Lennar buys bulk of latest lots in San Tan Valley master plan

Lennar and Mattamy Homes have paid a total $61.6 million for a combined 447 lots at a 1,500-acre master-planned community in San Tan Valley, southeast of Phoenix.

Miami-based Lennar bought the bulk of the properties, paying $45.4 million for 329 lots within Phase IV of the project at Bella Vista Farms, the Phoenix Business Journal reported.

Mattamy, based in Orlando, paid $16.23 million for 118 lots.

The seller was El Dorado Holdings, based in Scottsdale, the developer behind the $2.1 billion Bella Vista Farms master-planned community between Skyline Drive and Bella Vista Road, east of Gantzel Road, in the unincorporated area about 50 miles outside Phoenix.

More than 750 acres are still up for development, now in various stages of approvals, according to Chris Grogan, president of El Dorado.

“We still have a 200-acre active adult concept that we’re discussing with builders today, and additional phases of traditional single-family homes will be coming online in the next 12 to 18 months,” Grogan told the Business Journal.

Lennar has bought lots at Bella Vista Farms since the first phase of the project, which already is sold out, said Jeff Gunderson, senior vice president of land operations for Lennar.

The developer is now building Phase II and is slated to start Phase III models this fall, Gunderson said. The purchase of 329 lots for Phase IV brings the total lot count to 995.

“The San Tan Valley has been a very good location for Lennar,” Gunderson told the Business Journal. “With the lack of available land in Gilbert, Chandler, Mesa and even Queen Creek, San Tan Valley is just where the activity is if you want to buy a home in the southeast Valley.”

Brokers Nate Nathan, Daniel Baldwin, Courtney Buck and Ryan Duncan of Scottsdale-based Nathan & Associates represented El Dorado Holdings in the sale.

“San Tan Valley is experiencing tremendous growth based on all the new employment locating to the north and south,” Nathan told the newspaper.

Mattamy’s purchase of 118 lots was its first at Bella Vista Farms, with plans for homes designed for several generations of families.

“With the price of land and the price of housing, this will become a larger trend across the country,” Don Barrineau, Phoenix division president for Mattamy, told the Business Journal. “Aging parents, baby boomers, end up back with their kids in a lot of cases. We think it fits a couple of different segments.”

Plans call for starting construction on two model homes around this time next year, with sales to begin in summer 2025, he said. Homes will range between 2,100 and 3,200 square feet and most likely be priced in the high $400,000s to high $500,000s.

— Dana Bartholomew

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