HHHunt Homes has a long history of building in the Greater Raleigh region of North Carolina, and we are expanding into new areas of the state, including Southern Pines, Carthage and Sanford. Gwenn Clarke, our New Home Advisor, was recently interviewed on All Things Moore County, hosted by Bill Sahadi, about our new community in Southern Pines, Traywick at Sandhurst.
HHHunt Homes has a long history of building in the Greater Raleigh region of North Carolina, and we are expanding into new areas of the state, including Southern Pines, Carthage and Sanford. Gwenn Clarke, our New Home Advisor, was recently interviewed on All Things Moore County, hosted by Bill Sahadi, about our new community in Southern Pines, Traywick at Sandhurst.
Video transcript
HHunt Homes has a long history of building in the Greater Raleigh region of North Carolina, and we are expanding into new areas of the state, including Southern Pines, Carthage and Sanford. Gwenn Clarke, our New Home Advisor, was recently interviewed on All Things Moore County, hosted by Bill Sahadi, about our new community in Southern Pines, Traywick at Sandhurst. You can read the full interview below.
Bill Sahadi:
We're going to come back in the second set, and we're going to segue and speak with Clark all about the new home development in Southern Pines. This is All Things Moore County.
Welcome back to our second set of All Things Moore County. We were delighted to have Rachel Jurgens. I don't know how she found the time to come in and talk a little bit about her reflections about this week. But Gwenn, I'm actually glad you guys got a chance to meet.
Gwenn Clarke:
I am too. Just to hear the things that she did and bringing in, in something, a circumstance, who would ever hear of something like that happening and having the sense of community and the people and the support is huge.
Bill Sahadi:
There was a reason that HHHunt Homes selected Moore County. And maybe you got a bit of reinforcement as to the reason.
Gwenn Clarke:
Absolutely.
Bill Sahadi:
Reason why.
Gwenn Clarke:
Obviously, when builders are going and looking for a place to set up a home for new people to come out, and obviously, the beauty of Southern Pines and Sandhills and Pinehurst speaks for itself. And the mecca, the golf mecca, the equestrian. And Rachel kind of reinforced, for me, as I've come here, the sense of community and the openness and the welcoming, and it feels good. My little office is where we first met, Bill.
Bill Sahadi:
You're right in the heart of town.
Gwenn Clarke:
We are right in the heart of town.
Bill Sahadi:
Right next to Betsy's Crepes.
Gwenn Clarke:
Right, a little part of it.
Bill Sahadi:
Between Betsy's crepes and Embers.
Gwenn Clarke:
And Embers. Right between two good restaurants.
Bill Sahadi:
That's right.
Gwenn Clarke:
And the smells that I'm in there all the time, it's crazy. But the sense of openness to people, the welcoming of realtors and just responding and coming and seeking out and coming to the office to welcome me has just been incredibly refreshing.
Bill Sahadi:
It's an intimate community.
Gwenn Clarke:
It is. Even though we opened our grand opening in October, I already feel like a part of that community and that makes me feel really good.
Bill Sahadi:
Well, HHHunt Homes is, to us, you're kind of like the new kid on the block. You're not a builder that has built here before.
Gwenn Clarke:
Correct.
Bill Sahadi:
But you have some ambitious plans.
Gwenn Clarke:
We do.
Bill Sahadi:
Tell me a little bit about the company and how you got here.
Gwenn Clarke:
Our founder, Harry Hunt, the third, started back in 1966 and saw a need in Blacksburg, Virginia for student housing and faculty housing for Virginia Tech. So fast forward five decades later, HHHunt is a premier real estate developer in the Southeast. We have communities in Maryland, in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, recent acquisitions in Tennessee and Georgia.
Bill Sahadi:
Oh wow.
Gwenn Clarke:
And obviously, we started with apartment living, which is huge. There's over 8,000 units. We also do master-plan communities and the single-family homes, which is where I started in Raleigh with HHHunt over six years ago, and now it's funny, 10 years ago or I've been coming to this area for 10 years and-
Bill Sahadi:
As a golfer.
Gwenn Clarke:
Yes. And just as a person to visit this marvelous little community and sanctuary. Now we're building down here. It's so exciting. I feel like it's my little home away from home.
Bill Sahadi:
Your handicap should come down too to reflect that.
Gwenn Clarke:
It should. The key word being should. But I'm still practicing as much as I can. But we've obviously looked at this community for a while, and also, Sanford and Carthage, HHHunt has opened communities. So very excited, again, to be here. I, myself, am an HHHunt owner. I built a house in Raleigh where I live and can speak, obviously, firsthand to the craftsmanship.
Bill Sahadi:
Okay, let's talk about the craftsmanship, the styling, the quality. We are inundated with first-time home buyers. We are inundated with homeowners who want to downsize, and there's a lot of competition. How do you separate yourselves? Your designs and your homes, I've looked at them. They're beautiful.
Gwenn Clarke:
They are beautiful. First of all, I feel like the area itself, Traywick at Sandhurst stands above some of the competition because most of these home sites are half an acre and above. They back up to the beautiful Weymouth Park. It's just like a little oasis where you have the tree-line streets. Your downtown, Southern Pines, is two miles away.
Bill Sahadi:
That's right.
Gwenn Clarke:
The beauty is HHHunt offers, even though we are not a custom builder, per se, we are custom built in the fact that you can go to the design center, you go through that process where you're picking out your selections and making the home your own. And I feel like, especially with COVID that's happening, there's been a lot of quick move-in homes that builders have put up in hopes that someone is going to come and buy a home that they selected. And with HHHunt, it's what you're selecting, and it's your process. And we have five different floor plans that you can choose from, two of which have the primary bedrooms downstairs. And each of those homes has three to four different elevations, so there's no cookie-cutter feel when you drive into the community. They're all different. Again, it's just quality craftsmanship, and it is a personal touch that you might not get with some of the other competition. And I don't want this to come across wrong, but I feel like I almost don't have very much competition because of what we offer.
Bill Sahadi:
Traywick at Sandhurst is located very close to the intersection of Elk Road and Fort Bragg Road. It backs up to Sandhurst West. And as you mentioned, five models ranging from 2,580 to about 3,200. 3,100.
Gwenn Clarke:
Yes.
Bill Sahadi:
So I gathered from our meeting in looking at all the models, you have five base model offerings.
Gwenn Clarke:
Correct.
Bill Sahadi:
But you have a tremendous amount of upgrade options if need be.
Gwenn Clarke:
If need be, that's right.
Bill Sahadi:
What do you say to a client that is taken by the quality but doesn't want to do any upgrades? They want to get in for the best price they can. What are they going to get without doing the upgrades?
Gwenn Clarke:
And that's their option. They can certainly do that. Our included features are granite countertops. We have engineered hardwoods on the floor. We just have a lot of features that may be upgrades with other builders, but they're not with us. And again, that personalization where it's a custom feel to the homeowner. And I think the outdoor living, that you're in this private, quiet, tranquil setting, is really special too. We offer a third story on some of our models. We offer third-car garages. Lots of great structural upgrades are available as well.
Bill Sahadi:
Can we just talk a little bit big picture, the parameters of the price ranges of the homes?
Gwenn Clarke:
Of course. We start in the high fours, and of course, that is the base home. Obviously, you have a home site premium that is attached to that, depending on the home site that you want. So we have that. If you want a third floor, if you want the third car garage, your options, right now, we're relatively new in the community, so it's hard for me to give a ballpark average as to the upgrades that they want to put on. We opened in October and have already sold five homes. And the appeal of our floor plans is different. We have different people that it appeals to. We have people who may be retiring, downsizing, like you mentioned. We have a lot of military families that are looking. And by the way, thanks so much for all their service. I love to be a part of a family who is looking for all the services they do for our country.
We offer Hometown Heroes, which is an added incentive for those folks who come. So it's a range. We start in the high fours, we have some that have finished in the high sixes. We are offering one quick-in move-in because we understand sometimes life changes and people have to be quick and might be willing to sacrifice picking out their own options for something that we did because of the time commitment. Normally, our build time is about eight months.
Bill Sahadi:
I was going to ask you that.
Gwenn Clarke:
Right.
Bill Sahadi:
With the supply chain issues, eight months is, you're trying to cover yourself too, just in case.
Gwenn Clarke:
Exactly, exactly.
Bill Sahadi:
Because normally you would be four to six. No?
Gwenn Clarke:
No. Normally, we'd be maybe in that six month range for these size, but eight months, we feel comfortable. And like you mentioned, COVID's tentacles, were very far reaching, so we want to make sure in the beginning that we have time in case selections, they're not available anymore. We want to make sure that our clients have time to make the right decisions and get the right things for the house.
Bill Sahadi:
The tentacles of COVID are one thing. The tentacles today of the higher interest rate environment causes a bit of a challenge for some buyers.
Gwenn Clarke:
It does. And it's funny, though, historically, rates are still low, and you can speak to that over your long career. They're still relatively low. And real estate is still one of the best investments that you can make. Individual or family, generational wealth, to have that.
Bill Sahadi:
You're right, the dynamic between purchasing and renting has not changed even with the higher rates of interest.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
It has not changed. And if you sit down and do the math, if somebody is here for three years or more, it is absolutely the way to go.
Gwenn Clarke:
Absolutely. And the process, that's another thing about HHHunt. The process is easy. We are here starting from our lenders, there may be a first-time buyer with us, not as much because of what we're offering at this price point, but the lenders are there to talk, find out the best program, what's it going to take, how we can make it a smooth process. The builder, himself, we give weekly updates to folks once we get the permit back to let them know what's happening with the home. Welcome if they want to go out and look at it and explain the construction process to them. It's just really a fun. And for a lot of people, this is their largest investment and it's a huge process.
Bill Sahadi:
One of the redeeming features of the property, Traywick at Sandhurst, is the fact that, unlike some other new build areas around here, you are not right on top of each other.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's exactly right.
Bill Sahadi:
In some cases you think you're in the Bronx, you do. I'm sorry.
Gwenn Clarke:
You don't have to go outside, you can just pass through your-
Bill Sahadi:
Just open up your window and get borrow the sugar. That's not the case.
Gwenn Clarke:
It's not at all.
Bill Sahadi:
And you're trying to fit into the landscape of Sandhurst, what's already there.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
And you've got the land to do it. We're going to come back in the third set and want to ask you a couple more questions about the homes, some of your preferred vendors, some of the incentives that you are offering for a buyer coming in for the first time. HHHunt Homes is building Traywick at Sandhurst. And Gwenn Clarke is our guest. We'll be right back.
Bill Sahadi:
We're back. This is All Things Moore County, our third and final set. We're speaking all about HHHunt Homes with Gwenn Clarke. Traywick at Sandhurst is in the stages of being developed now as we speak off the intersection of Elk Road and Fort Bragg Road, backing up to Sandhurst. You've already, in your own way, you've already sort of painted a picture that to our buyers today, HHHunt Homes is the best cross between a custom build and a spec home. The two get-
Gwenn Clarke:
The big picture.
Bill Sahadi:
The two get married because the buyers have a lot of input.
Gwenn Clarke:
Correct.
Bill Sahadi:
Into the final product.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
The five floor plans are available. And the thing that we closed with in the second set was that it didn't look like it was going to have that federal witness protection program subdivision look. It's spacious. The lots are about a half-acre.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
Some are larger.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
And you're building into the landscape that's already there.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
How many acres do you have?
Gwenn Clarke:
Oh gosh. Let's see.
Bill Sahadi:
And how many home sites?
Gwenn Clarke:
Almost 23. And we have 40 home sites. 35 of which are left. And to touch on that, the beauty is, with the HOA, you have restrictions where you cannot have the same color scheme, the same floor plan across or next to you. That creates that feel, again, that it's a custom space for you and your family. It's not the same as Joe next to you. You know what I mean? And I think that's very important for people to feel if they can't necessarily ... Custom homes and especially on land with this much space is very expensive. And you don't necessarily have that with HHHunt and you still get the feel, which is important.
Bill Sahadi:
There is an HOA.
Gwenn Clarke:
There is, definitely.
Bill Sahadi:
Have you set the prices yet?
Gwenn Clarke:
It's $400 annually.
Bill Sahadi:
$400 a year. The roads that are going to be going in are going to be public roads, not private roads?
Gwenn Clarke:
They are private roads.
Bill Sahadi:
Oh, they are private roads.
Gwenn Clarke:
They're private roads.
Bill Sahadi:
And only $400 a year?
Gwenn Clarke:
Yes.
Bill Sahadi:
That's very reasonable.
Gwenn Clarke:
I think so too.
Bill Sahadi:
So they're all private roads. So as far as garbage pickup, is that done by the town or is that going to be done-
Gwenn Clarke:
That is done by the town.
Bill Sahadi:
Okay.
Gwenn Clarke:
That has the street lamps. There's going to be a sidewalk, pardon me, on the one side, the side that backs up to the Weymouth Park there.
Bill Sahadi:
Weymouth Woods.
Gwenn Clarke:
Yeah, Weymouth Woods, which is such a beautiful ... It's just for people to come in and have that privacy and that feel.
Bill Sahadi:
The cool thing about Traywick at Sandhurst, it's almost equal distance from downtown Aberdeen as it is to downtown Southern Pines.
Gwenn Clarke:
Right. It's really a great location.
Bill Sahadi:
Yeah. The process of working with your company, you put the contracts together, you have the attorney set up.
Gwenn Clarke:
We do.
Bill Sahadi:
You have preferred lenders?
Gwenn Clarke:
We do. We have four different lenders to choose from. It's pretty much a standard build contract, a builder contract that explains all the processes. And we have an attorney who handles everything HHHunt in North Carolina.
Bill Sahadi:
That's part of the contract.
Gwenn Clarke:
Exactly. And she will do the closing. We have incentives right now for Traywick. I have a $5,000 design incentive, which, when the home buyers go to the design center, which is located in Raleigh, they have a credit, so to speak, of $5,000. Then again, if we have a military buyer, they have an additional $1,500 allowance that goes towards that. And then, if you do choose our lenders, then you get $3,000 towards closing.
Bill Sahadi:
That makes it easy. We have some very good brokers in Moore County, and my guess is you have already had an opportunity to meet some of them.
Gwenn Clarke:
I've met some of them. And when I first came to the area, of course, you want to get out and about and took some little goodies. And again, so welcoming, and took the time to hear what I had to offer, of course, because they're looking for their clients as well, but interested. Wanted to see. I've had several come by my little office to see, and we've walked properties and been able to talk about the home sites, see everything more in-depth. One thing that's very nice is the first time HHHunt has had interactive floor plans on the website. So the homeowner and the real estate agent can go in and see, just by virtue of a few clicks what the whole home is going to look like, which is fun. It's a great process for the homeowner to see.
Bill Sahadi:
Is the access to the homes off Elk Road?
Gwenn Clarke:
Yes.
Bill Sahadi:
Only?
Gwenn Clarke:
Yes.
Bill Sahadi:
Not Stonyfield?
Gwenn Clarke:
Well, no, you can come back through Sandhurst-
Bill Sahadi:
Stonyfield at the top.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
So there are two-
Gwenn Clarke:
Access points.
Bill Sahadi:
When the name Traywick came from the owner, two owners ago of the land, Floyd Traywick, who I have-
Gwenn Clarke:
As you know.
Bill Sahadi:
I do. I work with Floyd. Why did you come up with the name Traywick? He sold it to Tri-South and then I guess you all purchased it from Tri-South.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right. And I think to keep that familiarity, and it's a nice name and Traywick at Sandhurst, Because Sandhurst is such a beautiful, the area and the neighborhoods there, just so people have that comfort as well.
Bill Sahadi:
There are a lot of older homes in Sandhurst and Highland Trails, but there's also a move on where people are renovating their existing homes, bringing them up to speed.
Gwenn Clarke:
Correct.
Bill Sahadi:
Because they have perhaps an older home, but they have a beautiful lot. Some of the older homes have some of the best lots, but at Traywick you have actually the best of both worlds.
Gwenn Clarke:
Both worlds. That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
Because the location is superb.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
And there are a lot of people who want new construction, but they're a little tentative due to the supply chain issues. But because of the volume of homes that you build, you should have a system set up that shouldn't have the same issues with-
Gwenn Clarke:
That's exactly right.
Bill Sahadi:
With a Johnny OneNote builder.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right. And to that end too, resale versus brand new, in addition to picking out your home, you have a warranty.
Bill Sahadi:
Right.
Gwenn Clarke:
You don't have to worry about replacing an old HVAC system or updating countertops or bathrooms or any of that kind of stuff. And that's important too, I think, as far as new construction, again, having your own and not having to work. And of course, HHHunt has a one, two, and 10-year warranty, which is pretty much standard for quality builders out there. And again, it's a streamlined process. We're there for the home buyer every step of the way. If you want to walk through construction as it's going on, we have videos that can explain the process. The website, you can see other homeowners who have experienced the same thing. It's just a very easy process.
Bill Sahadi:
Coming off this week with the power outage, five day’s worth, 40 plus thousand people.
Gwenn Clarke:
Crazy.
Bill Sahadi:
I've never seen a development built, a new development built where they included generators. And I know that we don't do that. We were talking a little bit before the show about how the installation of a generator absolutely will help resale. I should put you in touch with some of our local people for some of the homeowners perhaps there might be some interest for people to do that as an add-on for themselves after they close-
Gwenn Clarke:
After they close, right.
Bill Sahadi:
On the purchase. And it's just become more and more apparent. These generator people these days, today, they're like Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. Everyone's calling them up. I've got to get a generator. When I got mine, I think the process took five months from the time I ordered it till the time it came in.
Gwenn Clarke:
The installation.
Bill Sahadi:
The installation, the electrical setup, but so worth it. And I definitely think it's something that could add value. You have a website that is loaded with information.
Gwenn Clarke:
We do.
Bill Sahadi:
Not just about Traywick, but about a lot of your other developments as well.
Gwenn Clarke:
Absolutely. And in the earlier set we spoke, we are also in Sanford and in Carthage. And Carthage, they are different from Traywick in the fact that they are Smart Living. So, they are low-maintenance homes. You still have a selection process, but it's not at the design center. It's something that you can pick different options with. One is in Brookwood, in Carthage, and those also have the larger home sites. And then Sanford is, I think, there's a total of 20 houses with different, not communities, per se, but so far, things are going very well in our venture into Moore County.
Bill Sahadi:
It sounds like the road between Cary and Southern Pines is getting smaller and smaller.
Gwenn Clarke:
Smaller. That's right. That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
That corridor is shortening up.
Gwenn Clarke:
What's an hour?
Bill Sahadi:
Yeah, what's an hour?
Gwenn Clarke:
That's my commute. I still live in Raleigh, and an hour and 10 minutes and then I get to Southern Pines, and there's that feeling of I'm just settling in, and I can take a walk downtown. And even there, I'll hit four different real estate offices right there. And just the feel, the little boutiques, it's just a really good spot. And the train that goes by every day, I'm in my office.
Bill Sahadi:
So let me answer the question where you said, what's an hour? If you were in New York City and you had to drive your car for an hour, you'd-
Gwenn Clarke:
You'd be up the road a mile.
Bill Sahadi:
Eight miles and you'd need a psychiatrist. Down here, if you have to drive 50 miles, which is an hour, a little less, it's a piece of cake.
Gwenn Clarke:
It's nothing.
Bill Sahadi:
It's nothing. It's a couple of songs on the radio.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right. Or a podcast you can listen to.
Bill Sahadi:
Phone calls.
Gwenn Clarke:
There you go.
Bill Sahadi:
Exactly.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's right.
Bill Sahadi:
So the website is, if you want, hhhunthomes.com.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's correct.
Bill Sahadi:
And that's where people should start.
Gwenn Clarke:
Absolutely.
Bill Sahadi:
And you would be available to speak with any of our local real estate brokers.
Gwenn Clarke:
Absolutely.
Bill Sahadi:
Because you co-broke with them.
Gwenn Clarke:
Me and my little team, my partners who are at Sanford and Carthage as well, to come in and talk to real estate offices, bring some breakfast, whatever the case may be, and educate them a little bit on HHHunt Homes. And that's another thing about Southern Pines that I'm finding out is, again, that sense of community and that welcoming and that wanting to garner knowledge to help them succeed, obviously. And just to build a partnership. We're going to be here for a while.
Bill Sahadi:
Yeah. Wish you the best of luck.
Gwenn Clarke:
Thank you, Bill.
Bill Sahadi:
You're located right behind Betsy's Crepes on Broad.
Gwenn Clarke:
127 Southwest Broad Street.
Bill Sahadi:
So it's the size of a minute. It's wedged between Embers on the left as you're facing on Broad, and then Betsy's Crepes on the right.
Gwenn Clarke:
That's it.
Bill Sahadi:
There's a door.
Gwenn Clarke:
There is a door.
Bill Sahadi:
You knock on the door, and then there's this little alley of an office. But it does its job.
Gwenn Clarke:
It's cozy.
Bill Sahadi:
Yeah. It does its job.
Gwenn Clarke:
It's cozy, that's right.
Bill Sahadi:
Best of luck.
Gwenn Clarke:
Thank you, Bill. Thank you so much.
Bill Sahadi:
We welcome you to Moore County.
Gwenn Clarke:
Appreciate it. We're excited.
Bill Sahadi:
HHHunt Homes. Traywick at Sandhurst. Thank you.
Gwenn Clarke:
Thank you.
Bill Sahadi:
This is All Things Moore County. Have a great week.