Maximizing Space, Minimizing Costs: The Why Behind Tall and Skinny Homes

Back in 2016, the first tall and skinny houses were built in the Old Hickory neighborhood of Hopewell, which we jokingly called the "Sexy Six," as we were initially asked by the developer to GC the project. These houses were a bit of a shock at first because they were so different from everything else around. It's understandable that for many of us living here, this shift toward building more of these houses might seem unsettling and against this neighborhood’s historically larger lots.

Originally, Hopewell was first platted in 1918, with lots designed measuring 25 feet wide and 150 feet deep, generally (see attached image). However, until the the tall and skinny houses popped up, most of us hadn't thought much about the potential of these smaller lots, or even knew they existed beneath the current larger lots. What looked like one big lot could actually be divided into two, three, or in the case of Lafayette Ave, 11 single-family homes, in accordance with the original subdivision design. This was a game-changer. It marked a change in the history of Hopewell’s architecture. It stirred discussions and caused many to develop convictions about yard space. But it has also meant that more friends and family have found a place to live in our beloved neighborhood.

Now, the first homes constructed in this way were making larger profits because of sellers’ who were not aware of Hadleys Bend City’s original platting. In this case, deserving owners were deceived out of due compensation for how their land was going to be used. Unfortunately, there are stories of builders promising to build a single home when negotiating with the buyer, but eventually building  6 or more on a particular property.

But now the market is aware of current land values based upon how units can be built. It’s important to understand that this construction trend isn't about chasing bigger profits. In fact, building these kinds of houses isn't necessarily more profitable than other types of construction on much larger, i.e., more expensive lots.

The reality is, as the neighborhood has grown and changed, and landowners know the underlying value of their current lots, the cost of land has gone up, making it tougher to build affordable housing in Hopewell, as is the case in all of  Davidson County. Recent 25’ by 150’ undeveloped lots in Hopewell have sold for $70,000, $80,000, and even $90,000. In addition to increased land costs, builders and developers are dealing with increased labor and material prices, rising interest rates on construction loans, higher insurance rates; as well as the ever-increasing development impact fees, commission, and closing costs. This makes affordable home building more complicated, and it is something we want to address by building smaller homes on the original lot sizes.

So now, if a builder purchases a property with multiple lots, they cannot budget building larger homes that span multiple lots unless the buyer is ready to pay for it, or in a housing market where people are looking for homes that would be sold at the price range that size home/ lot would cost.

At MCH Builders we are committed to building homes so that people who do the necessary work of building up and maintaining our communities and our cities can afford to purchase. We do not want to price out the teacher wanting to be approved for a home in an area they work in. We want to do the extra work on our end to make this a possibility.