Lennar razes new homes to rebuild

In an unusual move, builder Lennar is tearing down eight partially built California homes to replace them with 70 single-story homes, according to the Wall Street Journal blog.

The homes were originally developed by Ennis Homes and Ennis Land Development, which both filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2009. A spokesman for Lennar stated that the builder had looked into completing the homes, but they have been exposed to the elements for too long and cannot be salvaged.

Lennar’s planned houses start at $197,500 and are priced as high as $250,000.

The demolition reflects consumers’ changing tastes. Some of the razed homes were two stories with multiple gables and defined entryways, designs that commanded hundreds of thousands of dollars during the housing market’s heyday. They were as big as 3,000 square feet, while Lennar says the average home size at the development will be 1,800 square feet.

For more information: http://blogs.wsj.com/developments/2011/07/01/builder-lennar-bulldozes-forlorn-empty-homes/