South Nashville draws buyers with short commutes, amenities Written by Bill Lewis For The Tennessean The first Sunday of each month, The Tennessean presents a community profile, exploring real estate markets and living experiences in various communities. Today, we feature South Nashville. For a growing number of couples, single people, families and downsizers, buying a home in South Nashville has become the affordable way to enjoy Brentwood-style amenities without paying Brentwood-style prices. Attracted by affordable home prices and short commutes in any direction, they are turning neighborhoods on the edge of Williamson County into one of the fastest growing areas in Nashville. “The price was right, and we’ve become a little bit spoiled by how easy it is to get around,” said Kurt Lydic, who owns a new home in the Barnes Bend subdivision with his fiancée, Jamie Jones. Some of the area’s most active home builders, including Regent Homes, The Jones Company and Drees Homes, are rushing to meet demand in neighborhoods conveniently located along the Old Hickory Boulevard-Nolensville Road corridor between Interstates 65 and 24. “We’ve built right up against Brentwood,” said David McGowan, president of Regent Homes. “Young people wanted to live in that area but couldn’t afford it.” The Jones Company, which built Lydic and Jones’ house, has begun a new phase in Barnes Bend after all the homes in the first section were quickly snapped up, said Peder Jensen, the company’s director of sales. Prices range from about $190,000 to $250,000. “People want to live in that corridor and not worry about suburban commutes,” he said. Home buyers are literally lining up to purchase houses in the Reserve at Christiansted. Located near Nipper’s Corner at Mt. Pisgah Road and Edmondson Pike, the Reserve is a new development inside the existing Christiansted Valley subdivision. “We have an incredible waiting list of people who want to get into that community,” Jensen said. Convenient location The Jones Co. recently began selling homes in the new Sugar Valley subdivision next to Lenox Village. Prices begin around $210,000. The area is attractive for homeowners who work downtown or even in Rutherford or Williamson counties, he said. “You’re between I-65 and 24, and the airport’s just down the road,” Jensen said. Convenience was one selling point for Lydic and Jones. They considered buying in fast-growing Spring Hill, but that could have meant an I-65 commute for Jones, whose office is in Brentwood. “When we saw Barnes Bend, the light bulb went on,” Lydic said. Tricia Brooks is looking forward to having the feeling of living in the countryside but knowing that restaurants, shopping and other amenities are nearby. She is moving from Brentwood to the Burkitt Place neighborhood, where Regent Homes built her new house. Her closing was scheduled late last week. “You have everything you need, but still feel you’re away from town,” she said. Regent’s prices in Burkitt Place start at $284,900. The company also recently began construction of 184 condominiums in Lenox Village, its community along Nolensville Road that helped set the standard for development in South Nashville. Lenox Village prices start at $147,900. The company also has begun work nearby on Burkitt Springs, a $48 million development of 40 townhomes, 80 cottage homes and 64 single-family homes. Townhomes with a downstairs master suite will start around $229,000, upstairs masters begin around $179,000, cottage homes start at $249,000 and single-family homes start in the $280,000 range. Burkitt Springs will include preserved natural areas, walking trails and a lake, McGowan said. “This is the first major new home development project in southeast Nashville since the housing market and economy downturn of 2006. There is pent-up demand in the marketplace, and we are ready to fulfill that demand,” he said. Buyers aren’t waiting for Regent to build a home before they purchase it. The company is building 50 new townhomes in the High Point development, which has a Brentwood address but is inside Davidson County. Prices range from $200,000 to $250,000. Before construction began, 12 were already sold, McGowan said. South Nashville is close to downtown as well as jobs in Rutherford County, Brentwood and Cool Springs, he said. “It’s the area where so many jobs are being created,” McGowan said. “All of these people like to be within 25 minutes or less of where they work.” Drees Homes sold its last home in the Brookview Forest subdivision this spring and is building in Burkitt Place, said Brett Tesnow, the company’s market manager. “We’re still getting more sites,” he said. It’s easy to understand the attraction of South Nashville, Tesnow said. “You’re close to Nashville,” he said, “but with a small-town feel.” Contact Bill Lewis at [email protected].
Posted on: Thu, 05 Sep 2013 03:11:52 +0000
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