LOCAL Houston | The City Guide October 2016 | Page 45

FOOD | ARTS | COMMUNITY | STYLE+LEISURE “I think this trend is happening for a few reasons,” says Dorsey, whose father is a builder. “First, it’s price. People don’t want to spend a lot of money on a house – they want to travel and have more life experiences.” Coerver concurs. “They want to have a more flexible lifestyle, and there’s an element of conservationism. People are into the ‘green’ movement and reducing your physical footprint. It’s what’s driving electric cars, too.” Thomas Dorsey Starting at $289,000 for a residence with two bedrooms and two-and-a-half baths, the houses are “small” by Texas standards, but they’re still strong on features you’d find on higher-end homes, including mahogany doors, bronze gutters, red oak wood flooring, granite/marble/slate options for kitchen and baths, and Whirlpool and Jenn-Air appliances. They’re also big on energy efficiency. “It’s not an obvious play for the Energy Corridor neighborhood,” says Coerver, the financial guy in the partnership, “but in the places where there would be high demand, like Montrose or the Heights, the land prices are too expensive to pull it off. Our thought is that with everything that’s going on on the west side, with CityCentre becoming the real geographic center of Houston, and new people moving there all the time, we can create a new style of living that hasn’t been there before.” october 16 | L O C A L 45