Big Builders Move into Lakewood Ranch

Lakewood Ranch welcomes national home builders alongside local favorites such as Lee Wetherington Homes, Todd Johnston Homes, Anchor Builders and John Cannon Homes. 

Lennar broker ground last week at Bridgewater community, and Lakewood Ranch now has three of the top 14 national home builders by closings, according to Builder Magazine.

The others are: Taylor Morrison (No. 14), at Esplanade Golf & Country Club and Haddington in Country Club East; D.R. Horton (No. 1) in Greenbrook Village.

“Lakewood Ranch is a place that we wanted to be for a long time,” said Matt Devereaux, Lennar’s vice president of sales for Southwest Florida. “It is not just a place to sleep and shower. It is a lifestyle — schools, shopping, restaurants, entertainment."

Lakewood Ranch’s builders includes Anchor Builders, Cardel Homes, Homes by Towne, John Neal Homes, Lennar, No. 64 Neal Communities, Nutter Custom Construction, Todd Johnston Homes, Arthur Rutenberg/Nelson Homes, John Cannon Homes, Lee Wetherington Homes, London Bay Homes, Neal Signature Homes, Taylor Morrison and Westwater Construction, and D.R Horton in a limited capacity. Horton is building about a dozen houses on foreclosed lots it bought from banks in Greenbrook Village.

Rex Jensen, president and CEO of Schroeder-Manatee Ranch, Lakewood Ranch’s parent, said the addition of big national builders to his lineup is “a function of the market. These are the strong guys in today’s world."

“And it’s also the fact that Lakewood Ranch has gained some credibility and some critical mass that makes companies like that very interested,” Jensen added. “We are a proven product. They as companies want to be part of it and we are happy to have them.”


Mike Storey, a Neal Communities executive, doesn’t see Lennar as competing for Neal buyers, but welcomes the big boys. “When national builders are willing to reinvest in the market, it shows confidence in the overall marketplace.”

Source: Herald Tribune