A North Texas company plans to build hundreds of new homes this year in communities aimed at older adults.
Roanoke-based Integrity Group said it plans to start 200 homes in Ladera-branded communities this year in Fort Worth, Little Elm, Mansfield, Prosper and Rockwall.
The communities focus on low-maintenance homes in gated communities designed for homebuyers 55 and older, with fully maintained landscaping and lawn areas. The average price for homes in the communities is in the mid-$400,000s, the company said.
“We never ever take it for granted nor take it lightly, but in most cases, this is people’s last home, and we want to make sure it’s an incredible experience for them,” Integrity Group CEO John Delin said.
Integrity began construction of amenities and model homes in its newest Ladera community in Prosper late last year, just north of U.S. Highway 380 on North Custer Road. The development will have 244 homes from the mid-$400,000s and amenities including a clubhouse, pool, pickleball courts, putting green and trails.
A Ladera community in Little Elm will start construction around June. It will have 263 homes priced from the $370,000s to $500,000s. The company is also working on homes in new phases of communities in Fort Worth, Rockwall and Mansfield.
In Justin, the developer is planning Ladera Timberbrook with 157 homes from the low $300,000s to the $500,000s. Construction is expected to begin next year.
Integrity already sold out Ladera communities in Highland Village, Keller and at another location in Mansfield, and it expects to sell out its Rockwall community by the end of year.
The first Ladera community opened in 2012. Delin and his brother, Steve Delin, started developing the communities in 2007 in a joint partnership with Ohio-based Epcon Communities.
Delin said around 2006 and 2007, when he was a custom homebuilder, he saw where the market was going and was looking for a different type of opportunity to come along. That’s when his in-laws moved into a community that’s similar to those his company builds today, and he got the idea to start building communities for older adults.
“Back then, 4,000 people a day just in Texas were turning 65,” Delin said. “And I was like, wow, there’s a huge marketplace there that nobody has tapped into.”
The company aims to build in locations where residents can be close to their children and grandchildren.
“Cities have done a phenomenal job of building up, going from the starter home to the move-up home, all the way to the McMansion; and along the way, everybody forgot about what happens when these people are tired of taking care of the home, the pool, the yard, and don’t need 4,000 or 5,000 [square] feet anymore,” Delin said. “And that’s where we come in.”
