Dive summary:
- Looking at house illustrations is good. Looking at a model house is better. Near Houston, would-be buyers can look at and shop for elements of 12 homes and the furniture in them at MainStreet America.
- Visitors to the seven-day-a-week site in North Spring, Texas, off Interstate 45, go to a 45,000-square-foot visitors center, then take themselves on self-guided tours of the houses. They get hand-held devices that let them get information as they go about what they see – something the owners characterize as online shopping combined with in-store browsing.
- MainStreet America is associated with Design Tech Homes, MSA Remodelers and Criterion Mortgage, all of whom have representatives in the visitor center.
From the article:
MainStreet America, a multi-million dollar home shopping venue set on a 14-acre site, opened last weekend in Houston. ...
