Woodland Hills: This Hochatown Development Is Pretty Hot With The Brown Brothers

March 11, 2024 | Candy Evans | | Sponsored Content

Cabin Aroha at Woodland Hills near Broken Bow, Okla.

“When I get to Woodland Hills, I can watch my blood pressure drop after being in the Dallas Fort Worth area,” says Scott Brown.

Does the name sound familiar? Scott Brown is the brother of the well-known Dallas Morning News real estate editor Steve Brown, who retired on March 1 after 47 years of faithful reporting.

Both brothers live in the DFW area, and both are in the real estate business, relatively: Scott is the Senior Vice President of National Production for Highlands Mortgage, originating mortgages in 40 states. Their educations were a little different: Steve went to SMU; Scott went to UNT.

But they talk every morning.

“And I give him grief all the time,” says Scott.

But Scott is super proud of his brother, who he says personally drove more subscriptions at the city’s only daily newspaper than any other Dallas News reporter.

“Except for the Dallas Cowboys reporters,” he adds. “Steve could call anybody who was a player in Dallas real estate. And that was really kind of cool.”

So we know one place where Steve will be hanging out in retirement: his brother’s vacation home in Woodland Hills, in Broken Bow/Hochatown, Oklahoma.

Woodland Hills at Broken Bow is the hottest new luxury vacation home destination that is taking off with Dallas/Fort Worth residents. It has all the ingredients of the perfect second home community: gorgeous homes nestled in topography, terrain, natural lakes, and hardwood forests.

Woodland Hills is an exclusive residential development at the base of the Kiamichi mountains in Hochatown, ensconced in fragrant forests. This exclusive residential development offers large estate-sized lots that are thoughtfully deed-restricted. The result is stunning — modern, architect-driven homes that are artfully set amidst the unspoiled beauty of nature. Woodland Hills is the premier luxury vacation home development in Broken Bow because of the unique lots and beautiful, distinctive homes, many created by award-winning architects.

The drive to Woodland Hills from DFW is a piece of cake.

“The drive is much easier than it is to the Texas Hill Country,” says Scott Brown. “No Interstate 35 nightmares, and it’s a lot closer with far less traffic.”

Originally, the Browns looked at buying in Angel Fire, in northern New Mexico, but found pricing at Woodland Hills about the same as the Angel Fire region. The proximity of Broken Bow made the choice for them.

“I couldn’t stomach a 10-hour drive,” he says. “To get to Broken Bow, you take 121 to Paris and then cross to 82 to 281 to Broken Bow. Traffic isn’t terrible. From my home in Stonebridge Ranch in McKinney, it’s a two-and-a-half-hour ride.”

Their builder, Bevin Lock, is a long-time friend who had built his family’s own second home (Cabin Aroha, featured above) in Woodland Hills. Bevin helped the Browns build a two-primary-suite home, each with its own private balcony. That way, two couples can rent the house for the weekend, sit by the outside fire pit with a drink, and relax. Like many families in Woodland Hills, the Locks and the Browns use their homes as much as possible but also rent through Airbnb, which helps defray costs and has some great tax benefits.

Get In For Less than $200,000

If you are pondering a vacation home that is convenient and sleek, blending seamlessly into the environment, ponder southeastern Oklahoma and the exclusive enclave of Woodland Hills in Broken Bow. Seven of a total of eight phases are already sold out. Pricing starts at $190,000 and all lots are more than two acres.

“A great way to get a feel for the community is to lease a luxury home in Woodland Hills for the weekend,” says Scott Cross, the developer. “There are several rentals to choose from, including the Locks’, and I can just about guarantee you will probably want to come back, for good!”