Riverstone Celebrates Best-Ever First-Quarter Sales
By Tania Oshman
(Sugar Land, TX – April 10, 2010) While the national housing market struggled early in the year, Riverstone was enjoying its strongest first quarter ever.
“We have had great sales in Riverstone so far this year,” said Tom Wilcox, general manager of Riverstone, a 3,700-acre project of The Johnson Development Corp. “We posted our highest January sales and our strongest first-quarter sales since development began.”
Helping Riverstone achieve that goal is its Fort Bend County location. The fastest-growing county in Greater Houston, Fort Bend was recently named the “Best Place to Get Ahead” by Forbes Magazine. The publication cited the county’s diversity of industries, higher-than-average incomes and number of Forbes “Best Big Companies” headquartered there. Home values are strong, as well, with Fort Bend the only county in the area to post a noticeable increase in median home value, according to a Crawford Realty Advisors study commissioned recently by the Houston Chronicle.
Wilcox said Riverstone buyers have been enticed by the federal tax credit, low interest rates and special promotions such as Riverstone’s recent Spring Open Homes Extravaganza.
“I’ve been somewhat surprised at the strength of our sales this year, in light of national housing news, but then again, this is Fort Bend County, Sugar Land and Riverstone,” said Sheila Panjwani, sales representative with Perry Homes. “Low interest rates and the federal tax credit have been driving business all year, and the recent open homes event was an added incentive. We sold several homes during the tour.”
More than 20 completed and under-construction homes were open weekends during March, including a Perry home purchased by Kari and Jesus Romo.
A priority was to find a home within a reasonable commute of Jesus’ work in the Galleria area. They searched for two weeks before deciding on the new Perry home in Riverstone.
“Jesus can reach his office within 20 to 25 minutes,” Kari said. “And I really like that everything is nearby. We have stores and restaurants right at the community entrance and we can easily drive into Houston if we want to shop the Galleria.”
Still, Kari said, they probably would not have bought at this moment in time if not for the low interest rates and federal tax credit.
“The incentives really influenced our decision to buy immediately,” she said. “If not for the great interest rates and tax credit, we probably just would have rented a larger place.”
“While sales have certainly been fueled by the federal tax credit, we anticipate the momentum will continue throughout the year,” Wilcox said. “The National Association of Realtors just reported that sales of existing homes rose sharply in February, which could signal the bottom of the national housing market. Improved consumer confidence and lower unemployment numbers should replace the tax credit as the impetus for home sales.”
Riverstone, one of the 10 top-selling communities in Houston, is conveniently located at Highway 6, three miles south of U.S. 59, and offers easy access to several major thoroughfares, including the Fort Bend Parkway. Abundant dining and shopping choices are just minutes away, including First Colony’s booming Town Center. For more information, visit www.riverstone.com.
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