Sunrise-based GL Homes has paid $56 million for 346.9 acres in Bonita Springs in southwest Florida, the company’s initial investment in the market.
GL expects to build about 1,000 single-family homes there next year. The land is approved for development of as many as 1,200 residential units. The last sold in 2005 for $60.7 million.
It was GL’s first land purchase in Bonita Springs but not its first in southwest Florida.
In the last three years, GL has sold 150 homes in a Fort Myers community called Marina Bay, 243 homes in a Naples development called Marbella Isles, and 736 in the Riverstone community in Naples.
“All of southwest Florida is doing very well,” said Patty Campbell, west coast president of GL.
The price GL paid for the 346.9-acre site in Bonita Springs equates to $161,411 per acre, a price at the top of the market, said Randy Thibaut, owner and CEO of Fort Myers-based land broker Land Solutions Inc.
“The last time we saw this pricing was in 2005,” Thibaut said. “This was very optimistic pricing.” [Business Observer] — Mike Seemuth