PulteGroup, a large homebuilder preparing for a growth spurt next year despite elevated mortgage rates, has started work on a 55-and-over development of some 700 houses near Savannah, Georgia.
The Atlanta-based company, through its Del Webb brand, said it expects to open a sales center with six model homes in spring 2025 at Heartwood in the city of Richmond Hill, Georgia. Prices start in the $400,000s.
The 310-acre development, less than a mile from Interstate 95 on Belfast Keller Road along the Jericho River, will have resort-style amenities, according to the company.
PulteGroup, the nation's third-largest builder based on 2023 sales, is positioned to grow 5% to 10% in 2025, President and CEO Ryan Marshall told investors during a recent conference call. He added that the company stands to benefit from an industry-wide housing shortage caused by years of building fewer homes than needed to meet demand.
Pulte and other publicly held builders are buoyed by prospects of increased sales following Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's recent comments that the central bank intends to cut interest rates this month. Mortgage rates of about 7% have softened demand and forced builders to offer incentives, including mortgage rate buy-downs. In a buy-down, a builder takes profit from sales to lower the interest rate for the buyer.
"To the degree that the Fed actually cuts interest rates in the coming months, I think that will provide a powerful tailwind both financially and psychologically as we enter 2025," Marshall said.
At Heartwood, a 9,000-square-foot clubhouse will have a café and catering kitchen, fitness studio, indoor pool and meeting and event space, PulteGroup said. Other amenities include an outdoor pool with cabanas and sundeck, eight pickleball courts and two tennis courts. A full-time lifestyle director will organize events, clubs and classes.
"Del Webb Heartwood will bring an active adult experience unlike any other in coastal Georgia,” Matt Raines, president of PulteGroup’s Coastal Carolina division, said in a statement.
Pulte builds homes for first-time, move-up and 55-and-over buyers. In addition to Del Webb, Pulte builds under the Pulte Homes, Centex, DiVosta, American West and John Wieland Homes and Neighborhoods brands.