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Millennials are abandoning their parent’s country club and walking straight onto farming communities around the country instead.
Agrihoods, short for agricultural neighborhoods, are attracting “farm-to-table loving millennials” according to Business Insider. The Urban Land Institute defines the trend as "development-supported agriculture or residential developments that revolve around working farms."
These agrihoods could become the newest version of those small and rich golf communities that baby boomers loved in the 1990s. But today, millennials aren’t as interested in the status symbol and are more interested in eco-friendly and clean-living initiatives.
"Forget about the golf courses — our buyers want to have a real environment," Theresa Frankiewicz, the vice president of community development for Crown Community Development, said at the Urban Land Institute's 2016 Food & Real Estate Forum.
Walking around a typical argihood, you can find barns, outdoor community kitchens, rows of fruit trees and crops, and some of your favorite farm animals. Designed to appeal to young, active, outdoorsy families, the homes are usually built to specific environmental standards, occasionally involving composting and solar panels.
There are currently around 150 argihoods in the United States according to the Urban Land Institute. A few border outside cities such as Atlanta, Phoenix, and Fort Collins, Colorado.
The state of California has started to recognize the growth of these neighborhoods and wants a part of it. Developers in Palm Springs are in the process of transforming an 18-hole golf course into a 70-acre olive-tree grove, The Orange County Register reported.
The golf course will be turned into the center of the new 300-acre agrihood named “Miralon”. Once completed, it will include dog parks, exercise stations, fire pits, and 6.5 miles of hiking paths that were formerly used for golf carts.
Olive oil from Miralon's orchard will be pressed on-site, and food from the 11,000-square-foot community garden will go straight to residents' tables.
The agrihood is expected to include 1,150 single-family homes, townhouses, and condos, with homes clocking in at $300,000 to $700,000 or more.
A small price to pay for all of the fresh food and nature you can handle.