Stapleton - New Town Builders vs. David Weekley Homes (Denver: sale, new home)

[zoezoezoe]

I am considering purchasing a new home in Stapleton's new Central Park West. Knowing that builders aren't negotiating or offering any sorts of incentives - my price point pretty much gives me the option of going with either New Town Builders or David Weekley homes. While both have gorgeous models, I'm interested in hearing about how happy any existing owners are with these builders. Any thoughts? Also, does anyone have any opinions on buying in Central Park West versus waiting for the development near Northfield?

[WiW]

We were at the New Town model home in Central Park west about a month ago and the woman there said they were offering some kind of allowance for options. IIRC, it was in the thousands. We were told by some other people that the builders are not allowed to negotiate the base price, but will negotiate on the total package.

In terms of energy efficiency, here is some information
Stapleton and Lowry Neighborhoods Score Extremely Low Test Scores.

I am just as interested in this thread as you are. We are also looking at Parkwood homes.

[2bindenver]

Your buyer's agent should be able to negotiate on your behalf.

[Bradburn1]

I live in a New Town in Bradburn Village (Westminster). Love my house. Have had a few issues but nothing major and no more than I estimate I would have with any builder. Warranty work was timely and everything that needed correction was fixed.

I'm sure you are aware of this, but upgrades can add a lot to the price of the home, they say on average, 20%. One thing that helped us was to get a list of everything in the model that was an upgrade and see how it altered the base price.

[zoezoezoe]

Just to clarify - due to the demand in Central Park West, builders are not currently offering any incentives like they have in past neighborhoods. I know that New Town does offer an "allowance" towards upgrades as part of the base price, while David Weekley seems to offer nicer "standards".

I've heard that the new Northfield section will begin building out next year. I'd hate to get caught up in the buying frenzy of this last neighborhood in the existing portion of Stapleton only to see better options show up within a year. I guess it's all just a guessing game with these types of new neighborhoods, though.

[apa1128]

Originally Posted by zoezoezoe

Just to clarify - due to the demand in Central Park West, builders are not currently offering any incentives like they have in past neighborhoods. I know that New Town does offer an "allowance" towards upgrades as part of the base price, while David Weekley seems to offer nicer "standards".

I've heard that the new Northfield section will begin building out next year. I'd hate to get caught up in the buying frenzy of this last neighborhood in the existing portion of Stapleton only to see better options show up within a year. I guess it's all just a guessing game with these types of new neighborhoods, though.

What would be the advantage of living in the new Northfield section? Just curious to hear your thoughts...

[apa1128]

FYI
http://www.denvergov.org/Portals/646...08-17)-v02.pdf

[denverian]

Originally Posted by apa1128

What would be the advantage of living in the new Northfield section? Just curious to hear your thoughts...

I've lived in Stapleton for 6 years now and I don't know that there will really be any advantage to the area north of I-70. I think the advantage to the Central Park West neighborhood is that you're close to the 29th Ave. town center, everything at Quebec Square, and you'll be able to walk to the train station and all the development around it once it's built. It'll be very walkable and convenient.

[HoyaSoxa]

Originally Posted by denverian

I've lived in Stapleton for 6 years now and I don't know that there will really be any advantage to the area north of I-70. I think the advantage to the Central Park West neighborhood is that you're close to the 29th Ave. town center, everything at Quebec Square, and you'll be able to walk to the train station and all the development around it once it's built. It'll be very walkable and convenient.

Agree here. Central Park West is closer to a lot of the current amenities of Stapleton (including the new school at Swigert), and will be closer to the light rail than anything they build further north. There are warehouses and industrial land between the Stapleton north development and the curret development s of I-70, and imo, given the gaps between the two neighborhoods, I think Stapleton is eventually going to be spoken of as two neighborhoods - Stapleton Denver and Stapleton Commerce City. I think the Commerce City development will develop its own style and niche, separate and distinct from the current Stapleton development. For example, I've heard the builders are considering a much more suburban lay-out for Stapleton Commerce City, with bigger lots but much less in terms of walkability. Not necessarily a bad thing, but you may find you don't like it as much, since it's not really what Stapleton has been supposed to be about and can be duplicated in many of the suburban neighborhoods around Denver.

And fwiw, I've never heard of them starting development north of I70 in a year. They first need to build out all of Central Park West from 35th to MLK, and no one has even started building south of 33rd yet (near the tower), and some homebuilders haven't even gone south of 34th. Only after they finish the Central Park West build-out, (which our builder estimated would take another year and a half), will/could they begin opening up the parcels north of i-70 getting into Commerce City. And, though most likely I'm being optimistic, two years from now, the market could be on more of an upswing, new home prices may be higher, and builders could be even less willing to negotiate incentives.

There's always a million reasons to wait on buying, but I don't think waiting until the parcels open North of I-70 development should be a significant issue, unless you know something about them that I don't (very possible!) Put another way, when those parcels open up and you're considering those, there will be another Stpaleton new development project being subdividied and pre-plotted, even further north, giving you yet another reason to hold off. If you like the houses and the neighborhood, and feel comfortable for the price and what you're getting and are planning to stay for several years, I would not let the development north of I-70 stand in the way.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by HoyaSoxa

Agree here. Central Park West is closer to a lot of the current amenities of Stapleton (including the new school at Swigert), and will be closer to the light rail than anything they build further north. There are warehouses and industrial land between the Stapleton north development and the curret development s of I-70, and imo, given the gaps between the two neighborhoods, I think Stapleton is eventually going to be spoken of as two neighborhoods - Stapleton Denver and Stapleton Commerce City. I think the Commerce City development will develop its own style and niche, separate and distinct from the current Stapleton development. For example, I've heard the builders are considering a much more suburban lay-out for Stapleton Commerce City, with bigger lots but much less in terms of walkability. Not necessarily a bad thing, but you may find you don't like it as much, since it's not really what Stapleton has been supposed to be about and can be duplicated in many of the suburban neighborhoods around Denver.

And fwiw, I've never heard of them starting development north of I70 in a year. They first need to build out all of Central Park West from 35th to MLK, and no one has even started building south of 33rd yet (near the tower), and some homebuilders haven't even gone south of 34th. Only after they finish the Central Park West build-out, (which our builder estimated would take another year and a half), will/could they begin opening up the parcels north of i-70 getting into Commerce City. And, though most likely I'm being optimistic, two years from now, the market could be on more of an upswing, new home prices may be higher, and builders could be even less willing to negotiate incentives.

There's always a million reasons to wait on buying, but I don't think waiting until the parcels open North of I-70 development should be a significant issue, unless you know something about them that I don't (very possible!) Put another way, when those parcels open up and you're considering those, there will be another Stpaleton new development project being subdividied and pre-plotted, even further north, giving you yet another reason to hold off. If you like the houses and the neighborhood, and feel comfortable for the price and what you're getting and are planning to stay for several years, I would not let the development north of I-70 stand in the way.

I've wondered if the area north of Northfield will feel cut off from the core of Stapleton as well. I personally prefer south of I-70, and feeling more like I'm in the city of Denver.

I'm pretty sure the far southeast corner of Staplton will be developed next. It looks like they're getting it ready (the area between Iola and Havana Way) I also wonder what they're going to do with Havana Way. It needs to be re-paved, and every time I drive through there, it looks like a cross between a farmer's market and a garage sale with all the trucks and vans parked along there selling junk. Is that even legal?