The Estates at Royalton, a new development in Mattituck on the North Fork has already sold more than half of its 11 farmhouse-style homes just shy of one year since it broke ground.
Six out of the farmhouse-style homes in the subdivision are now sold, achieving some record pricing for Mattituck, between $1.65 and $2.3 million, according to the exclusive listing agent, Kristy Naddell of Douglas Elliman Real Estate. Five of the homes were sold based merely on floorplans in the pre-construction phase.
“There’s not another luxury community on the North Fork and there’s been a huge demand for higher-end homes in the Mattituck area. “These builders came in with a vision of a high-end Hamptons-style home and we’re attracting the Hamptons-style buyers.”
Though The Estates at Royalton were first announced back in 2017, the focus changed in 2020 when a new developer purchased the 25-acre development.
MarrCon Development Corporation took over the project from a previous builder, who had planned an equestrian-themed development in conjunction with the adjacent property. MarrCon, which closed on the property in October 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic and an explosive market, changed course as they saw the demand for luxury homes. The Estates at Royalton are no longer connected with the equestrian property next door.
The builders, Daniel and Dino Marra, decided to create the homes “to complement the pastoral feel of its surroundings while providing modern and sophisticated finishes for today’s most discerning home buyer,” Douglas Elliman said in a statement.
Construction broke ground in March 2021.
“We are very proud of what we have built here on The North Fork,” Daniel Marra of MarrCon said in the statement. “We wanted to create a luxury community in keeping with the distinctive feel of the North Fork, its beautiful farmland, and all that we love about it. With this project, we’ve created an elevated living experience and a new opportunity for buyers who have long had an eye on the North Fork as it’s grown into a world-class destination.”
Each of the single-family houses is “meticulously designed with a beautiful and unique exterior,” according to Douglas Elliman. The homes vary in size from 3,400 to 4,000 square feet, located on private Cox Neck Road, maintained by a homeowner’s association. There are about 15 acres of green space that will also be maintained.
There were three floorplan choices; The Breakwater, Aldrich and Charleston. With four to five bedrooms and three-and-a-half to four-and-a-half luxurious baths, each home features “artistically inspired interiors” with expansive great rooms and private spaces for customized uses. “Whether it be a yoga studio, study or home office, homeowners have the opportunity to create spaces that fit their unique needs,” the brokerage said.
The homes begin with a covered front porch and inside offer six-inch-wide white oak solid hardwood floors, farmhouse style interior trim and gas fireplaces. The gourmet kitchens feature a large center island, high-end appliances, Shaker-style cabinets and farm sinks. Outside of each home are a raised patio, designer-landscaped yard and a pool with bluestone coping.
The remaining five homes range from $2.15 million to $2.3 million.
With two of the lots, the developers are planning to include some of the upgrades that they saw were desirable to the first set of buyers. For example, instead of an 18-by-36-foot vinyl pool, there will be a 20-by-40 gunite pool. Inside, they also added an extra bathroom so each bedroom is an ensuite. The back patio was extended and they fenced in the whole backyard. “These were some of the bigger items that were very popular that we decided to just include in the purchase price for some of the remaining lots.”
The development is scheduled for completion by the end of 2022.
The development is located close to beaches, wineries, breweries and farmstands. Popular Love Lane in the heart of Mattituck offers shops and eateries.
Like the South Fork, the North Fork underwent a real estate boom over the last two years. Douglas Elliman’s newly-released fourth-quarter data for 2021, created in conjunction with Miller Samuel, shows the average sales price on the North Fork reached a new high and median sales price reached their highest levels reached in 16 years of tracking.
“Buyer enthusiasm remains incredibly strong on the North Fork, where inventory is in very low supply,” Naddell said. Listing inventory fell sharply from 2020 to 2021 and set a new low for the eighth straight quarter, creating the second-fasted paced market since 2005. Naddell said this week that usually around this time of year there are 200 houses on the market, but there are only about 60 currently.
Naddell, a Cutchogue-based broker, noted that a lot of buyers are coming to the North Fork from the South Fork — either by way of selling their Hamptons homes or just opting to buy on the North Fork instead.
The reason, though, is “no longer about affordability,” she said. “They are drawn to the more laid-back feel and are discovering the amazing new restaurants, vineyards, and more that make the North Fork lifestyle so unique. At the Estates at Royalton, we’ve captured the attention of both second-home buyers and those looking to live on the North Fork year-round, hailing from Manhattan to Brooklyn, to Boca Raton, Florida.”
That is why, she said, The Estates at Royalton were able to achieve new benchmarks in pricing — $1,650,000 to $2,300,000 — which would have been unheard of in Mattituck before COVID.
The lack of inventory has also held back sales. Listing inventory fell sharply year over year for the eighth straight quarter to a new low, creating the second-fasted paced market since 2005. Nearly four out of ten closings in the quarter sold above the last asking price, and the number of sales greater than or equal to $2 million was the third-highest on record. The luxury market moved at the fastest pace in a decade of tracking.
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