A regional home builder's new division has opened a design center in a commercial building at Brunswick Forest, a growing master planned community in Leland.

"The goal of this center is so everyone would be able to pick and finish their selections in here as opposed to having to travel all over the place to vendors and showrooms," said Annah Norris, director of sales and marketing for Legacy Homes, the custom and semi-custom division of Bill Clark Homes.

Norris said the new center "gets everything in one spot so you can put it all on the table and see it all at one time," from wood flooring choices to the shape of shelving. Potential buyers can work with a Legacy Homes staff that includes two designers and three salespeople.

Located at 1174 Turlington Avenue in The Villages at Brunswick Forest, in about 1,800 square feet, the center opened just before Brunswick Forest welcomed about 200 potential buyers for a sales event last weekend.

In addition to Brunswick Forest, Legacy Homes can be found throughout the Cape Fear region, Norris said, and the division's numbers are climbing.

Last year, she said, Legacy Homes sold 84 houses, 40 in Brunswick Forest. This year, that number could be 120 if the current pace keeps up, Norris said.

A home builder in the Carolinas since 1977, Bill Clark Homes has traditionally built houses with set floor plans and features. But the demand for custom and semi-custom homes continues to increase, said Norris, who led the effort to establish Legacy Homes and works out of an office above the new design center.

"My assumption is that over the next six months, it's [the design center] going to make an enormous difference in the true custom and high-level of customization side of our business," Norris said.