Land Rover Event Brings Out High Rollers at The Forest

The Land Rover team was on hand for a rocking Land Rover Experience at the April 6th REAL Magazine Realtor Day. The Forest set the stage for a beautiful day of food, fun and rough riding on the private Land Rover test driving course at Hi Hat Ranch. Guests were greeted at The Forest in a tented setting near the the community Welcome Center. REAL Magazine, along with co-sponsors South Point Motors, Florida Builder Appliances, Anchor Builders, John Cannon Homes, Arthur Rutenberg, John Neal Homes and Todd Johnston Homes, helped The Forest team stage the event. Some of Sarasota’s top Realtors were on hand along with guests of The Forest in a kickoff of the Spring/Summer season and new offerings at the community. Activities included tours of the new demonstration homesite cleared for previewing near the Welcome Center. A selection of fine wines and catered food were served throughout the say Those braving the Land Rover Experience had a wild ride on the Hi Hat Ranch. The course was truly a test of vehicle, driver and riders after two days of heavy rain preceding the event. “We promised an experience and the Land Rover team delivered with some wild high-flying test drives,” said The Forest’s Brian Wood of Premier Sotheby’s International Realty.”Luckily, everyone that took the Land Rover Tour through The Forest were a lot less rattled than those on... [Read more]



Find Some of Sarasota’s Best Golf Around The Forest

Residents of The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch who enjoy the game of golf have a lot of options nearby.  Within a 10 minute drive of the Forest there are seven Sarasota exclusive golf clubs with beautifully maintained courses. Each golf course has its respective highlights and each course represents a challenging set of greens, bunkers, fairways and tee boxes. Here below are just a few highlights from several of the excellent golf courses in the area. Bent Tree Country Club underwent a major course renovation in the summer of 2010 and has since become one of the area’s most friendly and laid back clubs. Their memberships have no monthly or annual minimums attached and their motto is Bent Tree is where ‘Champions’ play. It’s a great course made even better with the new renovations. The Founders Club is a more upscale golf club with only 275 golfing memberships available to play on their 18 hole Robert Trent Jones, Jr.-designed course. The grounds feature over 700 acres of verdant Florida landscape and the club itself offers fine dining, fitness and wellness programs. It’s a private course but non-equity memberships are available to non-residents. Check with the club on how to try out the course. Laurel Oak Country Club offers more than just a game of golf with their membership. This classic-style country club features everything one would expect in a club:  36 holes... [Read more]



Land Rover Event Coming To The Forest

Land Rover is staging a special event at The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch.  This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to drive a Land Rover in extreme off-road conditions with a professional driver. The Land Rover Experience is presented by Land Rover Southpointe of Sarasota.  The event is set for  April 6, 2013 from  11am until 2pm. A variety of other fun activities will be staged at The Forest Welcome Center including tours of the community, entertainment and refreshments. Guests will be able to experience extreme off-road driving with Land Rover’s Camel Off Road Racers. A special private course on the Hi Hat Ranch, one of the few used by Land Rover, will offer participants a rare opportunity for the chance to take part in the ultimate Land Rover “test ride.” Guests will also be able to tour The Forest including a demonstration homesite designed to share the unique setting available for true estate homes. Land Rover will have a tent with activities at The Forest Welcome Center on Lake Wood including some of the latest Land Rover models on display. The event is open to the public with free admission and parking. The Land Rover Experience ride availability is limited. Please RSVP to Brian Wood in advance to be eligible to ride the course. Click here for directions to The Forest. Call (941) 928-8408 for more information.  Read More →



The Forest Launches New YouTube Channel

There is a new way to preview The Forest with videos online. A new YouTube Channel has just been launched for The Forest. It includes four videos that provide an excellent overview and insight into Sarasota’s exclusive gated estate master planned community: The Forest Overview – Watch beautiful aerial footage for a bird’s eye view of the property and much more Meet Tom Dabney – Interview with the Developer of The Forest Meet Brian Wood – A preview of the Land Rover Tour opportunity with Sotheby’s exclusive representative for The Forest Why The Forest – An interview up close and personal with residents on why they chose The Forest Visit The Forest YouTube Channel and watch the videos. Subscribe to the Channel for notices whenever a new video is uploaded. It’s the next best thing to being at this beautiful Florida community for a live tour.  Read More →



Benderson Park Near The Forest Makes Bid For Global Rowing Event

  Residents of The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch may soon look forward to seeing one of the world’s most preeminent rowing events take place a quick 25 minute drive away. The Nathan Benderson Park has been a major site of local and regional rowing competitions for the past few years but the scope of this facility has recently been given a two million dollar infusion for improvements. In the past year, the site has improved its course length to meet international standards, a state of the art boat house is under construction and Manatee County is carefully considering an additional five million dollar investment in a bid to attract hotels, restaurants and additional park improvements. While the park is currently closed to the visiting public there are plans for a number of exciting opportunities for both youth and adult aquatic sports at the start of 2014. In addition to an on-site youth rowing program there will also be private lessons and masters rowing programs available from young adults to senior citizens. The Park will also be home to numerous other paddle sport competitions, from dragon boats to canoe and kayak races, as well as triathlon and cross country events. To top off this exciting list of activities Nathan Benderson Park also features a dedicated group of local volunteers that assist during the fast paced rowing regattas. Volunteers can choose to help with water... [Read more]



Forest Home Sale Tops $1.5 Million

The Forest continues to see strong interest and price appreciation with the most recent home sale topping the $1.5 million mark. This comes on the heels of the five homesites we sold over the last three months. I represented the seller for Premier Sotheby’s International Realty in the sale of this $1.55 million home in The Forest at 9399 Swaying Branch Road. This transaction, which closed on February 25, represents one of the largest residential sales since the inception of the community in 2006. The country estate home is situated on more than three acres on one of the most forested and beautiful lots within the gated community. Comprised of more than 5,700 square feet, the residence was one of the few existing homes of its size and quality on the market in The Forest. A certified green home, the estate home features closed cell foam insulation, high-efficiency air conditioning, and impact glass throughout. The season so far has been very exciting in Sarasota and there has been a surge of interest in The Forest. Buyers currently shopping in the market are discovering there are very few homes available within the existing home inventory. The good news for buyers is there are excellent opportunities to build a brand new home and the costs are about the same per square foot as the prices for resale properties. Plus, they get the added advantages that come with new construction... [Read more]



The Forest Is Newest Chapter Of Saraota’s Hi Hat Ranch History

The Hi Hat Ranch has a big place in Sarasota’s history. At one time it was the area’s largest private land holding in the county after Herman Turner assembled three large parcels in the mid 1940s. It encompassed one-eighth of Sarasota County at that time. A Sarasota Herald Tribune article from those days called the Turner Ranch “one of the most remarkable pieces of property in the state.” An article by Mark Smith in a 1998 issue of the Sarasota Herald Tribune gives an interesting brief insight into the rich history of the Ranch.  It’s worth a quick read to get a better understanding of the significance of this property in the history of Sarasota. The Turner family still owns and operates the Hi Hat Ranch. Most of its 10,000+ acres remain a real working ranch with active cattle and other agricultural operations. But there is a new chapter unfolding on the Hi Hat Ranch. As the county began to grow to the east after the turn of the 21st century, the family made the decision to do a master plan for a residential community on part of this vast property. The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch is the first neighborhood being developed as part of that plan. It is being managed with the same careful stewardship the family has followed for almost 70 years. “It’s only natural I guess that we take a little different approach to development,” says Rick Turner... [Read more]



Homesite Clearing Helps Buyers Envision Homes

The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch lives up to its name when it comes to tree cover. Most of the 3 to 5 acre homesites are densely wooded with old growth oaks and other native Florida trees. This makes for beautiful estate living and lush natural settings when building a new home at Sarasota’s premier gated large-lot master planned community. But the dense tree cover can also make it very difficult for prospective buyers to see and understand the configuration of the homesites. So the development team is setting up a homesite to better demonstrate how a home can integrate on these large estate properties. Clearing has begun on homesite number 1 located across the street from The Forest Welcome Center. A floor plan layout will be applied to the ground, once clearing and preparation are complete, to give visitors a vision of a future home on the site. “There is so much tree cover here that it can really be difficult for people to understand the vast size of these homesites,” said Brian Wood, The Forest representative for Premier Sotheby’s International Realty. “Even many of the existing properties are so well integrated with the surrounding trees that it’s hard to see the homes from the street. This is really what makes The Forest so different from other “estate” neighborhoods–but it also makes it more challenging for people to tell exactly... [Read more]



New Homes In Bloom This Spring at The Forest

A  surge of homesite sales last year at The Forest planted the seeds for new homes to begin appearing this Spring. Our excellent Premier Sotheby’s agent Brian Wood made five sales in fourth quarter alone confirming what our team has been sensing and the Sarasota Herald Tribune recently wrote about–the housing recovery is strengthening in the Sarasota area. Several of those lot buyers are now in the planning mode with our builders to bring forward new homes to add to our growing list of residents at Sarasota’s premier estate community. There will soon be several exciting new home designs under construction for future residents. We currently have one home actually under construction on homesite 7. Construction contracts have been signed with builders by several of our newest owners. An expansive estate home is planned by the owner who combined homesites 23 and 24. The owners off homesites 37 and 39 have both also signed construction contacts to build their new homes. In addition, the owner of homesite 29 is now moving forward with plans to build a home. We are encouraged by the recent sales activity and extremely pleased with the new “rooftops” that will be sprouting at The Forest. For our development team, the vision of creating Sarasota’s next great community on this historic land becomes the reality with every new household. The Forest is now... [Read more]



Sarasota New Home Market Heating Up

It looks to be a hot real estate market as we head into the winter/spring season in Sarasota. The Sarasota Herald story from this week confirms what we have been seeing here at The Forest–inventories are low and buyers are coming back with pent up demand. All signs appear to be pointing toward a continued economic recovery and real estate rebound. Baring unknowns such as the looming “fiscal cliff,” it looks like the new home industry is poised for a strong recovery locally. Sarasota continues to be one of the most desirable places to live with great weather, beautiful beaches and a fantastic quality of life. We’ve certainly seen the recovery over the second half of 2012. As noted in our recent post, sales have been very strong particularly in the fourth quarter. Looking at the available inventory of homes in The Forest category of large custom estate properties, the supply is very low. The fact is there are very few existing homes for buyers seeking a large home in a gated master planned community with acreage homesites. Our builders at The Forest are gearing up to be ready for increased demand. Several are underway now with new designs that will be posted soon on the website. And new models are in the planning stage. We recently adjusted lot prices at The Forest to make building here an even better value. Stay tuned to our blog and Facebook page for the... [Read more]