Prospective homebuyers have many things to consider when shopping for a new home, including the style and layout of the house, builder if new construction is wanted, school district rating, commute time to work, as well as the home’s purchase price and mortgage interest rate.

The community or development to reside in is another thing to look at carefully. Luckily, home buyers have a lot of options in the greater Houston area, where there are wide range of master-planned communities.

According to RCLCO Real Estate Advisors, Houston is home to some of the nation’s top-selling master-planned communities over the past decade: Cinco Ranch in Katy, The Woodlands, and Riverstone in Fort Bend County.

A master-planned community is designed and developed to offer residents the best in modern living, often with things to do right outside their front doors. Many are designed with the idea that once you get home from work, etc., you won’t want to leave the community to enjoy recreation and have fun.

“Meridiana offers upscale amenities,” said Kacee Court, marketing manager at Meridiana, which is off Texas 288 near Pearland. “We have a state-of-the-art fitness center, conservatory for community events, cafe on site, resort-style pool, splash pad and lap pool.”

Today, amenities in most master-planned communities are plentiful. “Buyers are looking for high-end, resortquality features that provide year-round opportunities for fitness, entertainment and camaraderie with friends and neighbors — without having to leave the community. In Cane Island, we designed our Cane Quarter with this in mind, creating a retreat where families can enjoy a two-story fitness center, yoga studio with hundreds of on-demand classes, lap pool, central lawn, and large family pool with children’s water playground and poolside cabanas,” said Lawren Eckhardt, director of marketing — Cane Island and Meridiana. “On-site restaurants also are becoming a part of community amenity offerings. We opened The Oaks Kitchen & Bar a year ago and it’s become a popular spot for residents.”

Eckhardt also said the quality of its schools is critical. “It’s front and center on just about every buyer’s mind,” she said. “Schools are part of the fabric of a community, and that’s the case in Cane Island, where families attend schools in the award-winning Katy ISD.” ■