HOUSTON – Houston-based Partners In Building, continuing an expansion of the firm, has purchased Texas Casual Cottages, a division of Trendmaker Homes, which specializes in building secondary and vacation homes on customers’ land in the Brazos River Valley and Texas Hill Country.
Earlier this year, Partners in Building, a Houston-based builder, expanded into San Antonio and Nashville.
As part of the deal with Trendmaker, Partners In Building has acquired Texas Casual Cottages sales centers and model home parks in Round Top and Wimberley. Each location includes two model homes. Partners In Building has also purchased all other assets of the Texas Casual Cottages division, including home plans and branding materials.
The division will be re-branded as Texas Casual Cottages by Partners In Building. Operations under the new branding and ownership are expected to resume quickly, with the Round Top location re-opening November 20, 2015, and the Wimberley location planned to re-open by the end of 2015.
“Trendmaker has done an excellent job in building the Texas Casual Cottages brand since they opened the first location in Round Top in 2010. They were one of the first major builders in Houston to recognize the opportunity to serve the growing number of Houstonians interested in second homes in the Hill Country or Brazos River Valley, and the Texas Casual Cottages concept was groundbreaking,” said Jim Lemming, president of Partners In Building.
“When the opportunity arose to purchase the Texas Casual Cottages division, we knew it would be a great fit with our growing Build on Your Lot operations in Houston and Central Texas,” he continued.
Lemming said Partners In Building plans to leave the current operations of Texas Casual Cottages largely unchanged, with cottage plans ranging from around 2,000 to 3,500 square feet, and prices from the $300,000s and up.
Trendmaker has seen steady growth and sustained success at both Texas Casual Cottages locations since first offering the unique product – a success story Partners In Building plans build upon into the future.
“Texas Casual Cottages gives us the opportunity to reach a new group of buyers at a lower starting price point,” said Lemming. “At the same time, it will also allow us to draw new customers and expand the reach of our Build On Your Lot program, where we build homes priced up to $1 million and more.”
The architecture of Texas Casual Cottages homes features a traditional Hill Country style, with raised foundations and covered front and back porches spanning the entire width on most plans. One- and two-story plans are offered, with open living areas and at least three bedrooms to accommodate family members and guests.
Ranked as the largest custom homebuilder in Texas by Professional Builder magazine, Partners In Building has been on a growth spurt recently. Already well established as the leading custom homebuilder in the Houston and Austin markets, the company entered the San Antonio market in early 2015, opening a Build On Your Lot office in Boerne and entering selected San Antonio master-planned communities.
In August, the company announced its entry into Nashville, its first market outside of Texas. The company acquired more than 120 homesites in four Nashville locations, where it plans to build homes with an average price near $1 million.