“There has probably never been in the city’s history a better time to be building housing,” said Dayton City Commissioner Matt Joseph. “This is the right solution at the right time: The faster you can get it up, the better.”
On Wednesday, the Dayton City Commission approved a zoning map amendment to rezone about 45 acres of land located northeast of the intersection of Old Troy Pike and Needmore Road.
Oakes Tree Development proposes constructing 167 single-family, ranch-style homes on the vacant farm land, which borders Riverside and Huber Heights.
The city has changed the site’s zoning from light industrial to suburban residential, which is much more compatible with surrounding property, said Jeff Green, a city of Dayton planner.
The proposed one-story homes will range in size from about 1,150 to 1,725 square feet.
“Per the developer, this is designed primarily for folks to age in place,” Green said. “It helps further (expand) the amount of housing and types of housing the city of Dayton has.”
Lance Oakes, principal with Oakes Tree Development, said this kind of “lifestyle” product is hard to find in this area.
He said the new homes will not be specifically marketed to older people, but they often appeal to this segment of the population, especially empty-nesters, because the units do not have stairs or basements.
Also, he said, many people’s housing preferences are shifting and they want to downsize and would like smaller yards that require less maintenance.
“I think there is quite a bit of pent-up demand in that area for this type of housing,” he said.
Ryan Homes is a partner on the project, and the new homes are expected to cost roughly between $325,000 to $350,000, Oakes said. He added that prices could increase if building and material costs continue their upward climb.
The first phase of construction should begin around June, he said, with homes becoming available to purchase by the end of this year.
Oakes Tree Development also wants to redevelop about 30 acres of adjacent agricultural land adjacent located in Riverside.
Credit: Jim Noelker
Credit: Jim Noelker
Oakes Tree proposes building 84 new homes on the adjacent Riverside property.
Some people who live near the property oppose the project and have raised concerns about traffic, potential drainage issues and other issues they say could impact their quality of life.
The proposed housing site is just north of another housing development, called Willow Hills, located at 4400 Old Troy Pike, south of Needmore Road.
Oberer Land Developers, in partnership with Ryan Homes, plans to build 256 new single-family homes at the property, which will be ranch-style or two stories and are expected to sell in the mid-$200,000 range.
The 101-acre site will have 31 acres of open space.
Work has begun at the site, and signage and new infrastructure are going in.
The local housing supply became extremely tight during the pandemic, and homes that hit the market often sell quickly, many above the asking price.
As of Wednesday morning, there were only 636 active single-family home listings in the six-county region, which is down from more than 3,200 at the same time two years ago, said Billie Duncan-Hart, president of Dayton Realtors.
“Inventory is incredibly low,” Duncan-Hart said. “The demand is there, the supply is not.”
In January, new home and condo listings were down nearly 4% from 2021 and 20% from 2020, according to data from Dayton Realtors.
The average home sales price was $211,790 in January, a nearly 10% increase from 2021 and up about 25% from 2020.
The region’s housing market needs all types of new product, at all price points, Duncan-Hart said, and first-time homebuyers face an especially tough market.
Some homes cost twice as much they would have a few years ago, she said, and many people are reluctant to sell because they feel they don’t have anywhere to move to because of severely limited supply.
“If we had an abundance of inventory out there — supply — prices might come down,” she said.
Credit: Jim Noelker
Credit: Jim Noelker
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