Posts Tagged ‘crozet’

I recently wrote a post on Belvedere and why I thought it’s time had arrived. There is another master planned community in the Charlottesville area getting a lot of attention as well. Old Trail Village is a much larger venue, but experiencing success for a lot of the same reasons as Belvedere. There was a recent article written by Charlottesville Tomorrow, picked up by The Daily Progress, on Old Trail’s 2010 success. Read it here.

Old Trail is a little further along in terms of infrastructure and amenity completion, but very young in the grand scheme of what this development will become. The article above has caused a lot of conversations about Old Trail in the past week, so I thought I would break down the sales a little more.

The breakdown below will be of the 61 sales as reported to the CAAR MLS in 2010. Beights Development is reporting 70 sales and closings and I have no reason to doubt that number. The 61 sales represents sales reported to the MLS by contract date. When following new construction stats on an annual basis, you have to choose to look at closed sales or contract dates since there is usually a 4-6 month lag for construction. I choose to look by contract date since that is more of a leading indicator. Custom sales that are not reported to the MLS continue to occur. These sales are usually on the higher end. That is, $500k+. I can identify 4 under construction now just driving through the community.  Old Trail is a place where lower volume, custom home builders are still finding success, since a homeowner can buy a lot and then choose a builder.

The resale market. 13 of the 61 sales were not new construction. Of these sales 2 were short sales and 4 were foreclosures. That’s a relatively large percentage of the non-new construction sales as distressed. I think there are two reasons. Old Trail had a lot of sales at the top of the market and there aren’t many homes for sale here in general.  For example, as of today, there are just 5 resale listings under $1 million dollars.

The new home market. 48 sales. 13 attached and 35 detached. 

Craig Builders is responsible for the townhome sales. 3 story townhomes with 2 car garages starting at $239,900.

Of the 35 detached sales, 5 were under $300k, 11 were in the $300′s, 10 in the $400′s, and the remainder over $500k. The builders included Piedmont Realty and Construction, Craig Builders, Stonehaus Residential, Peak Builders, Eagle Construction, and Southern Development Homes.

This is what I think is key for Old Trail. A wide variety of offerings across a broad price range. Not many communities have pulled this off. If you are interested in the Charlottesville area new home market or Old Trail specifically, I’m here to help you understand your options.  I’ve recently become an Old Trail resident and happy to discuss my personal experience.

After all of the construction is finished, the process culminates with a walk through with the builder to see the home in its finished form, identify any items that need to be completed, and learn about the home and how it operates.  Its hard to describe the feeling one gets when you get to see how all of the decision making and selections come together for the final result. A home. A home that has never been lived in by anyone else and fits your tastes and the way you live. I’m lucky to get to watch people experience this as often as I do. Piedmont Realty and Construction and the homeowner created something very special. Enjoy.

The home is done and the walk through is complete. The new homeowners will move in later this week. Instead of walking through this home and trying to capture it all on video, I’ve decided to post a virtual tour with some quality photography. That happens this week. So if you have been watching this home get built week by week, the finished product will be available to see later this week. In the meantime, I put together a series of clips through out construction, concluding with a walk around the exterior of the property.  From ground breaking, Piedmont Realty and Construction build this home in 12 weeks.

It’s so beautiful out today, I took a walk down West End Drive, Old Trail in Crozet, Virginia. Take a look.  If you’d like to see a walk through of 8161 West End Drive (The Riverton), you can do so here.

I’m often asked how long the new home construction process will take, and when I tell people 120 days from contract, many are surprised.  Seeing the progress made on this home in just 1o weeks,  you can start to understand there’s a process and level of supervision that yields a shorter process without sacrificing quality. (Not too mention its basically a custom home as well.) In this video you’ll see light fixtures, granite, appliances, hardwood flooring, exterior steps, and a few other items. This home is significantly complete.  Check back for a closer look at the kitchen with Amy Hart from Reico.

This video documents the progress of Week 9 of construction.  It marks a very important stage of the process. Cosmetic finishes start to appear and the homeowner gets to the see their selections start to give the home its feel.  In this video, cabinets arrive, ceramic tile is installed, custom built ins and shelving are installed, and mechanical finals begin.

The pantry in this home is amazing and is an example of how this process can create spaces that fit they way people live.  Its a pretty good feeiling to move into a home that is exactly what you want and need for your lifestyle. Its very rewarding and a result of the collaborative process created by Piedmont Realty and Construction.

Just a quick update for Week 7.  Sheetrock process begins and exterior stonework continues. Note the detail work on the porches and the stone work. These are areas where Piedmont separates themselves from their competition.

Here’s a look after Week 4 of construction.  Framing takes a big step forward, porches take form, shingles and windows show  up, and the we take our first look inside the home.

The video below captures what occurred in the third week of construction. The slab was poured, the framing package was delivered, and the carpenters framed for three days. Lots of progress. Check it out.

The video below captures the progress made in Week 2 of construction. I was joined by Scott Carlson of Piedmont Realty of Construction to talk particulars regarding drainage, radon mitigation, waterproofing, and county inspections.