Firethorn or Cane Island? (Houston, Katy: days on market, to rent, home sales)

[NTexas2010]

Originally Posted by usc619

The city of Katy should not have allowed a MUD in its city limits, makes no sense. They should have copied others like Frisco, Plano, Allen, McKinney, etc... all have incorporated their new MPC without MUD taxes.
I posted this topic //www.city-data.com/forum/dalla...mud-taxes.html on the Dallas forum to get an understanding why are they not having to deal with MUDs in city limits.

So Katy is not all sunshine rainbows and unicorns? *SMH*

FYI, I agree, a city proper should provide these services. Further proof "Katy" (proper or mailing address) is not the end-all be-all of the greater West Houston area (nor it's confused denizens who do not understand the words "Houston ETJ".)

[seadoons]

Is there any new information on Cane Island? Has anybody bought a home out there?

[kickingprop]

We drove through this past weekend to check it out, and it's still in the extremely early stages of development. I would imagine it'll be at least a couple years before it's to a point where construction isn't a constant nuisance for the early residents...

[seadoons]

We also drove through it a week or two ago and I agree - there really isn't much to see right now. The high property tax rate (3.7x) isn't helping my decision about the neighborhood. The 100' section which is only Toll Brothers is way out of my price range. The 80' section (Trendmaker and Perry) is pricey - Perry has posted some "inventory homes" that will be available in October / November with price tags of $650K - $700K. I'm sure Trendmaker will be similar. The 70' section, which is Coventry and Shea Homes, is also going to be expensive. Coventry has a few 'inventory homes' that will begin construction soon that are currently priced from around $525 to around $600K. The 65' section is patio homes which I don't care for. The 60' section - Perry and Ryland - has homes standing now in various stages of construction. I was very surprised how close the homes are to the street. It is going to feel very crowded once homes are built out and trees / landscaping are in. Anyways - these are my observations so far.

Has anyone had much luck walking into a home builder and making offers on homes that are currently under construction? For example, if you see a home advertised for $550K, a completion date of October, etc. what kind of negotiation room is there in that price?

[MattG53]

We bought a house in one of the 50' lots. Construction is proceeding along great and there are new developments every day. Back in May, there was pretty much just dirt. Now (August), there are tons of new developments and an insane amount of workers out there. We are very happy with the location and the whole vibe of the community (very friendly and beautiful). It will be awesome once completed. We were lucky enough to get in early. I believe the amenity center (which looks amazing) will be done in november. If you access the cane island website through a mobile device, you can see which homes are sold and which are available.

There are lots of other cane island homeowners like us who drive through the community whenever we get a chance because it is amazing to see all the progress. We see lots of Katy Police officers driving through as well, which adds some comfort. The living arches at the entrance way light up at night and change colors (so cool). They have also had a taco truck come out and a lobster truck come out recently. The tax rate is high but worth it, in my opinion!

Other news: One of the playgrounds is going up, the splashpad and amenity center are going up, the sidewalks around the lakes are finished (mostly), light posts are going up.

[DrD76]

Originally Posted by MattG53

We bought a house in one of the 50' lots. Construction is proceeding along great and there are new developments every day. Back in May, there was pretty much just dirt. Now (August), there are tons of new developments and an insane amount of workers out there. We are very happy with the location and the whole vibe of the community (very friendly and beautiful). It will be awesome once completed. We were lucky enough to get in early. I believe the amenity center (which looks amazing) will be done in november. If you access the cane island website through a mobile device, you can see which homes are sold and which are available.

There are lots of other cane island homeowners like us who drive through the community whenever we get a chance because it is amazing to see all the progress. We see lots of Katy Police officers driving through as well, which adds some comfort. The living arches at the entrance way light up at night and change colors (so cool). They have also had a taco truck come out and a lobster truck come out recently. The tax rate is high but worth it, in my opinion!

Other news: One of the playgrounds is going up, the splashpad and amenity center are going up, the sidewalks around the lakes are finished (mostly), light posts are going up.

Congratulations MattG53!
We too recently entered into a contract in July. I realize it is, in general, relatively more expensive, and higher tax rates and so on... but it looks really promising... Can't wait!
DrD

[bghouston]

Originally Posted by MattG53

We bought a house in one of the 50' lots. Construction is proceeding along great and there are new developments every day. Back in May, there was pretty much just dirt. Now (August), there are tons of new developments and an insane amount of workers out there. We are very happy with the location and the whole vibe of the community (very friendly and beautiful). It will be awesome once completed. We were lucky enough to get in early. I believe the amenity center (which looks amazing) will be done in november. If you access the cane island website through a mobile device, you can see which homes are sold and which are available.

There are lots of other cane island homeowners like us who drive through the community whenever we get a chance because it is amazing to see all the progress. We see lots of Katy Police officers driving through as well, which adds some comfort. The living arches at the entrance way light up at night and change colors (so cool). They have also had a taco truck come out and a lobster truck come out recently. The tax rate is high but worth it, in my opinion!

Other news: One of the playgrounds is going up, the splashpad and amenity center are going up, the sidewalks around the lakes are finished (mostly), light posts are going up.

Is this the same place where there are a lot of electric towers and a cemetery nearby or am I looking at the wrong Cane Island ? We drove by a couple of weeks back via Franz road I think and saw quite a few houses in construction and assumed it must be Cane Island.

[seadoons]

Originally Posted by MattG53

We bought a house in one of the 50' lots. Construction is proceeding along great and there are new developments every day. Back in May, there was pretty much just dirt. Now (August), there are tons of new developments and an insane amount of workers out there. We are very happy with the location and the whole vibe of the community (very friendly and beautiful). It will be awesome once completed. We were lucky enough to get in early. I believe the amenity center (which looks amazing) will be done in november. If you access the cane island website through a mobile device, you can see which homes are sold and which are available.

There are lots of other cane island homeowners like us who drive through the community whenever we get a chance because it is amazing to see all the progress. We see lots of Katy Police officers driving through as well, which adds some comfort. The living arches at the entrance way light up at night and change colors (so cool). They have also had a taco truck come out and a lobster truck come out recently. The tax rate is high but worth it, in my opinion!

Other news: One of the playgrounds is going up, the splashpad and amenity center are going up, the sidewalks around the lakes are finished (mostly), light posts are going up.

Quite the commercial! Any affiliation with the community?

[NTexas2010]

Originally Posted by seadoons

Quite the commercial! Any affiliation with the community?

Possibly a shill for BIG CANEY

[DrD76]

I would love to hear from other folks like us, who have entered into a contract with one of the builders in Cane Island. Like I mentioned earlier, we put down earnest money on July 11th, and later signed the contract, and are still within the 45-60 day period where we can back-out. Only time will tell, but as of now, we are very happy with the prospects of calling Cane Island our long-term dream residence. We drive around the area every weekend. This past weekend (Aug 8-9) was the grand opening for Perry Homes model and Ryland Homes model. When we visited both these models, there were at least 5 different families in each model home.
Couple weekends ago, the right-side lane going into the community was blocked because of the construction for the "arches". This past weekend, the left-side lane was blocked for the same reason.
By the time we go back this weekend, both, the left and the right lanes should be open, with the arches completed and in place.
I also saw the 7, ummm, not sure what they are called... 7 "spots" in the lake... for fountains...

Basically, what I am saying is that we like what we have been seeing over the last couple of weekends.
Also saw the Cane Island overpass halfway completed...
Here are some news articles that show promising progress:
Cane Island construction picks up steam - Katy Times: Home
Cane Island overpass called a 'transportation game-changer' - Houston Chronicle

Again - a genuine homebuyer in Cane Island - not a shill - no affiliations whatsoever

DrD