Filling the "Missing Middle"

For years, McKinney has had a bit of an identity gap. On one side, you have the gorgeous, historic charm of Historic Downtown McKinney, which we all love. On the other side, you have traditional, car-dependent suburban commercial strips.

But there has been almost nothing in between—what urban planners call the "missing middle". There hasn't been a place where you can live above a coffee shop, walk over to dinner, or hit the grocery store without constantly getting into your car.

Long Branch is explicitly engineered to change that. Instead of another basic strip center, it introduces an active, four-phase walkable "town green" concept built over the next 10 years. Here is what a $1.3 billion budget is bringing to the community:

• Diverse Housing Units: Around 1,600 homes spread across three distinct styles, combining traditional single-family builds, urban walk-ups, and brownstone-style townhomes.
• Curated Retail & Dining: Roughly 135,000 square feet of shopping and restaurant spaces, anchored by a premium 65,000-square-foot specialty grocer to drive daily foot traffic.
• Corporate & Hospitality Hubs: A massive 318,000-square-foot office campus featuring two six-story corporate buildings, a 100-room boutique hotel, and a five-story parking garage.
• Green Spaces & Trails: Six acres of interconnected green space with 6,000 linear feet of dedicated walking trails, native landscaping, tree-lined streets, and shaded open-air dining plazas.

Unpacking the Mind-Boggling Regional Growth Data

Is a billion-dollar swing safe for a suburban city? The raw data suggests it’s one of the safest real estate bets in the country. McKinney’s population jumped an incredible 12% in just a single year between 2023 and 2024—a massive leap for a city that already boasts over 200,000 residents.

The surrounding areas are exploding even faster:

• The neighboring town of Prosper, TX posted a wild 40% growth spike in that exact same year.
• Just up the road, the city of Celina, TX has experienced an astronomical population surge of roughly 157% since 2020.
• Zooming further out, regional planners project that Collin County will double in size by 2060, eclipsing 2.4 million people.

Long Branch isn't popping up in a sleepy area hoping people show up; the people are already there, just waiting for a development of this caliber.

What This Means for Local Home Values

We’ve seen this exact real estate playbook before. When Frisco established The Star in Frisco and Plano unveiled Legacy West, home values in those surrounding zip codes soared. The homeowners who bought in early and stuck through the construction are the ones sitting on massive equity today.

Long Branch marks the moment McKinney transitions from a fast-growing suburban bedroom community into a primary Dallas-Fort Worth destination. If you own residential property near the US 75 corridor or the future US 380 bypass, this influx of jobs, foot traffic, and high-end walkable amenities is going to permanently raise the baseline floor of the local market.

Conclusion: Ready to Capitalize on the Shift?

Whether you're looking to sit tight and ride the multi-year equity wave, weighing a move between McKinney and neighboring boomtowns like Frisco, TX, or thinking about selling your home before a decade of heavy construction hits your street—you need a hyper-local game plan.

Long Branch is going to reshape McKinney's real estate map over the next 5 to 10 years. Don't navigate these massive market shifts alone. Reach out to our team today or give us a call at 214-761-8876 to discuss your unique situation, get a comprehensive home evaluation, and make sure your family is positioned to win!