KB HOME IS TAKING A NEW TWIST ON EXPANSION. Instead of heading west, the home builder is launching its 39th division in the burgeoning Washington, D.C., metro area. Mark Kinsley, president of the newly formed Mid-Atlantic division, says the launch is strategic because “it’s a tremendous area for job growth and population growth. This market has a great foreseeable future.”
And while land availability is a concern for builders throughout the area, Kinsley, who most recently has served as president of KB’s New Mexico division, says the constraints won’t be a major stumbling block. “We have the ability to do small infill, high-density projects and large, 1,000-unit plus master planned communities.”
Kinsley expects to open five communities in 2006. The division already has one development, Martin’s Chase, under construction in fast-growing Loudoun County, Va. The community will feature roughly 147 single-family homes, with sales to begin in early 2006.
KB Home also plans to work with Centex to construct a mixed-used infill community on the 180-acre Crown Farm property near Gaithersburg, Md. KB anticipates building 1,000 homes, including single-family homes, townhomes, and multifamily units. Sales will begin in late 2007.
The market’s multiplicity has shaped the division’s strategy in gaining a preliminary toe-hold in the area. As a result, the division will boast a wide product array. According to Kinsley, the market is rife with “very diverse buyers that are in need of housing.”
