Bill Lewis

Starter homes – houses with modestly sized floor plans and prices to match that appeal to first-time buyers – are elusive in the Nashville region, but they can be found in Sumner County.

In Gallatin, Portland, White House and Hendersonville, builders are offering new homes with prices ranging from the low to mid-$200,000s. That’s well below the average home price in the county, which was $310,654 in July, according to data compiled by the Williamson County Association of Realtors.

“They can’t touch a starter home any closer to Nashville for that,” said John Wilkinson, affiliate broker for Tennessee Realty Partners in White House.

Home prices tend to drop off the farther you get from the city, making it easier for first-time buyers to get a mortgage.

Realtors have a name for that: Drive until you qualify.

In return for driving a few miles north on I-65, Highway 31E or Highway 109, buyers can find a selection of homes with attainable prices.

In Portland, Wilkinson is building homes in the Creekwood subdivision with prices in the low $200,000s. Homes have 1,300 to 1,400 square feet of living space

“I have three under contract for $200,000 to $215,000,” he said.

The subdivision will have 42 homes with floor plans with three bedrooms and two full-baths, 10-by-15-foot backyard decks, hardwoods in the living area, carpet in the bedrooms and kitchens with islands or eat-in bars.

Most of the homes do not have garages but have concrete driveways. The houses are on quarter-acre lots. Wilkinson has sold 12 homes so far. Buyers include local couples and people moving from other states, including South Dakota.

“We’re also getting grandparents. They have children who can’t afford anything other than Portland and the grandparents follow,” he said.

Home prices have soared across the region and starter homes are no exception, said Wilkinson.

“Lot prices have gone up so much it’s hard to price a starter home anymore. It’s hard for me to think of a starter home at $200,000. A few years ago, four years ago, it would have been $120,000 or $140,000,” he said.

Megan Robinson, a Realtor with EXIT Realty Solutions, agreed.

“It makes me so sad to think about that,” she said of rising prices.

“For you to get a starter home … $185,000 to $200,000 is a starter home, or $200,000 to $210,000. But is that really a starter home?” she said.

The answer is yes, at least compared with the average cost of buying or renting.

“You can’t even rent an apartment for less than $1,200, $1,300 per month,” said Robinson.

In White House, Goodall Homes is offering new houses in the Summerlin subdivision. Prices start at $244,000 for homes with three or four bedrooms, at least two baths and two-car garages. Living areas range from 1,638 to 2,450 square feet. The neighborhood is off I-65, about 22 miles from downtown Nashville.

In Gallatin’s Patterson Farms subdivision, Goodall is offering homes with 1,638 to 2,647 square feet of space. Prices start at $250,000. Goodall recently announced plans for cottages with small yards in the neighborhood. Prices are expected to begin in the low $200,000s.

The company is also announced a new townhome and cottage neighborhood in Gallatin, the Knoll at Fairvue. Prices are expected to start in the mid-$200,000s.

Another cottage and townhome neighborhood with affordable prices, Oxford Station, was launched recently in Gallatin by Parkside Builders.

Oxford Station will have a total of 152 homes with prices expected to begin in the low $200,000s. Living space ranges from 1,214 to 1,682 square feet. The neighborhood is located at 2059 Long Hollow Pike. Home sales are being conducted from an office on the site and from Waterford Village.

Developed by Parkside in Hendersonville, Waterford Village has homes with 1,200 to 2,000 square feet of living space starting in the low to mid-$200,000s. The neighborhood is located at 3001 Kimley Shores Drive.