As Goodyear’s population grows, homebuilders are following suit

Nineteen years ago, Goodyear’s population was only about 18,000 people – a small fraction of where it sits today at more than 84,000 residents. That sort of increase in population means more demand for new homes and more construction activity from property developers.

“Right now, if you drive our streets, there’s construction on every block,” said Goodyear Mayor Georgia Lord. “We continuously have developers coming out. They’re constantly watching the growth.”

One of these developers is Newland, which claims to be the “largest private developer of mixed-use communities in the United States.” Newland manages the 20,000-acre Estrella master-planned community in Goodyear, which has continued to add new neighborhoods throughout the past thirty years. That’s also where the company recently opened Lucero, its fourth “housing village.”

“Because Estrella has been around for more than 30 years, there’s a common misconception in the Valley that development is closed out” said Amber Liptai, a PR representative for the community. “That couldn’t be further from the truth. There are currently more than a dozen homebuilders actively designing new neighborhoods and bringing fresh floor plans and innovative designs into the community.”

Newland says it anticipates reaching build-out for Estrella around 2032, when the community is planned to max out at approximately 50,000 homes and 1600 acres of commercial space. Overall, the number of permits issued to various single-family home builders in Goodyear increased 6% from 2018 to 2019, a Goodyear official said.

Alongside the increase in building permits, Goodyear has experienced a fifty percent growth in new home construction within the past five years. In 2018, Goodyear was the fifth-most popular city for homebuyers in Arizona, according to data cited in the April 2019 issue of Goodyear’s InFocus Magazine.

Goodyear’s residential growth also expands to the rental market. The City of Goodyear says it has “more than doubled” its stock of multi-family housing units within the last three years and has at least eleven prospective multi-family or rental communities in the pipeline.

Lord attributes this growth to a variety of factors, including the increasing number of jobs in and around Goodyear. One high-profile example is Microsoft, which recently announced it will build two new data center campuses in Goodyear.

“With Microsoft coming, that is such a big name that has attracted even more building and other businesses coming to Goodyear,” Lord said. “The kind of companies we’re getting are attractive to people, and I think that’s going to speed up the housing market… if we can go any faster than we’re going.”

William Olson, Senior Vice President and Division Manager for Newland, says he thinks the economic growth in Goodyear has been a major factor in the demand for more housing.

“Over the past few years Goodyear has become a hub of activity for the manufacturing, medical, aerospace, aviation, and distribution industries. This boom in commercial development creates jobs, which in turn creates the need for additional housing,” Olson said.

More than 1,800 jobs were created in Goodyear between July 2018 and June 2019, the city says. But jobs aren’t the only factor that Lord says is spurring more residential growth. She also cited the city’s A-rated schools, parks, and general quality of life as attractive to potential homebuyers.

“Newland conducts extensive research and third-party studies to gauge the current and future state of the local real estate market,” Olson said. “We absolutely believe that Goodyear and the surrounding West Valley will continue its path of positive growth.”