Every new home begins with the land it is built on. At Onyx+East, before our talented sales, marketing, or construction teams can even get started, our development team is at the starting line of any potential new project. The first step to starting a new project is selecting the perfect site.

Selecting a site is a very important and complex decision. It all starts with asking yourself some basic questions, such as – Who is our target demographic? What makes this place special? Where are other investments taking place nearby? When will this site be ready to develop? And, most importantly, Why would someone choose to buy here?

As our society continues to change, the desire for urban living continues to grow. Nowadays, we want the freedom to be close to work without a long commute. We want the freedom to walk to that cool new coffee shop, delicious restaurant, or trendy brewery just down the street. And, whether it’s our first or fourth house, we want our home to be a long-term investment for our future. All of these wants and needs are taken into consideration when selecting a site. As real estate developers, we use our professional knowledge and insight of the local market to select sites in locations that offer these features that are important to you – the buyer.

Here are just a few of our top factors taken into consideration when selecting a site:

• Attainability: While we can all probably name off our favorite neighborhoods and way, we might not always be able to afford to live there. That is why it is important for us to select sites that offer some of those same great qualities as your favorite neighborhood, but, at a price that is more realistic for your budget.
• Proximity: Location, location, location. Just like when buying a home, proximity plays a major role in site selection.Ultimately, we want to develop in locations that are near where you want, or need, to be. That is why proximity to employment and recreation destinations is always high on our priority list.
• Sense of Place: Every lot is part of a block. Every block is a piece of a neighborhood. And every neighborhood has special characteristics that make it unique. Every site has a special sense of place that is determined by the context that surrounds it. We try to select sites that offer a strong connection to the location so that our buyers can imagine their future life there before the foundations are even poured.

Such as the various designs and styles of a house, every unique site may not be attractive to everyone. Any great city offers a wide range of diverse neighborhoods with different neighbors, parks, restaurants, architecture, and, yes, even price points. That is why it is important to select a site that offers neighborhood desirability with the Onyx+East products that we provide. We strive to find sites that can take unused or underperforming land and turn it into a future Life’s Address community. It is a tricky balance but, if done correctly, can make huge impacts in community development. After a site is selected, our development team then takes the site to the next stage in the process in order to make the project appropriate for the location – conceptual design. From this point on, our site will go through various design iterations, approvals, land development, and marketing strategies until finally the selected site is ready for construction and sales. At Onyx+East, the success of every new project begins with selecting the land it’s built on.

Brandon Bart – Senior Development Associate

• Projects