HOUSTON — (Realty News Report) — Houston again earned recognition as the top selling metro in the nation for master planned communities as buyers closed on new homes across the suburbs in a slower pace market, according RCLCO real estate consulting.
Led by Sunterra, Tamarron, and newcomer Anniston, the Houston region is home to 11 of the nation’s top 50 master-planned communities ranked by new home sales in the first half of the year, according to RCLCO. Combined, the 11 communities logged 3,666 sales at midyear of which nearly two-thirds occurred in Katy and Cypress.
Sales in the Houston communities represented about 20% of the nearly 18,000 sales across the nation’s Top 50 at midyear, according to RCLCO.
Nationally, new home sales among the Top 50 were down 6.6% at midyear compared to the sales volume in first half in 2024.
“Despite near-term headwinds, Master Planned Communities remain a ‘haven’ for consumers amid elevated interest rates and economic uncertainty,” said Karl Pischke, Principal at RCLCO. “Same-store sales of top-MPCs remain ahead of the broader new home market, a positive sign given the economic and political headwinds experienced in the first half of the year.”
New home sales trended downward at a majority of the nation’s top 50 communities. Houston followed suit, with lower sales in six of the region’s 11 top communities compared to last year.
Here’s how the Houston communities ranked.
Sunterra, a development of Land Tejas/Starwood Land in Katy, ranked No. 4 with 543 home sales. That was down 30% from the 774 sales reported in the first half of 2024.
Tamarron, a D.R. Horton community in Katy, ranked No. 9. The community registered 510 sales at midyear, up 29% from 394 sales during the same period in 2024.
Anniston, a project of Friendswood Development Co. off Freeman Road in Katy, is new to the list at No. 11 with 476 sales at midyear.
Bridgeland, a Howard Hughes Corp. community in Cypress, ranked No. 14 with 438 sales, down 12% from 498 sales at midyear in 2024.
The Grand Prairie, a project of Ember Real Estate Investment and Development in Hockley, made its debut on the list at No. 21 with 299 sales at midyear.
Meridiana, a development of Rise Communities of Highway 288 in the Rosharon/Manvel area, ranked No. 25 with 277 sales. That was down 8% from the 302 sales recorded in the first half of 2024.
Tavola, a project Friendswood Development Co. in New Caney northeast of Houston, came in at No. 31 with 248 sales at midyear. Sales were down 31% compared to 362 at midyear 2024.
Lago Mar, a development of Land Tejas/Starwood Land off the Gulf Freeway in Texas City, had a 30% rise over the previous period with 238 sales at midyear. It ranked as No. 34.
Sienna, a project Johnson Development/Toll Brothers/GTIS in Missouri City, ranked No. 36 with 227 sales. The sales were down 27% compared to the 310 sales at midyear 2024.
Elyson, a development of Brookfield Properties in Katy, came in at No. 37 with 217 new home sales. The sales were down 21% from 274 during the first half of 2024.
Cypress Green, a development of Land Tejas/Starwood Land in Cypress, cracked the top 50 at No. 47. The community logged 193 home sales, up from 71 in at midyear 2024.
Only Florida had more new home sales in the top 50 than Texas, according to RCLCO. The Sunshine State’s top MPC’s captured 41% of the sales among ranked communities, followed by Texas with 34%.
Nationally, the top 5 are The Villages in The Villages, Fla., which is northwest of Orlando. The Villages recorded 1,604 new home sales in the first half of 2025.
Ranked second was Lakewood Ranch in Sarasota, Fla., followed by Cadence in Henderson, Nev., and Cane Bay Plantation in Charleston, South Carolina, which tied with Sunterra in Katy with 543 sales.
RCLCO has conducted a national survey of master planned communities since 1994. The rankings are based on sales reported by the communities.
The Houston area, which led the nation in home construction last year, has seen a surge of new residential land activity in recent years.
A 3,000-acre master planned community, called Preservation Creek, was announced last month in Alvin, south of Houston. Houston-based W Land Development is developing Preservation Creek, which will have 5,700 homes upon completion.
July 26, 2025 Realty News Report Copyright 2025
Rendering: Bridgeland. Courtesy Howard Hughes
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