Hines, with partners Trex Capital, Caravel Ventures, Bloomfield Homes, Sumitomo Forestry America, Einstein USA, and GMcivil, sold a portfolio of 11 Texas master-planned communities (MPC) to a joint venture between an affiliate of Starwood Capital Group and an affiliate of Land Strategies Management (doing business as Starwood Land). The companies acquired the MPCs for approximately $800 million.
“This investment continues Starwood Capital’s strategy of acquiring well-located master-planned communities in the largest new home markets to capitalize on compelling long-term residential land fundamentals,” Anthony Murphy, managing director at Starwood Capital, said. “It presents a rare opportunity to acquire a large portfolio of mature communities with major infrastructure substantially completed and active lot sales to over 30 home builders.”
The 11 communities are in advanced stages of development, with more than 16,000 remaining residential lots and over 600 acres of commercial land, across Dallas, Houston, and Austin. The developments include Wildflower Ranch, Creekside, Aster Park, Northspur, Myrtle Creek, Furst Ranch, Redden Farms, Brookewater, Creekhaven, Wildrye, and Mirador. Each community is in high-growth submarkets with track records of strong builder activity.
Dallas, Houston, and Austin ranked in the top five of Zonda’s 2024 Local Leaders list, which ranked the nation’s 50 largest new-home markets by closings in 2023. Dallas topped the list with 42,840 closings in 2023, Houston ranked second with 32,791 closings, and Austin ranked fourth with 18,632 closings.
The strength of the Dallas market is buoyed by significant job growth, the popularity of the metro for corporate relocations (19 in 2023), and its mix of subdivisions and MPCs such as the communities sold by Hines.
Houston and Austin also have experienced above-average job growth, supporting the single-family market in both cities. Houston’s strength is relative affordability—41% of 2023 starts were for homes priced between $300,000 and $400,000—and ample developable land. Austin has become a tech and millennial magnet, with seventy-nine companies announcing expansions or relocations to the metro in 2023.
“This transaction showcases the deep investment appetite for well-located, master-planned communities that deliver much-needed housing to high-growth markets, and capitalizing on tailwinds in the living sector,” said Ray Lawler, managing partner, head of Americas at Hines.
