Pulte Homes is betting on St. Lucie County in part by counting on buyers from the Greater Miami Area.
The Atlanta-based national homebuilder bought a 50-acre site in Fort Pierce for $16.3 million, which is $326,000 per acre, with plans to develop it into Vela Cove, a single-family community with 239 homes. It is Pulte’s first project in Fort Pierce and its latest residential community on Florida’s Treasure Coast.
Pulte bought the property at 2721 South Jenkins Road from Cornerstone Fort Pierce Development LLC. The land was rezoned from retail to residential for the development. The homes will range from 1,300 to 1,900 square feet with three- to five-bedroom floor plans with two bathrooms and two-car garages.
Planned amenities include parks, a pool with cabanas and included lawn and internet services. Home prices are expected to range from under $450,000 to under $600,000.
The median list price for new homes in Miami-Dade County is $595,000, according to Redfin. It’s $675,000 in Fort Lauderdale and at least $800,000 in Boca Raton. In St. Lucie County, it’s $415,000.
“The predominant trend is people moving up from Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach want to stay in Southeast Florida, but they’ve been priced out, or they want to sell their home and move north,” said Brent Baker, PulteGroup’s Southeast Florida Division president.
PulteGroup’s Southeast Florida Division has active projects in all five Southeast Florida counties, including Indian River, St. Lucie, Martin, Palm Beach and Broward. Baker said the company is looking to acquire land in all of those markets serving a variety of price points.
PulteGroup is the parent company of Pulte Homes and one of the largest homebuilding companies in the United States. The company operates in 45 markets nationwide with a brand portfolio that includes Pulte Homes, Del Webb and Centex.
In South Florida, Pulte has developed several single-family and townhome communities including The Fields in Lake Worth, Oak Tree in Oakland Park and Abacoa in Jupiter.
Population growth and housing demand has motivated Pulte Group’s single-family home competitors, including Lennar Corporation, D.R. Horton and Taylor Morrison to also invest in the Sunshine State.
In March, Lennar announced three townhome communities in Cape Coral and Fort Myers slated to open this summer. Also in March, D.R. Horton’s Southwest Florida Division announced its Port Charlotte community, Driftwood Bay.
Baker said PulteGroup plans more investments in the Fort Pierce development but declined to give details. Land development is expected to begin this summer with sales opening early next year.