Homebuilder charts a slow, steady course in Gardnerville

The developer of the first residential development in five years in Douglas County isn't going crazy with speculative building.

But Wealth Strategies Development Inc. thinks it can steadily develop about five houses at a time, selling each batch before it starts work on the next.

The company headquartered at Carson City has assembled private investors to finance the development project.

William "Fergi" Fergus Jr. of Wealth Strategies Development says the company decided to move forward on the project as inventories of homes for sales in Douglas began to decline last autumn.

Currently, he says inventories of new and existing homes on the market stand at about 300, which compares with about 575 at the depth of the recession.

And even that number may be deceiving, Fergus says, because many of the best-quality homes in the area have been taken off the market by bargain-hunting investors.

"We've been listening carefully to the real estate community in the area," Fergus says.

Homes in the development range from about 1,800 to about 2,700 square feet and carry price tags in the $240,000 to $340,000 range. All have three-car garages.

The developer is targeting move-up buyers and has seen some early interest from potential buyers in northern California as well as local markets.

One of the project's first five homes currently is in escrow.

Master-planned, The Ranch at Gardnerville ultimately could be the location of 600 single-family homes on the eastern edge of Gardnerville. (It was known in an earlier incarnation as the Anker-Park Subdivision.) KDH Builders of Reno is the contractor on the homes. R.O. Anderson Engineering Inc. handled civil engineering. Northern Nevada Title also assisted in the project.

The homes are marketed by RE/MAX Realty Affiliates in Gardnerville. Fergus says The Ranch at Gardnerville could generate as many as 330 jobs in construction and related industries.

Sheena Shrum, executive officer for Builders Association of Western Nevada, called the project "a beacon of hope for Douglas County."