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Brian Wood of Signature Sotheby’s International Realty Sees an Incline in Residential Building
We are noticing that our clients are giving serious consideration to new construction when making a decision to buy a home. With existing home inventories falling there are less homes available that fit each client’s needs. In addition the builders have really sharpened their pencils and are offering some incredible opportunities that buyers can really benefit from. The combination of competitive pricing and the latest designs including a multitude of Green features and code changes like Impact Glass throughout the home are being considered very seriously by today’s savvy buyers. A home that was built just a few years ago does not have the energy efficiency or hurricane protection that today’s new construction offers. It is important to remember that beyond the price of the home the energy and insurance costs are very important to consider when selecting a home. Some of the short sales and bank owned properties offer a low price but may not offer a lot of what today’s buyer wants in design or features nor do they offer any warranties that new construction provides. Just last week, I had represented both the seller and buyer in the purchase of a new estate home at The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch. The development is a gated community that encompasses some 270 acres and offers just 54 three to five-acre estate homesites assuring each owner plenty of room to create a home for privacy.... [Read more]
Signature Sotheby’s International Realty Announces Sale of Estate Home
SIGNATURE SOTHEBY’S INTERNATIONAL REALTY AND ASSOCIATE, BRIAN WOOD, PROUDLY ANNOUNCE THE SALE OF A NEW ESTATE HOME AT THE FOREST AT HI HAT RANCH DEVELOPMENT SARASOTA, Florida (September 3, 2010) Signature Sotheby’s International Realty is proud to announce the recent sale of a new estate home at The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch, a private gated community in eastern Sarasota County that offers luxurious country living set within an expanse of unspoiled Florida countryside. Brian Wood, associate of Signature Sotheby’s International Realty represented both the seller and the buyer. The development is home to an abundance of native wildlife, including osprey and egrets, wild turkey and deer. Stately oaks and majestic pines canopy much of the land, and care has been taken when configuring roadways to preserve as many mature trees as possible. Although The Forest encompasses some 270 acres, the neighborhood offers just 54 three to five-acre estate assuring each owner plenty of room to create a home for privacy. Located off Clark Road just five minutes from Interstate 75 and a short drive to major designer retail centers, The Forest at HI Hat Ranch is remarkable for its seemingly untouched beauty. Like its near neighbor, the Myakka State Park, The Forest is home to pristine wetlands, mature trees and an abundance of wildlife. Great care has been taken to... [Read more]
The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch contributes to New Gate School Scholarship fund
Southwest Florida … The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch recently contributed a total of $600 to New Gate School’s scholarship fund. The contribution kicks off the school’s fundraising initiative. New Gate School is an independent, coeducational college preparatory school that serves more than 250 boys and girls, young women and men from ages 18 months to 18 years. New Gate School’s curriculum consists of a rigorous, yet innovative, academic program, and also includes a serious commitment to practical life skills, work-study skills and social skills. About The Forest A community with a total of 52 home sites, The Forest is being developed by Sugarbowl Development Company, a company comprised of Turner Family members, original owners and present stewards of the Hi Hat Ranch property. Tom Dabney, a member of the Turner family serves as its president. Tom is a licensed real estate broker who has completed numerous successful commercial and residential developments in the region since 1980. Three of Sarasota’s most renowned builders are the mainstays of The Forest, including Anchor Builders, Gibraltar Homes and John Cannon Homes. Each is known for creating beautiful, luxurious homes with the highest standards of quality construction, superior craftsmanship, award-winning interior designs, and unparalleled devotion to customer satisfaction. Hi Hat Ranch is a remarkable... [Read more]
Preferred Builders Selected for The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch
Home packages starting in the $700,000′s. Southwest Florida … Three of Sarasota’s most renowned locally owned and operated builders have been selected exclusively to build in The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch. Mention custom, one of a kind homes and one will hear, Anchor Builders, Gibraltar Homes and John Cannon Homes. Each of these builders are well known for creating beautiful, luxurious homes with the highest standards of quality construction, superior craftsmanship, award-winning interior designs, and unparalleled devotion to customer satisfaction. These three builders have an unmatched reputation for being able to create distinct, one of a kind homes, which matches The Forest’s “no repeat” rule requirements of the Architectural Review Committee. No repeat requirement Developers want each home to showcase the owners’ individual style and as a result, no two homes in The Forest will be exactly alike. Builders will work with each customer to create their dream in keeping with the Architectural Review Committee standards. The Builders Anchor Builders – Since 1988, Anchor Builders has been crafting custom residences that are the ultimate expressions of its clients’ personal tastes and lifestyles. Anchor Builders has achieved a renowned reputation for incorporating distinctive design features, innovative technology, and uncompromising... [Read more]
New Gate School Students Bring Holiday Warmth To Local Community
Southwest Florida … This holiday season, students of Sarasota’s New Gate School will be demonstrating their aesthetically pleasing creative skills as they adorn The Forest at High Hat Ranch community with elegant, oversized decorations. Residents, guests and passerbys of The Forest will feel the joyous warmth of the holiday season as they notice magnificent holiday decorations embellishing the entries and sales center of the development. “We are greatly appreciative of our neighbors at The Forest for helping us set in motion our school fundraising initiative, while integrating an enjoyable, yet stimulating art project with community involvement for our students ,” said Paul Wenninger, Head of School. The students will be decorating three separate locations within the development, including colorful holiday decorations accentuating the development’s giant outside monument signs, immense holiday wreaths ornamented with oversized bows at the front entry way, and festive decorations at the sales office. The holiday decorating project is part of New Gate School’s curriculum, further enabling students to develop a deeper appreciation for understanding the visual arts and creative process. Following Maria Montessori’s belief that education should be a creative learning process, the New Gate School places a strong emphasis on educating the arts. Students are encouraged... [Read more]
Home builders see fresh opportunities in the market: A roundtable discussion
Herald-Tribune Real Estate Editor Harold Bubil speaks with Tom Dabney, developer of The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch, and Forest homebuilders John Cannon of John Cannon Homes, Roy Dupuis of Anchor Builders, and Albert Sanchez of Gibraltar Homes about the state of local home building and the decision to restart the development’s marketing effort. Joining in is Brian Wood of Signature Sotheby’s, the onsite sales agent. The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch, featured in the Herald-Tribune’s Dec. 13, 2009, Real Estate section, has 54 home sites on 270 acres, with each site ranging in size from 3.0 to 5.6 acres. Lot prices range from $190,000 to $450,000, and home-lot packages start in the $700,000s. Eleven of the sites have been sold, and nine houses built. The Forest at Hi Hat Ranch is off Clark Road, five miles east of Interstate 75, in Sarasota County. The new builders, Anchor and Gibraltar, replace original builders Lee Wetherington Homes and Arthur Rutenberg Homes/M. Pete McNabb. Harold Bubil: What was behind the decision to bring in new builders and jump-start the development? Tom Dabney: We were moving along really well in November 2006 at the time we had our grand opening. We had a phenomenal turnout for the two-day event. We were selling briskly, and then it just came. That market slowdown hit, and it didn’t just slow, it stopped. Meeting with Roy and Albert and John Cannon, we... [Read more]