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Level Homes has been synonymous with quality single-family home construction for 25 years. What is driving the strategy to add Build-to-Rent construction to your portfolio?
High-quality single-family homes for sale are still our primary focus. Adding build-to-rent construction is a natural extension of what we already do well. It allows us to meet the growing demand for horizontal rental developments – places that look and feel like neighborhoods but are built for renters. It also gives us flexibility. When one side of the market slows, the other may gain momentum. That balance helps us stay strong as a company and continue doing what we do best: building great homes.
How are you approaching interest rates, and how should borrowers approach them?
We’ve taken a hard look at what we do, how we do it, and why. That’s led to meaningful updates—whether it’s new home designs, enhanced features, or financing incentives. We’re focused on standing out and serving buyers well, even in a challenging market. Waiting for rates to drop can backfire. While you may be able to refinance later, you can’t rewind rising prices on land, labor, or materials. If you truly need a new home, now is still the right time to act.
All politics is local. So is all real estate. What sets Baton Rouge and the Capital Region apart?
TND’s – traditional neighborhood developments that are walkable – are trending in Baton Rouge. You’ve got Rouzan, Americana in Zachary, Materra, Pointe-Marie to name just a few. Demand is there, and the supply is keeping up, and that’s something that really sets Baton Rouge apart from other parts of the state that are playing catch-up to this trend. These communities and the interior designs are so fresh and updated, you feel like you’re living in a destination rather than an urban field. You’re close to everything the city has to offer but you’re in your walkable environment when you get home. Developers and builders here have been ahead of the curve, and that is good for buyers and businesses like mine. In fact, I live in Rouzan, and we love it!
The way people live and work is changing. How has your business changed to keep up?
While our core business is – and always will be – abuilding and selling homes for families, we’ve expanded our services to meet demand in a growing segment: single-family build-to-rent. We’re not operating as landlords. We’re the builders behind these communities, offering our construction expertise to clients developing rental neighborhoods. There’s a rising demand for rental homes that still offer the space and privacy of traditional houses – yards, driveways, no shared walls – combined with apartment-style amenities like pools and fitness centers. We bring the same quality and care to those projects as we do to every Level Home.
Success in real estate is a long game. What is your long-term outlook for this market, and your business?
We’ve always focused on building a better product. That doesn’t change, no matter what’s going on in the economy or the news. What does change is how we design and plan. There’s more intention behind every home and every neighborhood we build. We’re moving beyond the “build fast” mindset of the boom years and creating communities that are smarter and more in tune with how people actually want to live. That’s exciting to us – and we’re proud it’s happening right here in southeast Louisiana.
