A 2,200-acre, family-owned property north of Houston in Montgomery County, Texas, is set for as many as 4,000 homes over the next two decades.
Randall family members have owned the land for nearly 100 years, fishing, hunting and working the farm, family spokesperson Will Randall said. However, the area along State Highway 105 has experienced rapid growth over the past five years.
"It's tough to compete with the traffic out there," Randall told Homes.com.
The Randalls are working with Chad Rochester, founder of Rochester Development, on initial plans that call for 1,000 homes on the southern portion of the property accessible from FM 2854 and adjacent to two schools. The project will keep the name the Randalls use for the site: Homeplace.
Rochester expects to start developing the land early next year and sell the first batch of lots to homebuilders in early 2027. Prices will be set closer to the start of home construction, but they likely will range from the $300,000s to about $1 million, according to Rochester.
Homeplace will feature biking and hiking trails and a layout that encourages social interaction, the development team said.
Development will be 'slow and steady'
The family spoke to a handful of developers in the region before agreeing to work with Rochester, Randall said.
"We felt Chad, in particular, fit with our family and our goals of taking it slow and steady," Randall said. "We want to be conservative and thoughtful."
While home prices in the Houston metropolitan area and across Texas have leveled off recently, this is just one housing cycle of many that will occur in the coming years, according to Randall and Rochester. They are bullish on Montgomery's long-term potential.
In nearby Fort Bend County, Texas, the Signorelli Co. has started sales at a development expected to bring 10,000 homes to the area over the next two decades.
"Houston is a job-growth machine," Rochester said in an interview.
Montgomery County, about 40 miles outside Houston, is home to such fast-growing cities as Magnolia, Willis and Conroe. Despite the growth, area remains rural and affordable, according to Itziar Aguirre, senior director of market analytics for Homes.com.
"Its country lifestyle is appealing to many, offering a serene, high quality of life even if it is a good distance from downtown Houston," she said.