island. The total amount of expenditures projected is upwards of $3 billion over the short term. Many of these communities are expected to attract those from out-of-state as well as individuals and families currently residing in Texas.
Some of the Texas Gulf Coast projects feature complete new communities, or villages, while others are directed more toward improving historic areas and expanding multi-use opportunities.
The majority of housing being provided in the coastal environment is single-family dwellings, but high-rise and mid-rise condominiums are also included.
In these areas, caution is being taken to make certain that developments are controlled and that they include retail and restaurants, which will significantly enlarge the tax base for these areas.
As baby boomers begin to search for investments and select retirement homes, the Texas Gulf Coast is receiving closer examination. Foreign investors are also considering the coastal regions of the state.
Although the housing crisis and credit crunch have gripped much of the U.S., developments in various Texas metros, plus those in open spaces that define the state’s coast, are defying the trend and bringing a wave of optimism for new economic opportunities in the future.
Economist Ray Perryman is CEO of the Perryman Group. He also serves as distinguished professor of economic theory and method at the International Institute for Advanced Studies.

http://www.cottoncrossing.net/
http://www.rancholorena.com/
http://www.perrymangroup.com/index.html

Waco New House Journal "Cookie Cutters No More!"

"Cookie Cutters" is a slang housing term refering to new home construction that all looks the same or as the phrase goes: cut out like a cookie. Over and over again, across the country, builders are building the same house usually right next to each other in a single row going right down the same street. I will concede that most of this process evolved out of the need for cost efficiency and the builders trying to maintain affordable houseing, but enough is enough.

At any given price point, and any given set of building materials, character, detail, functional design and use of color can affect the look of a house and cause one to look much better than the other with everything else being the same.

That being said, the mission of Front Porch Homes and many other builders across the country is to build new construction, up to code, that is energy efficient, has character and curb appeal, and is an asset to the neighborhood for years to come.

http://www.200prestwick-cottoncrossing.com/
http://www.300heatherrun-cottoncrossing.com/
http://www.cottoncrossing.net/
http://www.rancholorena.com/