FRISCO, Texas — A 15-minute city.
The urban planning concept revolves around a design where most daily necessities can be reached by a 15-minute walk, bike, or car ride.
This is the Fields Frisco concept. And that’s where Daybreak Anchor Kara Sewell met up with one North Texas realtor to learn why these communities are growing in popularity in the suburbs.
Standing in the middle of Fields Frisco, wide-open spaces are living up to the development’s name.
"It's going to be 2,600 acres of developed property here, 14,000 [residents]. Just imagine that," says Levi Lascsak.
In less than five years, you won’t have to. YouTube star and realtor Levi Lascsak says multiple communities are being built within this development, and it's become a model for similar developments he's seen throughout the region.
"People are staying in these communities, like Fields, where they're building it where you don't even need to leave. You don't have to leave that community except to take your kids to middle or high school," says Lascsak.
Fields Frisco is one of many so-called 15-minute cities being developed in North Texas suburbs, which would allow residents to access most daily amenities within a 15 to 20-minute walk or car ride.
Kara conducted her interview with Levi smack dab between PGA of America’s new headquarters and the future Universal Kids Resort.
"You've got the Omni hotel, you've got restaurants, you've got bars. You'll have walking trails, likely a grocery store as well, so you can stay within this community," says Lascsak.
In car-crazy North Texas, the appeal of leaving your vehicle parked is growing, just like the population. The latest U.S. Census Bureau data ranks Frisco’s population growth 15th in the nation. Collin County ranks fourth in the state for growth of new housing.
"If your company moves, you have to move. You can't change the market, so you have to work with the market conditions," says Lascsak.
Levi goes beyond selling houses. On his YouTube channel, he’s selling communities, and that’s what entices people to these suburbs.
"It's one of our most popular videos. In the last month, it's got 50,000 views," says Lascsak.
And with new construction properties builders are providing incentives like buying down interest rates, Levi says this type of offer is boosting confidence to buy.
"This is something we've been working on with clients. It's called a 2-1 buydown or a 3-2-1 buydown. Let's say interest rates are 7%. You can get into a property at a 2-1 buydown, which means you're buying down the interest rate two points for the first year. So, if interest rates are currently 7%, it buys it down to a 5% interest rate for the first year," says Lascsak.
If you’re willing to bet on the fact that rates are coming down, Levi says there's always a deal out there and more than enough space to choose your new community.