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I have been looking at houses in the Hampton Cove area and pulled up several in the Creekstone, River Ridge and Hidden Lake subdivisions. I know these are not in "Hampton Cove" but I have not been able to find any other info on these areas. Can anyone tell me positive/negatives on these subdivisions and if they are even worth looking at or should I just concentrate on Hampton Cove? I do have 3 kids (8, 6 & 4 and another on the way!) and want a neighborhood where there are other families with children. We will be relocating from Birmingham and do not know anyone in the Huntsville area. I am also still torn on the whole Madison versus SE Huntsville areas especially since my husband will be working in Research Park. How long is the actual drive from Hampton Cove to Research Park and is the only route going through the medical district??
I liked Hidden Lake also. I drove out there during this last visit.
It is wet. I personally crossed it off my list as parts of the roads were like white water rapids after a rain.
What I did like was the deer we saw on the side of the road on the way out there and the setting is beautiful. I would recommend checking each subdivision you are interested in after a decent rain.
Our friend (who also posts on here) lives in Creekstone. Tons of kids, very nice, new elementary school being built right near there opening for fall 2010.
I live in Hampton Cove (on the far northeast side almost at McMullen Cove) and I work at Wynn and Technology in Research Park. It takes me 23 minutes to go 18 miles but I leave early. If I leave at rush hour it would probably take me five more minutes. There are three sets of commuters running through there: Hospital starting times (7AM and maybe 9AM?), Huntsville High School (8AM?), and employee commuter - so it may be a little spread out. The worst case it backs up a little approaching the hospital district but the lights strongly favor the 431 (Governors) traffic so it really moves through there. Plus the construction on Governors is completed now. Subjectively, it is also a pleasant drive: you get a nice view of the Jones Valley and it is pretty driving down Governors past the leafy Governors Bend and Covemont neighborhoods. Plus there's a convenient Starbucks located right there in front of the hospital on the way to work.
The alternative routes would be over Blevins Gap (Four Mile Post Road to Airport) or even heading out to 72. I'd only use these two routes if 431 was backed up due to an accident or something.
There are a whole host of subdivisions around Taylor Rd - Creekstone & Liberty Park are Jeff Benton Homes built communities if I'm not mistaken. There will be a new Elementary School on the south end of Taylor Rd... and Taylor Rd. itself is being extended South West to meet with Big Cove Rd. near the new Highland Park neighborhood.
The brand new River Ridge Community, also by JBH, is a good drive down Big Cove Rd. but its a nice pretty drive. The lots in River Ridge are selling really well - there are about 10 houses under construction and a couple more lots with "sold" signs. It's so new only about two families have moved in so far. JBH is offering some good incentives out there. Most of the lots aren't very large, but the prices/incentives and community features are nice.
I think Cobblestone cove (part of Hampton Cove on teh far north east side - east side of the bypass) still has some lots left. These are also Jeff Benton Homes - quite nice, and the lots are larger than you'll see in River Ridge (thus allowing for some home plans they don't build in River Ridge) but you'll pay quite a bit of a premium for the same plan there vs River Ridge. Cobblestone homeowners also get access to Hampton House in Hampton Cove I believe... which is the best clubhouse/pool in the area. River Ridge is planned to have a very nice clubhouse and pool along with a Bridgestreet-esque water-fountain style play area and picnic area. Plus there are trails, stocked ponds and access to the Flint River for canoeing/kayaking.
There's also a community off Taylor Rd called Hampton Station that is still building I think... but I don't know the builder. The prices on the new homes we saw in that area were very low (not sure why, they had plenty of features like hardwoods/granite etc, but they were significantly below the other large developments in terms of price).
It all depends on your price range and the tradeoffs you'll accept and whether you want to build new or not.
We decided to build new in River Ridge after I verified that the lots currently for sale are safely out of the 100 yr flood boundary (even the 500 yr for that matter). There will be a future phase that will likely be within the boundary however. We've repeatedly gone out there in heavy rains and the water doesn't collect anywhere... its all channeled very well into collecting ponds. Ironically, we ended up getting a 1 acre lot even though the lots in River Ridge are pretty small on average.
We did a pro and con ranking of these subdivisions which I'll copy and paste here (these are observations we had while househunting - we also took specific houses that we looked at into consideration which affected our rankings - not shown here):
1 ) River Ridge -
Pro: great amenities, low price (probably means younger families), best builder incentives, peaceful/rural, attractive community entrance & landscape
Con: distance (about 30-35 mins to Research Park), smallish lots, cows?
2) Cobblestone -
Pro: Closer than RR, good size lots, decent incentives, peaceful/rural, mostly complete
Con: No clubhouse/pool IN the community, high price (for us), prefer a more country feel than driving the 4-lane eastern bypass, potential flood concern (though builder appears to have raised the land creating a squared border with the 100 yr flood plain).
3) Deford Mill -
Pro: Closest to work, attractive, decent lot size
Con: No clubhouse IN immediate community, older, seemed pricey for what you get in terms of age/size, potential flooding concerns
4) Creekstone -
Pro: Close, good lot size, plenty of young families, fair prices, established
Con: Built out and haven't found a specifc home for sale we like, underwhelming clubhouse/pool, don't like the vibe of Taylor Rd.
5) Hampton Ridge -
Pro: Close, decent lot size, didn't see many kids
Con: A little pricey for what you get (better values elsewhere), not impressed with Nichols Homes (builder) after conducting research, underwhelming clubhouse/pool
6) Hidden Lake -
Pro: Close, Attractive entrance, decent lot size, plenty of young families, established
Con: built out, showing age in places, kind of an eclectic interconnection of multiple neighborhoods, potential flood hazard (not so great drainage)
7) Hampton Station -
Pro: Lots of young families, decent lots, near completion but still buildable, low prices
Con: Don't like living on Taylor Rd, why are the prices so low?, can't find any info on builder
8) Liberty Park -
Pro: Close, lots of young families, ok lots, established
Con: Built out, Don't like Taylor Rd, same model homes can be built new for about the same price in River Ridge - plus builder incentives, every other house is for sale, why?, little variation in homes, flood concern in the back of subdivision?
9) Highland Park -
Pro: low price
Con: Underwhelming from an aesthetic standpoint, no clubhouse, second farthest away
Last edited by DvlsAdvc8; 04-23-2009 at 04:08 PM..
For some reason your rankings did not get included in your post. I would love to know how you ranked the different subdivisions and which one you ended up picking. We are looking at the $400,000 range. There is really quite a bit to choose from and it is hard to know how to narrow the choices down. I have read that some of the subdivisions were in flood zones and I definetly don't want to get involved in all of that- even with flood insurance! Thanks for any advice!
For some reason your rankings did not get included in your post. I would love to know how you ranked the different subdivisions and which one you ended up picking. We are looking at the $400,000 range. There is really quite a bit to choose from and it is hard to know how to narrow the choices down. I have read that some of the subdivisions were in flood zones and I definetly don't want to get involved in all of that- even with flood insurance! Thanks for any advice!
Oops! Fixed.
At 400k, you will find some nice houses in the Hampton Cove neighborhoods - which includes Cobblestone Cove. You'll also find some nice houses in Hampton Ridge. Cobblestone has a model called the Veranda that has a GREAT open kitchen. Last I checked Jeff Benton Homes had one built and ready for move in (they call 'em hassle free homes), priced at $387k... maybe you should check it out.
400k is high end for Creekstone and the neighborhoods along Taylor Road though.
It's also high end for River Ridge. I think the top model in River Ridge starts at about $350k for something like 4,000 sq ft not including options. The house we're building is 3,308 sq ft for $311k after the 8k lot premium (1 acre) and options. There's a future phase that will likely be homes over 400k, but that's probably quite some time away.
I would also encourage you to look at McMullen Cove. People seem to think it is far out but it isn't. Just past Cobblestone Cove. My husband drives to Sparkman and his drive is 30 minutes. He can go either Governor's on Monte Santo or straight down 72. About the same. What I do like about our area is the greenspace and the lakes with 2 mountains and the Flint River in it. We are outdoor people and we love the trails and seeing deer, turkeys, and other wildlife. The developement does feed into Hampton Cove schools. You can get homes in the 400s here and I think that there is alot of quality of life offered. Sales are picking up and I think in a few years it will be a good investment.
There are a whole host of subdivisions around Taylor Rd - Creekstone & Liberty Park are Jeff Benton Homes built communities if I'm not mistaken. There will be a new Elementary School on the south end of Taylor Rd... and Taylor Rd. itself is being extended South West to meet with Big Cove Rd. near the new Highland Park neighborhood.
The brand new River Ridge Community, also by JBH, is a good drive down Big Cove Rd. but its a nice pretty drive. The lots in River Ridge are selling really well - there are about 10 houses under construction and a couple more lots with "sold" signs. It's so new only about two families have moved in so far. JBH is offering some good incentives out there. Most of the lots aren't very large, but the prices/incentives and community features are nice.
I think Cobblestone cove (part of Hampton Cove on teh far north east side - east side of the bypass) still has some lots left. These are also Jeff Benton Homes - quite nice, and the lots are larger than you'll see in River Ridge (thus allowing for some home plans they don't build in River Ridge) but you'll pay quite a bit of a premium for the same plan there vs River Ridge. Cobblestone homeowners also get access to Hampton House in Hampton Cove I believe... which is the best clubhouse/pool in the area. River Ridge is planned to have a very nice clubhouse and pool along with a Bridgestreet-esque water-fountain style play area and picnic area. Plus there are trails, stocked ponds and access to the Flint River for canoeing/kayaking.
There's also a community off Taylor Rd called Hampton Station that is still building I think... but I don't know the builder. The prices on the new homes we saw in that area were very low (not sure why, they had plenty of features like hardwoods/granite etc, but they were significantly below the other large developments in terms of price).
It all depends on your price range and the tradeoffs you'll accept and whether you want to build new or not.
We decided to build new in River Ridge after I verified that the lots currently for sale are safely out of the 100 yr flood boundary (even the 500 yr for that matter). There will be a future phase that will likely be within the boundary however. We've repeatedly gone out there in heavy rains and the water doesn't collect anywhere... its all channeled very well into collecting ponds. Ironically, we ended up getting a 1 acre lot even though the lots in River Ridge are pretty small on average.
We did a pro and con ranking of these subdivisions which I'll copy and paste here (these are observations we had while househunting - we also took specific houses that we looked at into consideration which affected our rankings - not shown here):
1 ) River Ridge -
Pro: great amenities, low price (probably means younger families), best builder incentives, peaceful/rural, attractive community entrance & landscape
Con: distance (about 30-35 mins to Research Park), smallish lots, cows?
2) Cobblestone -
Pro: Closer than RR, good size lots, decent incentives, peaceful/rural, mostly complete
Con: No clubhouse/pool IN the community, high price (for us), prefer a more country feel than driving the 4-lane eastern bypass, potential flood concern (though builder appears to have raised the land creating a squared border with the 100 yr flood plain).
3) Deford Mill -
Pro: Closest to work, attractive, decent lot size
Con: No clubhouse IN immediate community, older, seemed pricey for what you get in terms of age/size, potential flooding concerns
4) Creekstone -
Pro: Close, good lot size, plenty of young families, fair prices, established
Con: Built out and haven't found a specifc home for sale we like, underwhelming clubhouse/pool, don't like the vibe of Taylor Rd.
5) Hampton Ridge -
Pro: Close, decent lot size, didn't see many kids
Con: A little pricey for what you get (better values elsewhere), not impressed with Nichols Homes (builder) after conducting research, underwhelming clubhouse/pool
6) Hidden Lake -
Pro: Close, Attractive entrance, decent lot size, plenty of young families, established
Con: built out, showing age in places, kind of an eclectic interconnection of multiple neighborhoods, potential flood hazard (not so great drainage)
7) Hampton Station -
Pro: Lots of young families, decent lots, near completion but still buildable, low prices
Con: Don't like living on Taylor Rd, why are the prices so low?, can't find any info on builder
8) Liberty Park -
Pro: Close, lots of young families, ok lots, established
Con: Built out, Don't like Taylor Rd, same model homes can be built new for about the same price in River Ridge - plus builder incentives, every other house is for sale, why?, little variation in homes, flood concern in the back of subdivision?
9) Highland Park -
Pro: low price
Con: Underwhelming from an aesthetic standpoint, no clubhouse, second farthest away
Thanks SO much for your reply. Your info was extremely helpful! I'm sure I will be checking back with you as questions arise! We would love not to have to spend as much as $400,000 but from what I have seen in Madison and Hampton Cove there was not much under that price range in the communities we liked. So far, I have only been up to Huntsville once to look around so I really just got an overview of Madison and Hampton Cove. I was kind of unimpressed with much of Madison but still have not completely ruled it out. I did like Highland Lakes but most houses were $500,000 and up. I am not into the cookie cutter neighborhoods where every house is basically the same nor do I want a neighborhood that backs up to commercial development. I do like newer communities but would prefer one that is a bit established with some trees. The larger clubhouse and pool are also a plus. It also seems that it is important to have a good HOA with covenants that are actually followed- I prefer neighbors who also want to keep their property/yard looking nice!
Neighborhoods backing up to commercial was a problem for us in MAdison. We had lived there a few years ago and this time we wanted the scenery and the mountains. McMullen Cove has strict covenants which we like and the scenery and the community ammenities are great. It is also gated and will be strict about that soon. I watched hawks in their nest fledge this spring on Bluebell Creek. How cool is that? Our area of the development has homes that are historically influenced. WE really do love it.
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