"Toll Brothers will build 136 new homes at the Village at Upper Rock community, which is expected to open for sale this fall," the builder's D.C. Metro division president said in a statement to Bisnow in March. The builder now lists the community as coming soon. It sits at Choke Cherry Road and Upper Rock Boulevard. The four-story townhomes run 1,860 to 2,468 square feet, with anticipated pricing from the low $800,000s. Five years ago, this ground was supposed to hold laboratories.
That price matters for anyone pricing a resale townhome in north Rockville. It is the first published number from a pipeline of townhomes and two-over-two condos planned on former office campuses along Research Boulevard, Piccard Drive and Gaither Road. Most of these homes are years from delivery.
The land was bought for life sciences first
The Upper Rock site belongs to a 31-acre office campus bordered by Shady Grove Road and Gaither Road. BXP bought it in 2021 for $116.5 million and planned a lab and research district it called the Shady Grove Innovation District, Bisnow reported. In mid-2023, as the life sciences sector slowed after the pandemic, BXP set aside roughly the western half of the site for townhomes. In February 2026 it sold three of the seven buildings to Toll Brothers for $24.7 million, according to Maryland property records cited in the same story. A separate parcel in the same office park went under contract with DRB Group Mid-Atlantic.
A few blocks away, the same reasoning shows up in a filing. The applicant for 2 Research Place told the city that market conditions do not support a seven-story life sciences building the Planning Commission approved there in 2023. It asked instead to replace the 45,400-square-foot office building with up to 68 two-over-two homes. The city approved the plan on April 8, 2026.
The office numbers explain why. In its Q2 2026 Suburban Maryland report, Colliers put overall office vacancy at 21.8% in Rockville and 19.2% in North Rockville, against 20.6% across Montgomery County. The firm also counted more than 500,000 square feet taken out of the market during the quarter for demolition or redevelopment. With that much empty space, an office campus is often worth more to a homebuilder than to an office tenant.
Seven sites in one corridor
The city's October 2026 issue of Rockville Reports lists most of these cases on a single Development Watch page. Here is where each one stood as of early October.
| Site | Builder or applicant | Proposed homes | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Village at Upper Rock, Choke Cherry Rd. and Upper Rock Blvd. | Toll Brothers | 136 townhomes | Approved 2020; listed as coming soon |
| 2 Research Place | 2 Research Place, LLC | 68 two-over-two condos | Approved April 8, 2026 |
| 1455 Research Blvd. | Not named on city page | 206 homes: 78 townhomes, 56 two-over-twos, two 36-unit multifamily buildings | Approved July 22, 2026 |
| 1600/1700 Research Blvd. and 1441 W. Montgomery Ave. | Toll Mid-Atlantic, contract purchaser | 200 townhomes | Under review |
| 2277 Research Blvd., ROC Center | Not named in city summary | Up to 133 townhouse or two-over-two homes | Under review |
| 1 Curie Ct./1395 Piccard Dr. | Pulte, contract purchaser | 110 townhomes and 32 condos | Under review |
| 2092 Gaither Rd. | DRB Group Mid-Atlantic | 130 townhomes | Under review |
The descriptions of the Westat site do not match. The applicant's March 5, 2026 statement describes 200 townhouse units. The city's summary calls the plan townhouses and stacked condominium units. The final mix will depend on which version the Planning Commission approves.
Former campuses bring site details a typical subdivision does not
These homes are planned on land that was laid out for office buildings, and some of the site details reflect that history.
At the Westat property, a stream valley runs through the middle of the nearly 22-acre site. The plan splits the community into a northern section of 61 homes and a southern section of 139, joined by a pedestrian footbridge with no road between them, The MoCo Show reported. The existing vehicle connection to West Montgomery Avenue would be removed. About 14 acres, roughly 64% of the site, would stay open space. Of the 200 homes, 145 would have rear-loaded garages, and the plan includes 551 parking spaces.
At 1455 Research Boulevard, the Planning Commission approved a waiver that allows homes to sit between 6 and 45 feet from a gas transmission line easement. The ordinance's standard minimum is 50 feet. At 2277 Research Boulevard, only one of three office buildings would be replaced. The other two would remain, and about 10,800 square feet of office space would be converted to restaurant use.
Buyers of these homes will be comparing a gas easement, an office building next door, or a footbridge commute to the mailbox against an established resale townhome a mile away. That comparison runs in both directions, and it shapes how the two kinds of homes get priced against each other.
How a builder price changes the comps for resale
Appraisers and buyers price a resale townhome against recent nearby sales. The Village at Upper Rock price is not a closed sale, but it is public. Once a four-story, two-car-garage townhome in 20850 is advertised from the low $800,000s, buyers looking at older resale townhomes nearby will measure them against it. For a resale home with comparable space, that price can work as a reference point. For a smaller or older home, it can make the gap in finishes and layout more visible.
Before any of these homes deliver, the county market was already giving buyers more choice. GCAAR's August 2026 Montgomery County report showed 2,023 active listings, up 18.3% from August 2025. Closed sales fell 8.1% to 779, and the median sold price rose 3.3% to $639,540. Maryland REALTORS put countywide supply at 2.5 months of inventory in August 2026. For attached homes specifically, Bright MLS's August 2026 D.C. metro report showed the townhome median down 0.7% to $588,000 and active attached listings up 9.6% year over year.
All of these are county or metro figures. No public dataset breaks out Rockville or 20850 townhomes on their own, so the local picture comes from individual sales, reviewed one at a time.
Affordability requirements also shape the new supply. The Westat plan sets aside 15% of its homes as Moderately Priced Dwelling Units, and the 2092 Gaither Road plan includes 17. Those homes sell below market rate under the county program, so a portion of each community will not record sales at market prices.
Where each site stands in the approval process
Listing every unit at once makes the pipeline look larger and closer than it is. Taken by status, it comes in stages:
- Coming soon. Village at Upper Rock, 136 townhomes. Toll told Bisnow sales would open this fall. Whether construction has started could not be confirmed from public records.
- Approved in 2026. 2 Research Place in April and 1455 Research Boulevard in July, together 274 homes. Neither city page lists a builder's sales date or prices.
- Under review. Westat, ROC Center, Piccard Drive and Gaither Road. The Westat case had community and review committee meetings in May but no Planning Commission date as of early October. The Planning Commission's October 14 agenda lists a Fallsgrove bank pad and RedGate Park, not any of these sites.
Over the next several years, a townhome buyer in north Rockville is likely to compete with a new phase of construction every so often, not with one large release. Each phase brings its own price list and its own incentives, and each one adds new comparable sales.
Questions buyers and sellers ask about this pipeline
Did Rockville's new zoning code cause these projects? The city's zoning rewrite took effect August 1, 2026. It adds options for multiplexes and cottage courts and reduces parking minimums near transit. The Westat, Piccard Drive and Gaither Road applications were all filed in March 2026, and 1455 Research Boulevard was filed in July 2025. All four came in before the new code took effect. The filings point to office demand as the driver.
Do the other projects have published prices? No. The city project pages and applicant statements reviewed do not list prices or sales dates. Village at Upper Rock is the only one with an anticipated starting price.
Does the 1455 Research Boulevard setback waiver affect existing homes? The approved waiver applies to dwelling units within that project. Anyone considering a home there can ask the builder for the site plan showing where the easement runs relative to each lot.
Where can I follow these cases? Each case has its own page on the City of Rockville's Development Watch site, which shows the filing date, meeting dates and current status.
Pricing a north Rockville townhome now means accounting for homes that are not yet built, and for new comps that will arrive phase by phase as each site moves from review to sales. If you are buying or selling a townhome near Research Boulevard, King Farm, Fallsgrove or Shady Grove and want to understand how this pipeline affects your home's position, Jack Kort can review the current comps with you and help you plan your timing around what the city is approving. Let's Connect.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
