PEARLAND, TX - Drever Capital Management (DCM), a vertically integrated commercial real estate firm specializing in institutional class senior and multifamily communities, continues to expand its 55 + active adult brand with construction starting on Larkspur at Shadow Creek, in Pearland, TX, a suburb of Houston.
The 257-unit Class A active adult mid-century modern campus will offer a “resort lifestyle” for the incoming wave of value-conscious baby boomers at an approximate 40 percent to 50 percent discount to the traditional senior independent and assisted living communities in the surrounding greater Houston marketplace.
The 12-acre development will include The Villas at Larkspur comprised of a 42 private cottage neighborhood tailored to the more independent resident looking to transition away from the burden of homeownership while benefitting from resident activities and events within the 215-unit main apartment buildings boasting over 18,000 square feet of dedicated resident amenity space.
“Our new Larkspur brand is a total departure from the traditional senior living sector as we know it today,” says Noah Drever, managing partner for the Tiburon, CA-based real estate investment firm.
“Designed for people 55-years-old and up who want a carefree lifestyle in a location that’s ‘close-to-everything-important,’ it is a highly flexible, amenity-rich community that could easily be mistaken for a five-star hotel that also has innovative resident engagement programs that focus exclusively on research-based wellness, health, and enriching social experiences,” explains Drever.
With a 50-year track record as a “contrarian impact investor” and over 47,000 multifamily and senior apartment units either developed or acquired, the Larkspur brand is an “evolution” of founder-chairman Maxwell Drever’s apartment communities throughout the U.S. Sunbelt.
“While underserved, this is a difficult asset class to both develop and manage because it’s a true hybrid between multifamily and senior independent and assisted living,” Noah Drever explains. “With a decade of higher acuity senior housing experience under our belts and our deep multifamily roots, Larkspur Communities, in our opinion, qualifies as a premier boutique 55+ active adult brand.”
It’s not surprising that greater Houston is the location of Drever Capital’s second Larkspur active adult community. On November 1, 1992, Maxwell Drever became the largest owner of rental apartments in America’s fifth biggest city with 10,492 residential units owned and managed in Houston.
Larkspur at Shadow Creek follows Larkspur at Twin Creeks, a 243-unit active adult community completed July 2018 in the high growth market of Allen, TX. By year end, Drever Capital expects to begin construction on their third Larkspur community in New Braunfels, TX, the second fastest growing city in the U.S, according to the Census Bureau. While locations are undisclosed, a fourth and fifth Larkspur development are in the planning stage.
By having a vertically integrated seasoned team at the helm, Larkspur at Shadow Creek is the “180-degree opposite of the corporate-owned, rigidly-managed, one-size-fits-all senior community mindset,” Drever adds. “We are always searching for the next progressive resident activity to add to our tried, true and tested program. Our goal is simply to provide the most exciting and enriching lifestyle at a financially comfortable price point.”
The first cottage units are slated for completion in the second half of 2020.
The community is located 13 miles from the Texas Medical Center, the largest medical complex in the world with 5,000 doctors and 15,000 nurses and minutes from the Pearland Town Center offering top-tier shopping, dining and entertainment venues.
“We chose a residential mid-century modern architectural design that would appeal to people from all 50 states who, we feel, will be attracted to Pearland which has the third fastest growing economy in America, ranked by WalletHub’s 2018 study of 515 U.S. cities,” Drever says.
Shadow Creek Ranch in Pearland “checks off all the boxes and meets all our investment criteria,” contends Noah Drever. “Excellent location with strong demographic trends in a seasoned master planned community. Our site has a great marketing window sitting off Shadow Creek Parkway and 20 minutes from the Texas Medical Center.”
But that’s just the tip of the iceberg, insists Carol Artz-Bucek, president of the Pearland Chamber of Commerce. “We have three five-A rated school districts, successful and high attendance sports teams and a strong, business-friendly economy that draws families with younger kids and, in turn, baby boomers who are now active adults who want to live near their grandchildren,” she says. “Drever Capital Management understands this, and they are moving into Pearland with the Larkspur brand at the perfect time.”