Lakewood Ranch retains national stature as a top-selling master-planned community
LAKEWOOD RANCH -- Lakewood Ranch has retained its national rating as one of the top-selling master-planned communities in the United States.
According to two national surveys, Lakewood Ranch ranked Nos. 10 and No. 11, respectively, for strong home sales in 2014 and came in third in Florida behind The Villages in Ocala and Nocatee in Jacksonville.
Most master-planned communities sold fewer homes in 2014 than 2013. National Housing consultant RCLCO, which ranked Lakewood Ranch 10th in residential sales, reported sales among the 20 top nationally ranked communities fell 8 percent in 2014, reaching a total of 13,006 homes.
The second survey, compiled by John Burns Real Estate Consulting, which ranked Lakewood Ranch 11th in sales (a drop from No. 9 in 2013), reported a 12 percent decline to a total of 13,200 homes.
The Burns survey also reported builders in Lakewood Ranch sold 475 new homes in 2014, a 23 percent drop from the previous year, despite all the construction going on.
Although numbers are down, the surveys did not base the slowdown on a reduction in demand, but rather on other constraints, which affected the ability of builders to deliver new homes, such as delays in lot availability, communities near sellouts and labor shortages.
The combination of steady demand and inventory constraints led to substantial price increases in many communities, according to the surveys.
Vice president of sales Jimmy Stewart of Lakewood Ranch master developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch Inc. said the rankings were no surprise.
"Our 'Live, Work, Play' concept continues to make us among the top-ranked nationally and in Florida. As to housing availability, many of our neighborhoods have sold out in the last two years or (have) nearly sold out, and we are in the process of restocking our inventory with a number of new neighborhoods coming online," Stewart said.
For Pat Neal of Neal Communities, who calls Lakewood Ranch the "center of his universe," the top ranking was welcome news.
Neal, one of the largest Lakewood Ranch homebuilders in Central Park, Country Club and Country Club East, said the community is most unique.
"It is a complete community unlike any other residential community I have built," Neal said. "Lakewood Ranch was planned not only to live and play but to work, shop and worship. The most unique part is there are 14,000 jobs in Lakewood Ranch, followed by A-rated schools, and it's close to the interstate. The ranch has active adults living there, as well as young people in their working years. We've improved and increased our part with the ranch because it's so desirable."
Neal said SMR protected its reputation by having high standards for builders, which returned high-quality products.
The favorable ranking has changed the community landscape, according to Peter Mason, sales manager for Lee Wetherington Homes, a local builder who developed the first community in Lakewood Ranch, Summerfield and many homes in Central Park.
Concentrating now on Country Club East, Mason said small builders can't compete with the huge cash outlay national builders offered SMR, so Lee Wetherington Homes switched to the more expensive custom-home market.
"The big builders have the cash flow, but ultimately, the consumer still gets the service -- the price points, affordability, and all the positives of the ranch. It's a full-service community and they've done a great job of filling in all the blanks."
The national surveys are available at rclco.com/advisory-top-selling-mpc-2014 and realestateconsulting.com/blog/ken-perlman/20-top-selling-masterplans-sold-nearly-13200-homes-2014.
Kathryn Moschella, Lakewood Ranch reporter can be reached at 941-745-7010. Follow her on Twitter @MoschellaHerald.com.
This story was originally published January 7, 2015 at 6:32 PM with the headline "Lakewood Ranch retains national stature as a top-selling master-planned community."