Flickers of life once again pulse in Sacramento's new-home market. Housing analysts say that California's state capital isn't quite out of the woods, but after some painful readjustments, it may well be on the way to recovery. Once dubbed one of the fastest-growing markets in the nation, experts observe signs that the market is improving modestly, if only because conditions haven't continued their decline.
When Heather Goss walked into her first, brand-new home, one word came out of her mouth: “Finally.” For the 30-year-old Goss, buying a new home with her fiancéwas a rite of passage. Purchasing a new home was more of a personal triumph for Goss, symbolizing her ascension into full-fledged adulthood. Goss had moved around from roommate to roommate about eight times over the past several years. She was ready to settle down into something more permanent—her rental-hopping days were over. “I felt like we were adults now, buying our first brand-new home,” she says.
As August sweltered–KB Home, the $10 billion, fifth-largest home builder in the nation–did something shocking, but not entirely surprising. In the blistering heat of a slip-sliding housing environment, KB unloaded one of its guns in the highly competitive Southern California market.
Builders such as Centex Corp. and D.R. Horton are definitely taking a good look at The Dalles because Google is putting roots down there, according to Steve Smiley, a principal/managing director with Hanley Wood Market Intelligence (HWMI).
As home building company patriarch John Osborn looks at an open chunk of land for the first time, he is rarely thinking about elevations and architecture. He's thinking potential.
