Several North Texas builders are putting new homeownership within reach for millennial renters according to the Dallas Morning News.

Compared to previous generations, millennials have been the slowest to enter the homebuying market — and for good reason. While these young people were growing up, getting an education, and starting careers and families, average new home prices in Dallas-Fort Worth skyrocketed beyond $350,000. This is not only $100,000 higher than median previously owned houses, it’s the largest price difference between the two markets in history. According to a housing analyst at Metrostudy Inc. quoted in the News, in 2006, 55 percent of new home sales in the area were below $200,000. Today, it's 7 percent.

Gehan Homes and Ashton Woods are two of the builders that have rolled out new less expensive lines to target millennials, apartment renters, and first-time buyers.

Gehan is already marketing its new line, Gray Point Homes, in the D-FW market. In the past 60 days, it sold over a dozen homes from the line at Clements Ranch in Forney, and the builder just broke ground on another Gray Point community in Tarrant County.

Though standard Gehan homes are priced from $300,000 to more than $500,000, Gray Point prices start at $212,000 for a 4-bedroom, 1,800 square-foot home. The top-of-the-line Gray Point starts at less than $270,000 for a 5-bedroom with a game room, study, and more than 2,800 square feet of space.

In 2018, Ashton Woods will premiere its Starlight Homes brand in Dallas and begin offering moderately-priced homes from $150,000 to slightly less than $250,000, depending on the D-FW location.

"Our message is one of affordability, and the notion that everyone deserves the chance to make their dreams of homeownership a reality without breaking the bank," Carrie Schonberg, Ashton Woods Vice President of Marketing, told the newspaper.