With COVID, Flex Space Comes in All Property Types

KATY, TX—If the notion of flex space only conjures up office product, think again. Because work from home has blurred the lines between office and remote working, there are many iterations at various stages in between.

One example is Haven at Seven Lakes, where construction is underway on a 129-home for-sale residential community. When completed, the gated lifestyle development in an infill location will have access to major transportation, employment corridors and schools in the Katy Independent School District.

“To love where you are, but also be able to easily get where you need to be is an essential part of quality community living and something the residents of Haven at Seven Lakes will definitely enjoy,” said Joe Mandola, division president at Trendmaker Homes Houston.

Mandola recently discussed how the pandemic has affected the housing market, including what buyers are looking for and where, as well as how the home shopping process has changed.

GlobeSt.com: What sort of development, design and other trends are you seeing because of COVID?

Mandola: COVID and the resulting needs for virtual learning and/or working from home have driven the additional inclusion of flex spaces in the home. These are rooms that are designed to be flexible to fit the needs of your work or family situation, whether it’s adapting a space into a home office for the remote worker or into a classroom setup for those families in need of virtual learning environments. For example, Haven at Seven Lakes offers functional flex spaces, special design features such as second-floor loft space and game rooms, and a host of options including media rooms and dedicated studies as well as our HomeSmart technology.

GlobeSt.com: How has your company adjusted accordingly?

Mandola: For Trendmaker, the demand for move-in ready homes has been better than initially expected at the start of the pandemic, with low interest rates supporting that volume, so we have not had to make many adjustments on that end. The how of home shopping continues to change, though. Obviously, more people want to do as much online as possible given in-person COVID restrictions and concerns. Thanks to the vision and resources of our parent company, TRI Pointe Group, we’ve been ahead of the game in creating the best online customer experience possible. Right at their fingerprints, before they even choose to step foot inside the home, customers can access and explore 3D elevation renderings, interactive floor plans, Matterport self-guided tours and video walk-throughs on our website. They can conveniently connect to a vast array of home designs and the latest information about move-in ready homes whenever and wherever they want.

GlobeSt.com: Do you expect these trends to continue even after the pandemic is over?

Mandola: There’s perhaps a little irony in the fact that this great disruption in the way we live and work will result in even stronger consumer trends toward convenience and versatility. Just look at how e-commerce continues to grow. Customers want their homes to be able to do more, and while shopping for that perfect residential fit, they want to be able to do more, learn more and make more choices about a home right at their fingertips. It’s hard to see those things changing. I think these trends were already present and accelerated during the pandemic.

GlobeSt.com: How has COVID impacted buyers?

Mandola: Studies show that the pandemic has made many renters and multifamily-type owners elevate home ownership as a priority. The value of more and multifaceted living space definitely grew in 2020. Low interest rates and the increased adoption of remote working are factors helping that home-buying trend.

GlobeSt.com: Because COVID is pushing many people to the suburbs, can you briefly describe these buyers’ characteristics?

Mandola: Suburban submarkets can certainly offer spatial and economic advantages, especially for buyers who are not as concerned about their job commutes in this work-from-home era. While we haven’t seen much of a shift in buyers per se, we have seen a resurgence of buyer interest and purchase of our 70-foot and larger products. These larger homes offer even more options for homeowner personalization, for example, to turn an open concept game room or loft area into an area with multiple workstations and/or create an area designed and wired to accommodate laptops, monitors and desk chairs. We’ve also seen an increase in consumer demand for more modestly sized homes on smaller homesites and are making great strides to self-develop these types of more affordable and attainable home programs.