Mediterra, named Community of the Year with homes priced above $2 million by the Collier Building Industry Association in 2010, has reported 54 sales and pending transactions through the first six months of 2011. By comparison, the luxury golf community recorded 64 sales in all of 2010.
"Throughout this season we observed a much stronger level of interest among visitors to the community, said Mark Wilson, president of London Bay Homes, which is responsible for all sales and marketing activity at Mediterra. "People shopping for a new luxury home are realizing that inventory is being depleted and prices are starting to rise. For homes priced between one and two million dollars in Naples, prices have risen for 10 consecutive months and that’s good news for our local economy," he added.
The 54 closed and pending sales reported through the first six months of 2011 totaled just under $70 million, compared to sales of $97 million in all of 2010 and $47 million in 2009. Wilson said that Mediterra’s preferred builders have seen growing demand for their homes. "During the last 18 months builders have sold nearly $50 million worth of new and inventory homes in Mediterra," he said. "Many of these homes were move-in ready, so it certainly appears that those prospects who have spent the last few years on the sidelines have determined that now is the time to buy."
Local real estate analyst Michael Timmerman, a senior associate with Fishkind & Associates concurs with Wilson’s assessment. "The luxury market continues to show improvement as we move through 2011, and it’s my opinion that improvement will continue through this upcoming season. Potential buyers are continuing to see an opportunity to purchase residential real estate in the best locations in Florida, of which Southwest Florida is one of the strongest," Timmerman said.
Mediterra, located along Livingston Road in north Naples, is a 1,700-acre master planned community with a maximum of 950 homes. More than 1,000 acres in the community are dedicated to golf, parks and nature preserves. The community includes two 18-hole Tom Fazio-design championship golf courses, limited to just 225 members per 18-holes. Other amenities include a private Beach Club with dining and a second-story pool located on the Gulf of Mexico, a 25,000 sq. ft. clubhouse with two restaurants, Sports Club with tennis, fitness and spa facilities, and more than eight miles of bicycle and walking paths connected to three distinctly themed community parks. All of the amenities are membership owned.
London Bay Homes is celebrating its 21styear in the Naples market and has developed its reputation building custom homes in many of the area’s most exclusive neighborhoods and communities. In 2008, the company was one of just two companies that earned recognition as "America’s Best Builder" from the industry’s leading publication, Builder Magazine. The company builds custom, semi-custom and intimate Village neighborhoods from Marco Island to Sarasota priced form the $600s to more than $10 million.
