By Michele Gillis, Staff Writer
Open floor plans, triple sliding glass doors, emphasis on outdoor/indoor living and unique home designs are what Realtors saw on an all-day trip last month on the SAM Tram of Nocatee.
“I loved the water features, grills and pocket doors to open up the entire living space to the backyard,” said Tracy Lohse of Watson Realty, who works in the OakLeaf area.
Though it wasn’t Lohse’s first time on a SAM Tram, it was her first trip to Nocatee.
Lohse said the overview of Nocatee gave her more options for her customers and will help when they have questions.
She said SAM Trams are a great opportunity for agents from other areas to see what is available in areas they usually don’t visit.
The Northeast Florida Builders Association Sales and Marketing Council hosted the SAM Tram of Nocatee for about 80 Realtors and affiliates. The group rode on two tour buses and visited 15 different home models.
Builders whose models were visited were Mattamy Homes, DR Horton, Lennar Homes, ICI Homes, Standard Pacific, Providence, David Weekley Homes, Toll Brothers, Dream Finders Homes and Del Webb.
Elaine Reagan of Exit Real Estate Gallery said Nocatee is opening new communities so rapidly that it was time she became fully aware of them.
“I was able to see the whole gamut of homes and price ranges available,” said Reagan, who had not been on a SAM Tram before.
She said it gave her a good feel for the community so she can target what her buyers want to look at instead of taking them through the entire community.
Nocatee is a master-planned community that has a little more than 2,000 families living there.
The community is on pace to have close to 900 families move to Nocatee this year.
The area offers several neighborhoods with homes priced from the low $200,000s to more than $1 million.
The community has had 888 sales this year, as of Nov. 12, a significant growth over the 508 sales last year.
Kelly Ray of the PARC Group said there are nine more neighborhoods opening in 2014.
The first neighborhood, Greenleaf Lakes, will open in the summer. The remainder of the neighborhoods will be opening the third and fourth quarters.
Developers are on year seven of a 30-year build out with approximately 900 families moving in each year. The community should reach about 13,000 homes at build-out.
“The diversity that Nocatee offers is amazing,” said Lohse. “From townhomes to single-family detached, they are all great opportunities for any new prospective buyers and can accommodate a variety of budgets.”
Realtors also learned that plans were approved last month for the Nocatee Fire Station, which should be completed in early 2015. That could significantly reduce residents’ homeowners insurance because they are within a 5-mile radius of the new fire station.
There will be several new amenities opening late summer 2014. The plans include an expansion of the Splash Water Park, a junior Olympic-size competition pool, basketball courts, a community garden and a kayak launch on the Intracoastal Waterway.