Buying a Home in Flower Mound
There is no shortage of quality developments in Flower Mound. But one of the pillars of this small town – many consider it the flagship community – is Bridlewood.
Built in the 1990s and situated in the center of Flower Mound, it set the standard of excellence for future developments.
One of those newer neighborhoods is Wellington, which is one of the largest developments in town and features plenty of “starter” homes.
You can still get in on the “ground floor” in Riverwalk, a newly developed mixed-use community blending retail, restaurants, and public spaces with traditional homes, townhomes, and even apartments.
Another, more established, mixed-use community is Lakeside, which not only offers quick access to Grapevine Lake… but is also the place to be on Friday nights.
What else makes them special?
Tune in to find out…
Where first-time homebuyers should look
Price points for homes here (it’s more affordable than you might think)
Details about nearby retail and dining options
The perfect neighborhood for horse lovers – and where golfers should go
And much more
Mentioned in this episode:
Transcript
Steve Gordon: Welcome to the Around Flower Mound podcast. I'm actually not your host. My name is Steve Gordon. I'm here to introduce you to your host. Your host for the podcast is Nicole Smith Woodard. And, Nicole, I'm excited that you're here. Say a quick hello to everybody and then I want to give you a proper introduction.
Nicole Smith Woodard: Excellent. Hello, everyone.
Steve: All right. So if you don't know Nicole, well, you should, because she's really involved in the community in Flower Mound. She's been in real estate in the Metroplex for twenty-five years. She's a lifelong resident of the area. And really, the thing that is most interesting to me, Nicole, is you could live anywhere that you wanted, you know, you're in real estate, and so you get to see all of the different parts of the greater Dallas area.
And you've chosen to live in Flower Mound, and you've been there since 2014, and you're really plugged in to the community. And so I'm excited to learn more about Flower Mound, and I appreciate you having me come on and sit in the host chair while we sort of take a tour over the next few episodes.
Nicole: Thank you, I appreciate the opportunity, and I'm just excited to start this adventure, and I appreciate your help, and I appreciate those that are listening in on Around Flower Mound.
Steve: So what we're going to do, folks, over the next several episodes... Nicole is just an absolute expert in all of the different neighborhoods within Flower Mound, and so she's going to take us on a tour on the podcast and kind of walk us through the major areas within the community.
Alright, so today we're going to begin a podcast tour around Flower Mound, and Nicole is going to take us kind of neighborhood by neighborhood through all the major areas of town. And today, Nicole, we're going to start with the Bridlewood area. I'm excited to learn about it. So tell us a little bit about Bridlewood and why it's one of the really, kind of, pillar neighborhoods within the community.
Nicole: Excellent. Well, Bridlewood has been the flagship community of Flower Mound for a number of years. I think many will agree that it's located somewhat in the center of town. It really sets the standard of excellence that future developments have.
This neighborhood came online here in the 90s. It's built around a beautiful golf course. And it has a golf club and amenity center, tennis courts, a basketball court, a fitness center. It's got its own fire station and elementary school and middle school right there on-property. It's just absolutely gorgeous.
When people drive into Bridlewood, they just feel like they're at home. It's beautifully landscaped--the medians, the entrances, the exits. There are actually eleven communities within the Bridlewood neighborhood, and each phase has its own little caveats and signatures as far as the home styles, their sizes, the ages, so you see a little bit of a difference in architecture depending upon the different phase.
But overall, Bridlewood has been and continues to be one of the most wonderful neighborhoods that people who choose Flower Mound choose to live in.
Neighborhoods That Fit Your Needs
Steve: So Nicole, what can someone expect if they're looking for a house in Bridlewood? What can they expect to find there?
Nicole: Well, first of all, the homes in Bridlewood today, as of this recording in 2020, will range anywhere from the low four hundreds to well over 1.2 million. And there's a spectrum, obviously, in between, but you're going to find homes that were primarily built in the 90s or early 2000s. Some of the phases have a smaller yard, and then it goes all the way up to phases that have over an acre yard that is near an equestrian center.
So for example, if we were to talk about the Belmont phase, for example, that's the one that's closest to the middle school. It's also closest to the back entrance to Bridlewood, there's an entrance off Cross Timbers Road that's closest to the most southern point, it's real close to retail, restaurants, that kind of good stuff.
And then the Belmont neighborhood, for example, was closest to the back entrance, which is actually the closest to the Highland Village shops and Super Target and some of the other wonderful shopping as well. So that's when, for example, that's the Belmont phase.
Whereas for example, the Bridlewood Farms phase, it's on the estate homes and they're larger lots, and it's closer to the equestrian center, which makes this particular phase really ideal for horse owners or just for folks who want that best case scenario of feeling like they're in the country but very close to city amenities.
Steve: So what are some of the amenities that folks can find in the neighborhood?
Nicole: Well, first of all, there's two community pools, which is a wonderful feature for folks, even if they have their own swimming pool, which many homes here in Texas do. It gets very, very hot in the summertime. So you'll find the vast majority of homes in Bridlewood actually do have their own swimming pool. But the beautiful thing about having access to community pools is that really is where your neighborhood will congregate many times throughout the year.
And, of course, especially in the summertime, there's also tennis courts, there's a basketball court, a fitness center, so even though it's very close to some really high-end, well-done fitness centers, you have access to your own. You don't necessarily have to join the additional one at an additional expense. There's also walking and biking paths and playgrounds and amenities, all in that same area.
And of course, the town of Flower Mound is almost completely connected by walking and biking trails, but even within Bridlewood, they have their own. So it's just a wonderful community feel, very consistent, and I think that the consistency is one thing I hear a lot from people that what they like about Flower Mound in general and what they like about Bridlewood specifically is the consistency.
When you pull in to the Bridlewood community, you can feel confident that you're going to see homes that are well-maintained, yards that are beautifully landscaped. You'll see the medians and the common spaces are, you'll see the colors change by the season. They're very well done. And it's just a really, really comfortable feeling for people in all phases of life.
Steve: So Nicole, Bridlewood sounds amazing and I know that right in that area is another great neighborhood, Wellington. Tell us a little bit about Wellington as we continue on our tour.
Nicole: Absolutely. So Wellington is kind of... Originally, it was kind of thought to be the next best thing to Bridlewood. So at the time that Wellington came on board in the mid-90s, right away, it had already been on board for a while. And Wellington offered a wider variety of homes available for folks and so, as a result, then you have people really trying to make the decision, do we go Bridlewood or do we go Wellington, and bottom line is, yes, the answer is yes. With whichever choice you made then or would make today, you would be making a fantastic choice.
So Wellington is actually bigger, it has almost 2,400 homes and it started in, like I said, the mid-90s and just finished out probably within the last ten years. So it was interesting that there are newer homes in Wellington just by the sheer size of it and the nature of the development of it. So that's one little differentiator.
There are smaller homes available in Wellington. So that's going to give more buyers the opportunity to actually get in to that neighborhood. It's lovely as well. It's on the southern area of Flower Mound. So as far as proximity to the airport, different things like that. There's definitely some advantages to being in that community.
There's a lot of amenities, lots of families, again, of all stages of life, you'll have your entry level--entry level is not really the right word--but just, you know, maybe somebody's first home, and then you'll have people that moved up to their next size home, and even bigger homes, and then you have people who downsized and did it all over again. And so it really makes for a fantastic community.
It's all connected with sidewalks. There are parks throughout the community. So for example, there are tennis courts and there's a basketball court and a putting green. There's actually a nine-hole disc golf course and a Junior Olympic-sized swimming pool. And then there's also an athletic club at our fitness center that's really nice as well. And then there's actually a second, the West complex, that also includes an Olympic-sized pool with cabanas and a playground.
So Wellington really offers just a phenomenal lifestyle for even more families just due to the sheer nature of its size. It's got beautiful ponds. It's just a beautiful neighborhood with trails to walk through and to meet and greet your neighbors and just really enjoy a super high quality of life here in Flower Mound.
Steve: Well, that sounds fantastic. You know, when people are thinking about that area, what types of homes should they expect to find in that part of Flower Mound?
Nicole: So that's a great question. So one of the things that maybe differentiates Wellington from other neighborhoods is, of course, you're going to have all-brick homes for the most part, there may be a little bit of siding. But that's something that's pretty consistent here in Texas, it's a baseline expectation that you'd have a brick home, a lot of brick and stone combination, which is really nice and popular.
You know, the average priced home in Wellington is plus or minus 10% of the average priced home in Flower Mound almost consistently, and that's primarily because it makes up such a big percentage of the homes in Flower Mound. So it's just a real affordable community to live in.
For example, today, as we talked, there are 11 homes available, ranging from $410,000 to $535,000. So with the average price in Flower Mound right now being around $450,000 anyone in that average range could move to Wellington. And that being said, over 100 houses will sell every six months. So that's a lot of opportunities, a lot of movement, a lot of chances for somebody, if this is a neighborhood that you're watching, there's a lot of chances that you will find the house you were looking for.
A lot of times, I would say at least half the homes do have their own swimming pool, even though there are community pools available. But that's not necessarily the case, if indeed that's not what you want. There are also a fair number of homes that do not have their own swimming pool. So that may be a little bit of a unique feature as well, especially for homes this age.
So most of the homes in Wellington were built after, let's just say, around 2000. So early on, the earliest probably would be '95. The latest, finished here just probably within the last five to ten years, but all, again, very well-made, very well-constructed, very traditional looking on the exterior, of Texas homes. And then of course, people do a very nice job of maintaining their yards, of improving their properties. Very, very lovely neighborhood to drive into and to live in.
Why Riverwalk Is A Unique Community
Steve: Fantastic. So, Nicole, as we carry this tour through the community, why don't we go next to Riverwalk at Flower Mound? What can you tell us about Riverwalk? I know that's one of the newer areas.
Nicole: It is. So Riverwalk is a really exciting multi-use community that is literally in the heart of Flower Mound. And it is a mixed-use community. So what that means is, unlike a lot of the subdivisions that we've already talked about, this particular community actually includes single-family homes, so you've got homes with backyards and no shared walls, you have townhomes which are shared walls, you actually have apartments that are for rent.
In addition, you have restaurants and access to retail. So there actually is a river. It's, of course, a man-made river. And it's lovely. There is actually a wedding chapel as one of the really exciting new... This is brand new to this area as of this recording, it's just now coming online, but it's a beautiful wedding venue and event venue. And then very soon there will be a number of restaurants that will be available on the Riverwalk with the view and it's going to be a great community place to connect.
Already there are community events at the Riverwalk, most specifically something that you'll hear more about in a future episode, and that is the Cross Timbers Rotary Duck Derby. And that is held at the Riverwalk every year. So it's a lot of fun.
It's again, it's unusual to have apartments, townhomes, and single family homes in the same location. But what I know from being in and around that area and talking with residents who own and rent in the area, it is a thriving place to be, it's where people want to be. It's just a really cool community.
One of the really unique features of it is they have very modern renderings. Physical art, they look like flowers only, if you didn't know that's what it was, then it's abstract enough that you really have to stop and look at some really, really unique public art. And of course, in the context of it being the Flower Mound, it makes a lot of sense, but it really is designed to be a community connection point.
And as of right now, you can still purchase a new townhome, you can still purchase a new single family home. And then of course, there will be apartments that are available for a lease to come and go, but it's a great place to at least start your life in Flower Mound, especially if you're not quite sure what part of Flower Mound you ultimately want to settle in, then it's a great opportunity to really get your feet wet in Flower Mound and see what life in Flower Mound is all about.
Steve: Yeah, sounds like it's really developing into an interesting area. Tell us, as we move on through the town, tell us a little bit about Lakeside.
Nicole: Well, Lakeside, I have a personal affinity for because I was the second homeowner by a week. And so when we built our house here in 2014, this was right as the Metroplex was coming out of the recession, and I had been driving by this property for years, "coming soon, coming soon." Well, what is "coming soon?"
Well, lo and behold, Lakeside is also a mixed-use community that includes single family homes and multi-family homes and then a luxury condominium tower. There's restaurants, retails, movie theaters. Well, when I built my house, when I moved into my house, none of that was there. None of the infrastructure that is here now was there at that time, so we did so on faith.
And it was a wonderful experience to see this neighborhood come to life. I recall when they were building it in 2014, there were only 240 single family homes. And there were three different builders at the time. And as they would release six to twelve blocks, whatever the increment was, they would call through their waiting list of fifty, sixty people at any given time and then, as those lots were released, they were snatched up and homes were built.
And as a result, you know, they always say that you can tell how a home will resale ultimately by how the neighborhood sold to begin with, and this is true, not just with Lakeside, but also with Bridlewood, with Wellington, with the Riverwalk, because there has just been such amazing market reception to this community.
It continues to hold true. Very few resale homes, very few pre-owned homes come on the market, and when they do, they go very, very quickly. And pre-owned homes in, excuse me, in Lakeside, you've got the row homes, which are more patio home types where you have zero lot line on one side and a five-foot side yard with rear entry garages. So there are those and we call those the villa homes.
And then there's just your traditional home in your traditional quarter acre-ish lot. And then there is a section of luxury homes that actually back up to Corps of Engineer property overlooking Lake Grapevine.
And then the final phase of Lakeside, which will be called Lakeside Village, is yet to come online, but they're zoning, and they're preparing to build luxury villa homes that will start around 1.2 million, and there are currently luxury townhomes available for purchase in around the $600,000s. We'll see how quickly those sell as well.
But overall, Lakeside, what makes it unique is it's one of the southernmost points of Flower Mound, so it's super easy to jump onto the highway, ten to fifteen minutes door-to-door from Lakeside to DFW International Airport, which is a huge selling feature. Not to mention DFW Airport, but just all points Metroplex because of our proximity to major highways.
Within Lakeside is movie house and eatery theater, which is fabulous, restaurants, a Starbucks. Everything that you would need to live and work and play is right here at Lakeside, and there's live music every Friday night, weather permitting, in the spring, summer, and fall. And it's just a real amazing, fun place to be every Friday night.
This is a very, in general, Flower Mound, specifically, Lakeside, a very walkable community, where you see your neighbors out and about walking around from point A to point B. And of course Lakeside also has the advantage of being close to the lake. So there are some trails, easy access to the Northshore trail and some of the other amenities that is offered by Lake Grapevine.
Steve: So Nicole, we've covered the four major communities in Flower Mound, we've covered Bridlewood, we've covered Wellington so far in our tour, we've covered Riverwalk at Flower Mound, and Lakeside. And I know there are a bunch of great, smaller communities outside of those. And maybe they don't always get the attention, but I know that there's great things there. So if folks listening are thinking about areas outside of those four major communities, what can they expect?
Nicole: That's a great question. And what I see time and time again is there is literally something for everyone who is looking to make Flower Mound their home. There are areas of our community where you can buy a 1500 square-foot home built in the 80s for anywhere in the $200,000 range, all the way up to a property on four or five acres in a gated community for $11 million.
And there's everything in between. There are neighborhoods in particular that have cul-de-sacs and they're known for that, or they're known for their amenity center, or they're known for their proximity to a particular park. You know, Flower Mound has amazing parks, walking and biking trails throughout the community.
And it really is a matter of what somebody's budget is. And again, the average price currently in Flower Mound of sold homes is around $450,000. But the average price home available is well over $800,000. So there are brand new communities coming online right now of well over a million, but even some that you can still buy even closer to that $400,000 to $600,000 range.
So if somebody is looking for a brand new home, for example, those opportunities exist here in Flower Mound. There are also communities where there may just be one cul-de-sac. There are some gated communities. There are some communities where it may just be a street off of a main street.
So the area in the western part of Flower Mound, the town did an amazing job of conserving the raw, open land and put in some building restrictions years ago that kept those to minimum two-acre lots. And so that obviously is a completely different feel. If somebody is wanting acreage, five acres, ten acres, there are still opportunities for that.
On the other end of the spectrum, if they're over fifty-five, for example, there is a community right now under construction where it's the one for you, and it's homes that are energy efficient, and they're made for folks in that particular phase of life.
So really, and then I may have mentioned this already, but there is a luxury condominium tower that is coming online in Lakeside, overlooking Lake Grapevine. Every unit has a view of the lake. And the amenities of this tower are amazing. So literally whatever somebody is looking for by way of housing is available here in Flower Mound.
Luxury Near Lake Grapevine
Steve: It's really unusual to find a community with such a range of options for homeowners who are looking to either move up within the community or work to move in to the community from outside. I know, Nicole, that there's one more area that you wanted to touch on, and that's the luxury homes down near Grapevine Lake. Tell us a little bit about that area--what's unique about it and what folks can find there.
Nicole: Well first of all, it's absolutely beautiful. You know, Texas is not necessarily known for its beauty. However, as a lifelong, fifth-generation Texan, Texas land is beautiful, especially as you get closer to Lake Grapevine where the mature trees, and just the sprawling hills... And it's just very, very special. And what people that I know who have made the purchase decision to be...
And there's a handful of luxury communities that are gated so you get additional privacy, for example, Chateau du Lac or Point Noble or The Landing. And those are just some. The lot sizes are going to be well over an acre or more. And the homes are very generous in size, very well-done, custom-built, some as old as twenty to twenty-five years old, others, there are still lots available where somebody could build a brand new masterpiece.
I find that the people who are drawn to that particular area are looking for luxury. They're looking for privacy, they're looking for a solid quality of life, whatever that means to them. Right? And so they, you know, whether they want their children to attend public schools or they want them to attend a handful of the private schools that are available, they want, they don't want to be...
Everybody has their own set of goals and wishes. But somebody that takes a luxury home in this area may be different from some of the other areas where they could purchase luxury property. I think it really is the privacy, the simplicity, and the proximity, primarily to DFW Airport. So to be able to have a palatial estate of this degree, at this price…
That's the other thing, Flower Mound has always offered a tremendous value to the home owner and for what they spend, not just on the house itself, but our property taxes are one of the lowest in the area. So again, a luxury homebuyer, they're looking at different ways they can economize while still having the luxury that they're accustomed to or desire. That option exists.
Being gated, these are places that, if you didn't know they were there, you wouldn't know they were there. So it really is the ultimate in luxury and privacy all within twenty to thirty minutes door-to-door of DFW International Airport. It's virtually unheard of anywhere else in the Metroplex.
How Living in Flower Mound Can Reduce Your Commute
Steve: That's really amazing. And I know throughout the community that commute times to the airport are reasonable for somebody who is worried about, you know, being able to get in and out and has to travel. What's it like, in general, from Flower Mound to get down to the airport?
Nicole: Well, that's a great question. And mobility is going to be an even bigger issue going forward for the Metroplex. And so getting people from Point A to Point B, because we Texans like to get in our car, and we like to drive where we want to go. We don't have mass transit to the effect of subways and things like that. We do have some trains coming online, but not necessarily that are going to dramatically take cars off the road necessarily.
So for those who are looking to be close to the airport, number one, like I said, Lakeside, you're ten to fifteen minutes door-to-door. The further north you go into Flower Mound, it's a little bit longer. But it is one of the closest communities to DFW International Airport that you don't have to pay a toll to get to. So that's one of the things, too, is it's very economical.
So definitely proximity to the airport, but the other thing is, the way the Metroplex is so sprawling, there are major employment centers in downtown Fort Worth, in downtown Dallas, in Plano, Frisco, in the Alliance Corridor, in the Financial corridor in Westlake. So all of these areas are within a very easy commute from Flower Mound.
So something I told some folks years and years ago, who had been on one side of the Metroplex to the other, if they had bought in Flower Mound twenty years ago, let's just say, then they could have bought their next home and then their next home and the next home and stayed within this same community.
They could have commuted north, south, east, west, maybe a twenty, thirty, forty-minute commute either way, and not have had to disrupt their lives and their families and their church and their schools and all that kind of good stuff that could have just stayed right here.
So really this is, I truly believe, the geographical center of the DFW Metroplex universe is right here in Flower Mound, and we are so fortunate to be as close as we are to all of the benefits that DFW Airport brings us.
Steve: Fantastic, Nicole, well thank you for taking us on this tour around Flower Mound. And for folks listening who maybe would like to get in touch with you and get some help looking for a home or are maybe thinking of selling their home, how can they get in touch with you?
Nicole: Well first, I'm going to leave a phone number, but also, I would encourage you just to look me up on Facebook at Nicole Smith Realtor. Or Instagram--Nicole Smith, TX. But call me. (682) 472-2473. My website is fantasticdfwhomes.com. And of course, email or text or any of those ways, I'm very connected.
And I would welcome the opportunity. I do a weekly home tour. So that's something that I would be happy to connect somebody to if they were just looking to just explore the area to see what's out here, to see what might be a good match for them.
Steve: Fantastic. Well, we'll have all of that linked up in the show notes. Give us that phone number one more time, please.
Nicole: (682) 472-2473.
Steve: Perfect. Nicole, thanks very much again for allowing me to come on and kind of take over the podcast for this episode. And thank you for taking us on the tour of Flower Mound. Really fascinating, all the different parts of the community. And I know this will be a real benefit for people who are thinking about either moving within the community or moving to the community. Thank you.
Nicole: Thank you.
