Belton apartment complex prepares for $20 million expansion

BELTON, Texas (KWTX) - Construction tools are ready to go at the Colonial Crossing Apartments as the owners prepare for a $20 million expansion to the property located near the intersection of Loop 121 and 2nd Avenue.

“There’s just such demand,” said Rey Severn, the owner and general contractor of the property. “Bell county is growing with people from somewhere, but there’s nothing to rent and prices for houses and interest rates are difficult to get,” Severn said.

The expansion will add 132 units to the property’s existing 208.

Blake Lufburrow, a member of the Temple-Belton Board of Realtors, said that, like the rest of the country, the cost of buying or even qualifying for a house in Bell County has increased astronomically. The median cost of a house in the county now is $245,000 which is $50,000 more than this time last year.

“Individuals that may have qualified for a mortgage a year ago may be looking at a different situation as they move into the summer,” said Lufburrow. “And so, I think that’s going to put people in a situation where purchasing a home is beyond reach and it is going to increase the demand for renting.”

With the high demand for rental units, the owner said this is prime time to invest $20 million to expand his property.

“Hopefully, these apartments can fill a void of people needing housing because the complexes we have now there’s waiting lists at all of them because there’s just tremendous demand in bell county,” Severn said.

He said the hefty price tag for the expansion is also an effect of inflation as the cost of materials and labor increase rapidly.

Apartments at Colonial Crossing are advertised to rent for $980 to $1,350.

Severn, accompanied by members of the Belton Area Chamber of Commerce and the City of Belton, will hold a ground breaking ceremony on Monday, February 28 at 10 a.m.

The project is expected to be completed in 20 months.

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