Trends: What a Site!

They’ll pass on master-planned communities with deed restrictions, thank you. They want what they want, how they want it and where they want it.

Most national builders offer an assortment of well-tested floorplans in carefully designed subdivisions with few opportunities for customization. And the majority don’t offer on-your-lot options.

There are, however, a growing number of smaller, independent builders who relish the prospect of On Your Lot (OYL) projects and welcome the opportunity to create custom homes.

Pilot Program
David Weekley Homes recently unveiled a pilot program for OYL building in South Tampa. The company has successfully offered similar programs in other states and officials have been pleasantly surprised at the response in the Tampa Bay area.

Therefore, Weekley is moving forward with plans to expand its OYL effort into Hillsborough and Pinellas counties in the months ahead.

“Building on individual lots is much different than building in a community,” explains Project Manager Randy Dodson. “The first issue has already been solved and that’s the location of the home. The client comes into the process having already settled on their perfect location.”

Weekley takes it from there, testing the soil, determining boundaries and investigating potential restrictions from counties or cities. “There is a lot more involved than the average person might expect,” Dodson adds.

The majority of Weekley’s customers own their property but haven’t selected a floorplan. The company has an inventory of floorplans from which to choose as well as some pre-selected home and lot packages for those looking to move in right away.

For those wishing to customize their homes, an in-house design team is available to help alter existing floorplans. The company also has a 6,000-square-foot design center where customers can choose finishes, cabinetry, flooring and much more.

According to Dodson, the OYL process can take longer than traditional new-home construction, depending upon the amount of site preparation required. The company’s average start-to-finish timeframe is 12 months, he says.

“Each project is unique. Our biggest challenge is not knowing what awaits us on any given property,” notes Dodson. “There’s a lot of upfront work that must happen before construction even begins.”

Urban Luxury OYL
The South Tampa area is considered highly desirable, with its charming Craftsman bungalows, Mediterranean villas and spectacular Bay views. That’s why homes in this area tend to come with a hefty price tag and buildable lots are in short supply.

Dolphin Homes has carved out a niche for itself as an urban infill builder of luxurious custom homes in South Tampa. The company scouts potential properties—preferably those with water views or access—demolish existing structures as necessary and offer the land to clients looking to build dream homes.

Building luxury homes within an urban setting is something of an art form, according to Cliff Fernandez, president of Dolphin Homes. “We think of the empty lot as a canvas,” Fernandez says. “Land is precious, so it’s important to make the most of every inch. We have a team of designers who work with clients to maximize the living space of each site. We plan out every detail of the home—from the traffic flow to maximizing the views from every room.”

Projects by Dolphin Homes range in price from $1.5 million to $6 million. Many feature Mediterranean-style architecture but each is a custom design. “We don’t duplicate homes—ever,” Fernandez says.

Finding appropriate homesites is an ongoing challenge for OYL builders. During the real-estate boom several years ago, the price of land in South Tampa skyrocketed, making it difficult to secure property and to find subcontractors and building supplies.

Now that the market has cooled, however, Dolphin Homes is finding that doing business is a little easier.

“The land in this neighborhood tends to hold its value, so it continues to be a good investment,” says Fernandez. “Clients building in a certain price range are still going to build, despite the market. But now it is easier for us to control the timing and the quality of the finished product.”

Budget-Savvy Buyers
A big budget is not a prerequisite to building on a private lot. New Millennial Homes specializes in working with first-time customers who want to build on their own property.

“Most of our customers fall into one of two categories,” says Al Bennati, director of sales and marketing. “Some own acreage in a rural setting. Maybe they have a trailer and they want to build a home. Others own an older home that is in serious disrepair and they want to tear it down and put up something new.”

In either case, New Millennial’s customers say that location is the top priority, Bennati adds. “They’re firmly entrenched in their neighborhoods and want to be close to family and schools,” he notes. “They just need someone to help them build the right home.”

New Millennial often builds new homes in older neighborhoods and takes pains to ensure that their projects blend comfortably with the surrounding homes.

The company specializes in Craftsman-style elevations and offers a variety of affordable floorplans that can be customized to some degree. An entry level home in an urban setting with 950 to 1,200 square feet starts at $110,000. A larger home of about 2,000 square feet in a rural neighborhood ranges from $200,000 to $250,000.

“Our customers tend to be those who are left behind by the national builders,” says Bennati. “Our biggest challenge right now is helping them get qualified for financing. We have programs in the place to help them improve their credit ratings and increase savings.”

Custom Country Living
With plenty of room to spread out, large rural tracts allow builders to get creative. But such locations come with their own set of problems.

When talking with potential OYL builders, property owners should be aware of what’s included in their bids—especially when it comes to site preparation and utilities.

Sonny Burchett has been in the OYL business long enough to know that appearances can be deceiving. “The cost of getting the lot ready to build can be substantial,” he notes. “If it’s heavily wooded, it may need to be cleared. It may need to be filled and graded. You have to consider if utilities are in place. Get all of these details up front so you don’t have an unpleasant surprise down the road.”

As a new-home OYL consultant with Lyons Heritage Tampa and Lyons Heritage Pasco, Burchett often works away from the urban core, in areas such as Brooksville, Spring Hill and Dade City.
From a builder’s perspective, he says, there are definite challenges in building on privately owned lots in remote locations, including scheduling and drive time.

But from the homeowner’s side, one of the benefits of building in the country is getting more land and a bigger home for the money without fees from homeowners associations and community development districts.

“Our customers are pioneers,” says Burchett. “They enjoy the rural lifestyle and they like their privacy, that’s for sure.”

Value-Added OYL
When partners Neil Robinson and Bryan Thomas opened Tamlin Homes four years ago, they knew they didn’t want to build in subdivisions.

Today the company is an OYL builder working in South Tampa and more far-flung communities ranging from North Port to Wesley Chapel. In the process they’ve become experts at finding single buildable lots.

“We’re both very familiar with the area,” says Robinson. “We have a team of associates and Realtors that work with us.”

Tamlin Homes is not a high-volume producer; the company averages 10 homes a year and includes as standard many features that are considered upgrades by other builders.

With prices ranging from $100,000 to $500,000 not including lot, Tamlin offers customers 150 floorplans from which to choose. The company will also work with designers to create custom homes.

Despite a slow national housing market, business is looking up. According to Robinson, there are more people looking to build these days and asking questions about OYL opportunities.

And Robinson plans to be ready for them by continuing to search for—and make offers on—those elusive OYL lots. “It’s all about scouting out the neighborhoods and literally driving the streets looking for the best properties to build on,” he says.