SARASOTA, FLORIDA, August 17th, 2015 – Lakewood Ranch (LWR) is aiming to cover an even wider range of the Sarasota housing market as this master-planned community marks its 20th year of sustained growth in 2015 and continues to expand and diversify moving into its expected build out in the next two decades.
It is estimated that the number of households in this master development, which was established in 1995, is now moving toward the 10,000 mark. This is just about a third of the 32,000 homes that the Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance predicts the entire LWR community could eventually have.
Statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau show that most residences in Lakewood Ranch are owner-occupied homes with a median value of over $344,000. The median age of residents is close to 34 and median household income is near the $89,000 level.
Rex Jensen, president of LWR developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch (SMR), said that they especially want the master development to increase its workforce-priced Sarasota homes for sale in the years ahead. This after SMR observed the heavy commuter traffic entering and leaving the Lakewood Ranch area at the start and end of a working or business day.
The master developer expects these low-end offerings to be incorporated in The Villages of Lakewood Ranch South slated for several housing types on SMR’s Sarasota County property. This development is planned as a walkable community as spelled out in the Sarasota 2050 growth plan for properties located east of Interstate 75.
Likewise on the drawing boards for LWR is its first development for residents age 55 and over. This community has been proposed by the Del Webb unit of the Pulte Group. Another subsidiary of this national homebuilder, Pulte Homes, developed the Harrison Ranch community in Parrish.
Dubbed as Del Webb at Lakewood Ranch, this planned LWR community sits on a 643-acre parcel some two miles east of the intersection of State Road 70 and Lorraine Road. It is envisioned as active adult community with 1,300 residences to be built within a 10-year timeframe. Primarily, the community will consist of detached single family homes, plus single family detached and multifamily residences. Planned amenities include a clubhouse and outdoor facilities, such as a pool and a major trail system.
Also within the State Road 70 and Lorraine Road area, a pair of new LWR developments—Lakewood National Golf and Country Club and Bridgewater East—was approved in August 2015 by the Manatee County Commission. Another national homebuilder, Lennar Corp.,will be the lead developer of both communities.
Lakewood National, planned in the north side of the 1,389-acre property,will include 477 single-family home sites and 1,110 multifamily units in two-story or four-story buildings. The proposed golf course will be a 36-hole championship layout with a practice range, in addition to a clubhouse with a pool and fitness center.
Bridgewater East, which faces State Road 70 on the south side of the Braden River bisecting a portion of the whole property, is planned for 412 single-family homes. This development includes a 6.4-acre recreation center with a fitness center and resort-style pool.
This neighborhood is likely to be a partial extension of Lennar’s current Bridgewater community to the west in LWR. In this older neighborhood, Lennar sells four- to six-bedroom manor homes with floor plans in the 1,677–2,529-square-foot range priced in the upper $300s. Also available at Bridgewater are three- to five-bedroom estate homes with floor areas ranging from 2,361 to 3,814 square feet priced in the mid-$400s.
SARASOTA, FLORIDA, October 7, 2019 – Property values of communities in the Sarasota-Manatee region now face lesser threat from neighborhood eyesores brought about by abandoned, foreclosed homes. Known in the real estate trade as zombie foreclosures, these properties have shrunk significantly in the region. According to an August report of ATTOM Data Solutions, abandoned […] more>>