‘Pocket neighborhoods’ try to craft the friendly feeling many areas have lost

If you like having neighbors, “pocket neighborhoods’’ may be your thing.

September 1, 2015

2 minutes to read

If you like having neighbors, “pocket neighborhoods’’ may be your thing.

A small but growing number of new housing developments across the state are embracing the pocket neighborhood approach, in which homes are clustered together, often around a cul-de-sac, and surrounded by woods or other open space.

The latest example can be found in West Newbury, where developer Cottage Advisors is halfway through rolling out 30 homes in a new pocket neighborhood called The Cottages at River Hill.

“They are selling very quickly,’’ said Tamora Flahardy, a Keller Williams broker who is in charge of selling homes at River Hill. “I think we are hitting a chord with buyers, really across all age brackets, but really more with baby boomers and also a lot of single professionals.’’

Houses at River Hill range in size from 1,200 to 2,800 square feet, with buyers able to choose between two-bed and three-bedroom homes, each with two and half baths.

Prices range from $480,000 to $590,000, with the homes taking shape on a hill within a short walk of the center of West Newbury and with seasonal views of the Merrimack River.

The homes at River Hill are designed to appeal to downsizers whose children have flown the coop, as well as single professionals who also aren’t necessarily interested in paying for lots of extra space they don’t need, Flahardy said.

It is a type of housing that is in limited supply in Greater Boston, which is undergoing a shortage of homes of all types, especially more modestly sized homes that would be appealing either to first-time buyers or downsizers.

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One popular design, the Abbott, has two master suites on the second floor, as well as an upstairs laundry room, and a first floor designed for entertaining. It is aimed in particular at single professionals.

“We have buyers, three of them. They are all single professional women that want the security of having those second floor bedrooms and having a second bedroom to offer friends and guests,’’ Flahardy said.

Developers are starting to catch on, with a similar development pitched toward the high-end of the market – over $1 million – taking shape on the ocean at Summer Hill in Manchester-by-the Sea.

“For downsizers or for single people, there is this gap in the market for a reasonably sized home,’’ she said.

Arrayed around a specially designed park, the River Hill homes also come with front porches designed to encourage neighborliness.

The 40-foot-by-40-foot park comes with an outdoor fireplace and patio for family and neighborhood gatherings.

Of the 30 acre site, just over 6 acres will be made up of homes and yards, with the remaining 24 acres reserved for communal gardens and other green space.

“They are social communities – they all have front porches,’’ Flahardy said. “That is a key concept in pocket neighborhoods – it’s an intermediate space between the privacy of your home and the public sidewalk.’’