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MY THREE SONS
John Cowart on residential
subdivisions |
John Cowart (BRE59) has been trying to retire for several years now, but the developer’s three sons have
other plans for their father. A builder, a commercial real estate developer, and an investor, the younger
Cowarts are gearing up to develop some 3,000 new lots in suburban Atlanta.
They are following in the footsteps of their dad, a builder and developer in Atlanta for more than 45
years. Cowart has encouraged not only his sons’ careers but also those of real estate students at the
Robinson College through endowment of an annual scholarship for research.
Cowart himself hooked up with family, his cousin Jim Cowart, to get his start in the business. Together
the two built houses on the north side of town for 10 years before John opened his own business, John
Cowart Properties, in 1972. Until 1995, he built so many houses that he lost count somewhere between
2,500 and 3,000. Since 1995, Cowart has focused on developing residential subdivisions in the suburbs,
and most of his current projects are in Forsyth County.
The most prominent trend Cowart has observed during his career is Atlanta’s shifting patterns of growth
from the north between I-75 and I-85 to DeKalb County, then to Gwinnett. "Now it goes north, south,
east, and west," says Cowart. "It’s amazing the commutes people have. Ten years ago, you’d never
hear a place like Cartersville mentioned on the traffic reports, but now you do."
As Atlantans flocked to the suburbs in the 70 and 80s, Cowart was there to build homes for them. He’s now
building bigger houses with smaller yards. He’s seen costs skyrocket for materials—for instance, a sewer
tap that used to cost $2,000 now runs $6,000 due to increased regulations and new technology—and for
professional services—engineers now typically charge $1,500 to $2,000 per lot with the bulk of the expense
going to time spent getting approvals through regulatory agencies. A custom million-dollar home may take
up to 14 months to build today compared to six to eight months 10 years ago, largely as a result of
increased bureaucracy, according to Cowart.
"I’m amazed at what people are paying for houses," says Cowart, who sees no sign of a housing
bubble in the Atlanta market. "There is always a slowdown, and there will be a slowdown. But Atlanta
is still a good value compared to other cities across the country. There is a lot of money being spent on
housing here."
As he looks back from what he describes as "the twilight zone" of his career, Cowart says that
he has enjoyed the creativity most of all. "When I drive past one of our neighborhoods, I think, we
did that, and it makes me feel good."
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