Atlanta builder targets first-time buyers with ‘affordable’ houses in ’burbs

About a mile and a half east of Marietta’s historic square, within clucking distance of The Big Chicken, longtime Atlanta homebuilder Brock Built Homes is launching a new line of single-family product catered to the city’s “growing affordable and first-time buyer market,” the company recently announced.

The craftsmanship and community planning, reps say, will be top-notch, and the prices exceptionally low in comparison to intown houses, but will it be enough to lure intowners to a largely car-dependent lifestyle? (The area counts nearby retail and restaurants, but those are outnumbered by surface parking lots).

Called “Marvelle,” the Washington Street project will be the first in a series of communities under the Brock Select name. According to company president Steve Brock, the entry-level offerings will incorporate “Brock’s expected look and feel” with prices starting in the high $200,000s.

Brock Built

Active in Atlanta for three decades, Brock Built has transformed industrial sites into pockets of housing such as West Town and West Highlands, while other plans call for a “pioneer” townhome venture along Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway in Bankhead.

Meanwhile, the company’s big mixed-use ambitions for another section of that parkway have attracted pushback from English Avenue neighbors this month.

In Marietta, expect Marvelle to offer two options of three-story floorplans with master suites on the main levels.

Beyond the homes, per a press release, prospective buyers will find “a focus on tree-lined streets, green space throughout the neighborhood, and Brock’s signature ‘Mews’ parks that help to facilitate a sense of community among the residents.”

Elsewhere in the Marietta market, reps for a Traton Homes townhome project north of the city’s storied square reported brisk sales in March, when about half of the units had been claimed.

The fourth phase of North Square is coming along Canton Road, touting easy access to Interstate 75 and prices in the low $300,000s.

• Recent news and discussion from beyond Atlanta’s Perimeter [Curbed]
• Near Marietta Square, townhomes from low $300Ks report gangbuster sales [Curbed]