December 8, 2024 • 21 mins
Episode Overview:
Jim sits down with Josh Hurdel and Christina Kuban from Bella Lago, a thriving DR Horton community in Parrish, Florida. With nearly 80% of the 1,080 planned homes already completed, Bella Lago offers a unique lifestyle, an array of amenities, and a prime location in Eastern Manatee County. Learn why Josh and Christina, who live in the community themselves, call Bella Lago home.
About Bella Lago:
- Development Size: 1,080 single-family homes (approximately 300 homes remaining).
- Location: Conveniently situated in Parrish, central to Tampa, Sarasota, and Bradenton.
- Completion Timeline: Estimated 2 years to finish the remaining homes.
Living Options:
- Floor Plans: 15 options ranging from 1,500–3,300 sq. ft.
- Price Range: $330,000–$570,000.
- Features: Two-car and three-car garages available, as well as multi-generational home designs.
- Two Series of Homes:
- Express Series: Turnkey homes with included features for quick move-in.
- Tradition Series: Upgraded finishes and design options.
Community Amenities:
- Amenity Centers:
- Two outdoor pools (one heated) with pavilions.
- 24-hour fitness center.
- Tot lot (playground) and dog park.
- HOA Fees: $100–$132/month, covering common area maintenance and irrigation for front and side yards.
What Sets Bella Lago Apart?
- Breathtaking Views: Nearly every home offers a water or conservation view.
- Central Location:
- 30–40 minutes to Tampa and Sarasota Airports.
- Close to Moxon Wallow corridor, North River Ranch, and Creekside Commons shopping center.
- Nearby Developments:
- New Publix shopping center with restaurants, gym, nail salon, and more.
- Two new hospitals (HCA and BayCare) within minutes.
- Future lagoon community and county park with walking trails and picnic areas.
Support for Homebuyers:
- DR Horton Warranty Program:
- 10 Years: Structural coverage.
- 2 Years: HVAC, electrical, and plumbing systems.
- 1 Year: Manufacturer and hardware defects.
- Vertical Integration: Mortgage, title, and insurance services through DR Horton affiliates for streamlined transactions and potential discounts.
Who’s Moving In?
- A mix of families, retirees, first-time buyers, and multi-generational households.
- Residents enjoy continuity and community focus, with six-month minimum rental policies ensuring a neighborhood feel.
Why Choose Bella Lago?
- Active Lifestyle: Weekly social events for adults and kids.
- Pet-Friendly: No breed restrictions and a welcoming dog park.
- Community Spirit: Many residents refer friends and family to live in Bella Lago.
A Personal Note from Jim:
Hey there, I’m Jim Ahearn, your go-to real estate guide and host of Jim Sells The Suncoast podcast! 🎙️✨ Dreaming of Florida life? I’ve got you covered! As your dedicated buyer's agent, I’ll handle everything from walk-throughs to closing, making your home-buying journey as smooth as a Florida breeze.
Whether you're local or tuning in from afar, I’ll bring the Suncoast to you with virtual tours and expert advice. Let’s chat about your dream home and I'll connect you with all the right people to make it happen.
Ready to move to paradise? Drop me a line – I can’t wait to help! 🌴🏡
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Jim (00:01):
All right.
Good morning.
And today I am excited towelcome Josh and Christina from
Bella Lago, DR Horton community.
Josh, he's been in sales 11years in the banking and in real
estate for one.
Christina has been 10 years inreal estate.
She's got four years at DRHorton and Josh has one.
So welcome.
Josh (00:20):
Thanks for having us today.
Yeah.
Jim (00:22):
Oh, my pleasure.
My pleasure.
So tell me a little bit aboutoverall about Bella Lago.
What's going on?
Over here in the Eastern side ofManatee County.
Josh (00:32):
You want to start?
All right.
Bella Lago is a DR Hortoncommunity here located in
Parrish.
We are, we've been building inhere for approximately four to
five years now.
We have all single family homesand there's a lot up and coming
in this part of Parrish rightnow.
Jim (00:48):
And
Josh (00:49):
a lot to dig into today that we'll mention what's coming
in our area, in our community.
In this community specificallywith DR Horton, we have all
single family homes and whenwe're finished, complete
building in here, it'll be atotal of 1, 080 homes.
Jim (01:04):
Oh, wow.
I didn't realize it was thatbig.
About how far along are you now?
Do you know?
Christina (01:11):
We are about 80 percent done.
We have about 300 homes left togo.
Jim (01:15):
Okay.
So what do you think sets thisdevelopment apart in terms of
lifestyle and community comparedto others in the area?
Yeah.
Josh (01:22):
I would say our people, our location and our amenities.
It's a great community.
It's very diverse.
Christina and myself, weactually both live here in the
community as well.
And we both live here.
That's a pretty good
Jim (01:34):
Testament.
To the community when you guysactually live there too.
Josh (01:37):
Yeah, absolutely.
So yeah, the people here areawesome.
And we, have first look at that.
And the, the events that thecommunity puts on for the kids,
for the adults, there's usuallysomething for everyone.
There's a lot of weekly eventsthat the HOA will put on the
social community through theHOA.
They'll put on for Bible studiesat the amenity center, poker
(02:00):
night, card
Christina (02:01):
making.
Josh (02:02):
Yeah,
Christina (02:02):
They have everything.
Jim (02:03):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Nice.
A big active community.
And then you mentioned brieflyto the location in parish where
that area is growing and in your30, 40 minutes from the beaches.
30, 40 minutes from either Tampaor Sarasota Airport.
You've got the Moxon Wallowcorridor that's growing and
you're still only 20 or 30minutes from Lakewood Ranch.
(02:24):
So really close to everything.
Josh (02:28):
Yeah, and I think that's why we chose here and a lot of
our homeowners choose this areais because this part of Parish
is central to the main hubs inthe city.
So you're the same distance fromBella Lago to Tampa as you are
to Sarasota.
and the same goes for Braden'sin the same piece.
So you are very central to allof them.
Jim (02:47):
Fantastic.
So tell me a little bit aboutthe the living options available
there.
We've talked about single familyhomes, what size?
Are we catering to and whatprice points are we looking at?
Josh (02:56):
We have about 15 different floor plans here in our
community.
So there's really something fromeveryone for everyone.
We, our square footage in hereranges from around 1500 square
feet up to about 3300 squarefeet.
And price point, what'd you say?
Christina (03:13):
Price point, we're 330s to about 570s.
Okay, so it covers
Jim (03:19):
a little bit of whatever budget you have and then looking
at, the smallest three bedroom.
Christina (03:24):
Yes 1500 square feet two car garage, right?
And then we go up to the 3300with the two car garage, but
then we also have some three cargarage options and a Multi
generational home as well.
Jim (03:37):
Okay, nice I think that's a big deal coming in to play in
florida in particular
Josh (03:43):
In addition to that we have two different series of
homes in this community, tooWhat we call our express series
homes, which are more turnkeyready to move into Everything's
included in the home and thenour tradition series homes where
the feet the finishes and thefeatures in the home vary a bit
as well,
Jim (04:00):
okay, and then The first one I forget what you called it.
We're setting that up.
That's Inventory home reallyready to go Which you probably
have a different timeline.
So depending on your timeline.
Hey, we need to move in 30 days.
Great.
We got you covered.
Josh (04:14):
Yeah, that's a great point too.
We with DR Horton and especiallyin our division of DR Horton
we're really rocking and rollingin, in our build time.
So we do have homes that in allstages, some that are ready,
some of that are just breakingground and some, everything in
between there,
Jim (04:31):
I think that's an important point.
I've, I remember I've built ahome years ago and that was one
of those, if you able to sitaside and wait.
That could be a big issue.
Yeah, absolutely.
Perfect.
We talked about the startingprices.
What else is there going on inthe areas when we look at the
amenities and when we look atthe other costs associated with
(04:52):
the house as far as HOA and CDDsand then what are you getting
from that from the as far as aan amenity and a lifestyle.
Josh (05:02):
It's a great question.
You want to take that?
So
Christina (05:03):
as far as amenities go in our community, we have a
24 hour gym, which is absolutelyamazing.
We have a main amenity centerwith an outdoor clubhouse that
has a heated pool.
So heated winter months, you canstill go out there.
We have a tot lot, we have a dogpark, and then we have a second
amenity center with anotheroutdoor.
(05:25):
Pavilion and then another poolas well.
That pool is not heated.
Jim (05:29):
Okay.
So tell me, Tot Lot, I'massuming, is that a playground
area for kids?
Is it next to the dog park, youcan put one in each one and then
watch them
Christina (05:38):
go?
Jim (05:39):
That's the way to do it.
And you know what I think too,is people move down here, the
heated pool, once you've beenhere and your blood thins out,
That's the only way to go.
Christina (05:49):
Absolutely
Jim (05:50):
Are there plans for any future minis or is that already
all built out ready to go?
Christina (05:55):
That's all built out, ready to go.
Josh (05:57):
Our newest mini second one Christina mentioned just opened
earlier this year, so all of ours have already been completed
and are ready to go for theresidents while they
Jim (06:07):
move.
Josh (06:08):
They don't have the newer
Jim (06:11):
communities currently.
Okay.
And the HOA, how much is theHOA.
Christina (06:17):
It ranges anywhere between 100 a month to about 132
a month.
Jim (06:22):
Oh, that's not bad.
Not bad at all.
And what is included in that Asfar as that, is there any, is it
maintenance free?
Is it, maintenance light?
Josh (06:31):
So that includes access to both of the amenity centers.
Irrigation is included in thefront and the sides of the home
as well.
So there are sprinkler systemsalready in there.
And then common area upkeepmaintenance of the community to
make it looking nice, keep itlooking nice for everyone as
they come through.
Jim (06:48):
Okay.
But then you're responsible foryour yard care, lawn
maintenance, upkeep, that kindof stuff.
Josh (06:52):
That's right.
Jim (06:53):
Okay.
We talked about it being over1000 units, with the full set
acreage sizes and whatpercentage is like green area.
What are we looking at withthat?
Josh (07:05):
I don't know an exact percentage or an acreage.
However, almost all of ourcommunity, all of our home sites
in this development are eitheron a water view or a
conservation view.
So about 98 to 99 percent of ourhome sites are going to have a
conservation or water view withthe exception of a few that are
on the corner and they mightback up to the side of the
(07:25):
right, Okay.
Jim (07:27):
What is the ideal buyer or resident?
What what demographic are welooking for?
People moving into Florida isthis people in Florida moving,
laterally or, that first timehomebuyer move into that next
step.
Christina (07:40):
I definitely think it's a little bit of everything
right now.
It's people moving down, it'speople moving over, it's people
retiring to downsize, it'sfamilies growing and needing a
bigger space.
So we're A one stop shop foreverybody.
Jim (07:54):
Yeah.
And I think when you talkedabout the size and the size of
the homes, the price point ofthe homes, and in fact you have
multi-generational homes.
Christina (08:01):
you
Jim (08:01):
do cater to everybody, what is the timeline for
construction?
If you are, really back andyou're starting from scratch and
you're not necessarilycustomizing your home, but maybe
you're personalizing it,
Josh (08:14):
so from the ground up right now, once we break ground,
our average build time in thiscommunity is about six months.
Okay.
To being ready to move into thehome at that point.
Now with DR Horton in ourdivision, we don't do any
customizations on our home.
So when the home's completed,you can move in which speeds up
the build time a little bit andmakes the homes a little bit
(08:35):
more cost efficient for ourbuyers as
Jim (08:37):
well.
But then once you're in, youcan, you could repaint or do
whatever you got to do inside tomake it yours and personalize it
to a degree.
Okay.
What about landscaping outside?
Same thing?
Is it a set plan?
And that's how it goes in.
And what can they do tocustomize that?
Josh (08:53):
I've seen a lot of different customizations in the
landscaping in here.
People have gotten reallycreative.
As I mentioned, I live here inthe community as well, so I've
driven around our community justto get different ideas.
The homeowner can plant prettymuch any Florida native tree or
plant in the community once theymove in.
So you're going to see a lot ofpalm trees being added, the
(09:14):
Florida lifestyle You'll see alot of that on our different
home sites.
People have gotten creative withthe pavers, with the curving
around their landscaping theuplighting, so you can do all of
the, all of that after you moveinto the
Christina (09:26):
home.
Jim (09:26):
Okay.
And while we're talking aboutthat, what about pools?
Can you put pools in?
Is there room for a pool?
Christina (09:31):
Yeah.
Is
Jim (09:32):
that an option as we're building?
Or is that a
Christina (09:34):
post build?
All of our floor plans canpretty much fit a pool.
Our largest single story.
Is gonna fit a much smallerpool.
It's definitely not going to beolympic size by any means But
you can usually fit something onit.
But yes people a lot of peoplein the neighborhood have added
pools so far
Jim (09:51):
Okay, I think that's a big deal in florida Obviously when
it's warm in the summer makes anice easy jump in and you're
good to go Yeah, so how does thedeveloper support homeowners
after the sale
Josh (10:07):
That's a good question.
Can you clarify a little bitmore?
Jim (10:09):
Sure.
Looking at what kind ofwarranties are involved, what
kind of follow up, obviously youguys are there at the office to
deal with it.
It's not a, Hey, you bought thehouse.
Have a good time.
A lot of, when they walk in andsee you guys there and they're
smiling and they know you andyou know them.
That goes a long way towardssolving any issue or being able
to point them in the rightdirection.
Josh (10:29):
It's a good question.
And to your point, Jim, we don'tonce they sign for the closing,
see you later, you're on yourown and have a great day.
We are still with them everystep of the way through the
purchasing process.
And then afterwards they do geta warranty.
One of the benefits of that,purchasing with new
construction.
With our warranty in DeerHorton, they get a 10 year
warranty on a major structuralthe foundation structure of the
(10:53):
home.
The two year warranty they getis on all the systems in the
HVAC, electrical, plumbing, andthen the one year is Any
hardware or manufacturer defectsor anything like that is all
going to be included.
The only thing that's notincluded in that one year is
going to be more of the cosmeticitems, which they would address
before they closed on the home.
Jim (11:13):
Okay.
And what kind of roof is are weputting in there?
Obviously it's been a tough yearas hurricanes go.
But what kind of roofing styleis in the, it comes with the
home.
Christina (11:23):
You know this now, right?
Jim (11:25):
Yeah.
Josh (11:25):
It's going to be a hip roof.
We do a three tab, a Floridarated shingle or an
architectural shingle, dependingon the series of the home.
Jim (11:33):
Okay.
And then I'm going to step backa little bit and talk about
vertical integration.
When you talked about one stopshop, what do you have as far
as, a mortgage company, titleinsurance, Can all of that be
purchased at one stop?
Christina (11:48):
Yes.
So we have D.
H.
I.
M.
which is our lending team withD.
R.
Horton.
And then we also have D.
H.
I.
Title, which is our titlecompany.
Josh (11:57):
Okay.
Christina (11:57):
We also have D.
R.
Horton insurance.
So you can get insurance throughus.
What else?
Josh (12:03):
Yeah, there's a lot of affiliates.
Those are definitely the mainones.
But everything can be integratedand there's benefit to using all
of the other agencies under DRHorton as well, right?
You think about the process andit's a lot of moving parts when
you're purchasing a new home.
So in order for all of thatstuff to be integrated under one
umbrella and one team, it makesthe process go a lot more
(12:24):
smooth.
And there's also usually morediscounts involved for the buyer
for using our short term teamand services.
Jim (12:32):
Yep.
And those will vary depending onthe month, time of year, what's
left.
We'll put a link in the shownotes that anybody wants to
reach out, they can reach out.
So you can see, are we doingdiscounts on mortgage rates or
buy downs or, whatever's goingon at that particular time.
Josh (12:46):
Absolutely.
Jim (12:48):
So let's talk a little bit about the area.
We're out there in parish.
I know North river ranch is upthe road.
You've got mocks and wallowgrowing.
What kind of institutions orshopping centers?
What else is going on out inthat area that's going to be
there for that homeowner?
Josh (13:03):
Great questions.
There is a lot.
So what we usually tell and toyour point, we are right in the
heart of the North RiverDistrict here.
Actually the North River Ranchcommunity abuts to Bella Lago.
And engulfs our community aswell, so they are a quick access
to North River Ranch andeverything that's coming in that
in their development to themocks and wallow corridor.
(13:24):
You mentioned earlier.
That's where a lot of thedevelopment is happening right
now in in parish.
And also along the 301 corridorin Parrish, there's more
shopping centers.
Creekside Commons is a new mallwith lots of restaurants,
retail, shopping for residentsand consumers too.
But more specifically in ourarea, Just all I mean within a
(13:46):
five mile radius of Bella Lago,there's going to be four Publix
grocery stores The brand new onewas just open about six months
ago right outside of thecommunity It's a quick golf cart
ride there
Jim (13:58):
right
Josh (13:59):
new Publix shopping center Neal communities They just
announced there's going to be apizza shop a breakfast cafe a
bank a gym Yep, a gym, there'sgoing to be spa, nail salon, and
a lot of other things in thatshopping center specifically
there too.
Also, directly south of ourcommunity, there's going to be a
new hospital.
There's going to be twohospitals on the Moxon Mala
(14:20):
Corridor, an HCA and a BayCarehospital.
Those have been announced for alittle while now too, but you're
going to see a new lagooncommunity that'll be open to the
public as well.
So that's about a five to 10minute ride down Moxon Wallow
road.
Christina (14:35):
And there's a bunch of restaurants and stuff coming
around that area as well, rightaround that lagoon.
Jim (14:40):
I think one of the things that Manatee County is doing
too, is getting, taking care ofthe roads now.
Before the homes get builtrather than the other way around
with the construction of mocksand wallow and all those things,
I think they're targeting atleast some of those sections
will be opening by the middle orsecond half of 25.
So
Josh (14:58):
we see
Jim (14:58):
it every day right now
Josh (15:00):
through it.
So for a homeowner that'slooking to purchase in the
future soon, they'll be pastthat, that patch right now.
But some parts of Maxwell, yes.
Expanding up to six lines even.
And in there, we're gonna havethat.
You mentioned the countyinfrastructure.
They're bringing new parks andnew schools to the community to
(15:20):
there's a new county park that'sopening pretty soon.
It's gonna have an amphitheaterwalking trails picnic areas,
open play fields.
So all that's coming.
There's also gonna be in parishtown center where they're gonna
have some new shops andrestaurants in a main street
area with all of that as well.
Jim (15:37):
Yeah.
And then you're really not farfrom Fort hammer where they're
building the park hammersomething which is going in and
then Lake Manatee and the statepark out there.
Christina (15:49):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Jim (15:50):
Very central to everything.
So are there any specificguidelines or restrictions for
homeowners when we're talkingabout pets, dogs or rentals?
Christina (15:59):
With rentals, it has to be at least a six month
rental.
So no short term rentals, noAirbnbs, things like that.
As far as dogs go or breedrestrictions, we do not have
any.
Jim (16:10):
Okay.
And I think homeowners like thatwhen there's going to be
continuity in the neighborhood,not transients for.
Yeah, a weekend or a month.
So that's a good thing.
I think.
Yeah.
What are we seeing in, in yourcommunity as far as the local
real estate market?
How is the pricing going?
How is that being impacted?
And what do you see as far as atrend in that neighborhood?
Josh (16:34):
I would say overall In this area and in our community,
prices are trending up now.
There's always going to be somedips, depending on market and
rates right now.
And and, this as well, Jim,typically as rates increase,
price of homes will decrease andvice versa.
So we're in a.
I would say more of a middlesteady market right now and
(16:58):
trying to get through theholidays in our community,
specifically, since we do haveso many options, traffic really
hasn't been an issue for us inhere, we're still getting people
through the door.
There's always going to bebuyers looking to move in.
Jim (17:13):
Yeah, absolutely.
And he said, you said it wasabout 300 homes left to go or
so.
What do you, is that a, Twoyear, three year plan, roughly.
Christina (17:22):
About a two year plan or less.
Can
Jim (17:27):
you share any stories or testimonials from current
residents that talk about theirpositive experience or
interactions that you've hadwith them?
Josh (17:36):
Oh I mean, we have our Google reviews page.
There's some really great thingsin there.
Christina and I do, the best jobwe can to help our buyers get to
closing.
And then after that, So we havehad a lot of instances where,
the homeowner is extremelyhappy.
This is their first home or thisis their last home and
(17:57):
everything.
And so we do get a lot ofmessages, a lot of emails.
And after the home buyer closes,they take a survey and, directly
with Christina and I, we havenot scored anything less than.
In our surveys than what wasexpected.
Jim (18:12):
Yeah, nice.
And I was thinking about the,that customer that comes in,
that as soon as they walk in,you guys are like, Hey, they've
got that great experience andthey come back and it's fun just
to reminisce and share withthem.
Christina (18:24):
It's definitely fun.
It's also fun to see.
Now that we've been here forabout four years, now we're
seeing.
moms and dads purchased becausethey're right in here or vice
versa or an aunt is moving downand coming to see us.
So it's good to see familiesgrow within our community as
well.
And everybody's referringeverybody in here.
Jim (18:43):
Excellent.
Do you guys have any last wordsfor anybody listening about
Bella Lago and coming out to seeyou guys?
Josh (18:52):
So for homebuyers and realtors here in our community,
we like to have a lot of funwith DR Horton.
We usually have a lot of eventshappening outside of the HOA for
the residents and more so forour prospective homebuyers and
for the realtors that work in DRHorton as well.
So we love our realtors.
(19:13):
We're always paying our realtorsas well.
We take care of that for thehome buyers.
So that's, a burden off of theirchest too.
But we do events where we, we'llgive away bonus cards or we'll
host your lunch for your officeand your team.
And then we'll even do eventsfor our home buyers as well,
where we sometimes give them,gifts and treats and welcome
them into the community.
So we'll always post thosethings to our social media pages
(19:35):
and keep people in the loop withthat.
Jim (19:38):
Fantastic.
Guys, I want to thank you somuch for joining me this
afternoon.
I hope everybody has been ableto learn something about Bella
Lago and come out and see Joshand Christina.
Thank you.
Christina (19:48):
Thank you so much for having us.
Jim (19:50):
Thanks, Jim.
We appreciate you.
All right.
Good morning.
And today I am excited towelcome Josh and Christina from
Bella Lago, DR Horton community.
Josh, he's been in sales 11years in the banking and in real
estate for one.
Christina has been 10 years inreal estate.
She's got four years at DRHorton and Josh has one.
So welcome.
Josh (00:20):
Thanks for having us today.
Yeah.
Jim (00:22):
Oh, my pleasure.
My pleasure.
So tell me a little bit aboutoverall about Bella Lago.
What's going on?
Over here in the Eastern side ofManatee County.
Josh (00:32):
You want to start?
All right.
Bella Lago is a DR Hortoncommunity here located in
Parrish.
We are, we've been building inhere for approximately four to
five years now.
We have all single family homesand there's a lot up and coming
in this part of Parrish rightnow.
Jim (00:48):
And
Josh (00:49):
a lot to dig into today that we'll mention what's coming
in our area, in our community.
In this community specificallywith DR Horton, we have all
single family homes and whenwe're finished, complete
building in here, it'll be atotal of 1, 080 homes.
Jim (01:04):
Oh, wow.
I didn't realize it was thatbig.
About how far along are you now?
Do you know?
Christina (01:11):
We are about 80 percent done.
We have about 300 homes left togo.
Jim (01:15):
Okay.
So what do you think sets thisdevelopment apart in terms of
lifestyle and community comparedto others in the area?
Yeah.
Josh (01:22):
I would say our people, our location and our amenities.
It's a great community.
It's very diverse.
Christina and myself, weactually both live here in the
community as well.
And we both live here.
That's a pretty good
Jim (01:34):
Testament.
To the community when you guysactually live there too.
Josh (01:37):
Yeah, absolutely.
So yeah, the people here areawesome.
And we, have first look at that.
And the, the events that thecommunity puts on for the kids,
for the adults, there's usuallysomething for everyone.
There's a lot of weekly eventsthat the HOA will put on the
social community through theHOA.
They'll put on for Bible studiesat the amenity center, poker
(02:00):
night, card
Christina (02:01):
making.
Josh (02:02):
Yeah,
Christina (02:02):
They have everything.
Jim (02:03):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Nice.
A big active community.
And then you mentioned brieflyto the location in parish where
that area is growing and in your30, 40 minutes from the beaches.
30, 40 minutes from either Tampaor Sarasota Airport.
You've got the Moxon Wallowcorridor that's growing and
you're still only 20 or 30minutes from Lakewood Ranch.
(02:24):
So really close to everything.
Josh (02:28):
Yeah, and I think that's why we chose here and a lot of
our homeowners choose this areais because this part of Parish
is central to the main hubs inthe city.
So you're the same distance fromBella Lago to Tampa as you are
to Sarasota.
and the same goes for Braden'sin the same piece.
So you are very central to allof them.
Jim (02:47):
Fantastic.
So tell me a little bit aboutthe the living options available
there.
We've talked about single familyhomes, what size?
Are we catering to and whatprice points are we looking at?
Josh (02:56):
We have about 15 different floor plans here in our
community.
So there's really something fromeveryone for everyone.
We, our square footage in hereranges from around 1500 square
feet up to about 3300 squarefeet.
And price point, what'd you say?
Christina (03:13):
Price point, we're 330s to about 570s.
Okay, so it covers
Jim (03:19):
a little bit of whatever budget you have and then looking
at, the smallest three bedroom.
Christina (03:24):
Yes 1500 square feet two car garage, right?
And then we go up to the 3300with the two car garage, but
then we also have some three cargarage options and a Multi
generational home as well.
Jim (03:37):
Okay, nice I think that's a big deal coming in to play in
florida in particular
Josh (03:43):
In addition to that we have two different series of
homes in this community, tooWhat we call our express series
homes, which are more turnkeyready to move into Everything's
included in the home and thenour tradition series homes where
the feet the finishes and thefeatures in the home vary a bit
as well,
Jim (04:00):
okay, and then The first one I forget what you called it.
We're setting that up.
That's Inventory home reallyready to go Which you probably
have a different timeline.
So depending on your timeline.
Hey, we need to move in 30 days.
Great.
We got you covered.
Josh (04:14):
Yeah, that's a great point too.
We with DR Horton and especiallyin our division of DR Horton
we're really rocking and rollingin, in our build time.
So we do have homes that in allstages, some that are ready,
some of that are just breakingground and some, everything in
between there,
Jim (04:31):
I think that's an important point.
I've, I remember I've built ahome years ago and that was one
of those, if you able to sitaside and wait.
That could be a big issue.
Yeah, absolutely.
Perfect.
We talked about the startingprices.
What else is there going on inthe areas when we look at the
amenities and when we look atthe other costs associated with
(04:52):
the house as far as HOA and CDDsand then what are you getting
from that from the as far as aan amenity and a lifestyle.
Josh (05:02):
It's a great question.
You want to take that?
So
Christina (05:03):
as far as amenities go in our community, we have a
24 hour gym, which is absolutelyamazing.
We have a main amenity centerwith an outdoor clubhouse that
has a heated pool.
So heated winter months, you canstill go out there.
We have a tot lot, we have a dogpark, and then we have a second
amenity center with anotheroutdoor.
(05:25):
Pavilion and then another poolas well.
That pool is not heated.
Jim (05:29):
Okay.
So tell me, Tot Lot, I'massuming, is that a playground
area for kids?
Is it next to the dog park, youcan put one in each one and then
watch them
Christina (05:38):
go?
Jim (05:39):
That's the way to do it.
And you know what I think too,is people move down here, the
heated pool, once you've beenhere and your blood thins out,
That's the only way to go.
Christina (05:49):
Absolutely
Jim (05:50):
Are there plans for any future minis or is that already
all built out ready to go?
Christina (05:55):
That's all built out, ready to go.
Josh (05:57):
Our newest mini second one Christina mentioned just opened
earlier this year, so all of ours have already been completed
and are ready to go for theresidents while they
Jim (06:07):
move.
Josh (06:08):
They don't have the newer
Jim (06:11):
communities currently.
Okay.
And the HOA, how much is theHOA.
Christina (06:17):
It ranges anywhere between 100 a month to about 132
a month.
Jim (06:22):
Oh, that's not bad.
Not bad at all.
And what is included in that Asfar as that, is there any, is it
maintenance free?
Is it, maintenance light?
Josh (06:31):
So that includes access to both of the amenity centers.
Irrigation is included in thefront and the sides of the home
as well.
So there are sprinkler systemsalready in there.
And then common area upkeepmaintenance of the community to
make it looking nice, keep itlooking nice for everyone as
they come through.
Jim (06:48):
Okay.
But then you're responsible foryour yard care, lawn
maintenance, upkeep, that kindof stuff.
Josh (06:52):
That's right.
Jim (06:53):
Okay.
We talked about it being over1000 units, with the full set
acreage sizes and whatpercentage is like green area.
What are we looking at withthat?
Josh (07:05):
I don't know an exact percentage or an acreage.
However, almost all of ourcommunity, all of our home sites
in this development are eitheron a water view or a
conservation view.
So about 98 to 99 percent of ourhome sites are going to have a
conservation or water view withthe exception of a few that are
on the corner and they mightback up to the side of the
(07:25):
right, Okay.
Jim (07:27):
What is the ideal buyer or resident?
What what demographic are welooking for?
People moving into Florida isthis people in Florida moving,
laterally or, that first timehomebuyer move into that next
step.
Christina (07:40):
I definitely think it's a little bit of everything
right now.
It's people moving down, it'speople moving over, it's people
retiring to downsize, it'sfamilies growing and needing a
bigger space.
So we're A one stop shop foreverybody.
Jim (07:54):
Yeah.
And I think when you talkedabout the size and the size of
the homes, the price point ofthe homes, and in fact you have
multi-generational homes.
Christina (08:01):
you
Jim (08:01):
do cater to everybody, what is the timeline for
construction?
If you are, really back andyou're starting from scratch and
you're not necessarilycustomizing your home, but maybe
you're personalizing it,
Josh (08:14):
so from the ground up right now, once we break ground,
our average build time in thiscommunity is about six months.
Okay.
To being ready to move into thehome at that point.
Now with DR Horton in ourdivision, we don't do any
customizations on our home.
So when the home's completed,you can move in which speeds up
the build time a little bit andmakes the homes a little bit
(08:35):
more cost efficient for ourbuyers as
Jim (08:37):
well.
But then once you're in, youcan, you could repaint or do
whatever you got to do inside tomake it yours and personalize it
to a degree.
Okay.
What about landscaping outside?
Same thing?
Is it a set plan?
And that's how it goes in.
And what can they do tocustomize that?
Josh (08:53):
I've seen a lot of different customizations in the
landscaping in here.
People have gotten reallycreative.
As I mentioned, I live here inthe community as well, so I've
driven around our community justto get different ideas.
The homeowner can plant prettymuch any Florida native tree or
plant in the community once theymove in.
So you're going to see a lot ofpalm trees being added, the
(09:14):
Florida lifestyle You'll see alot of that on our different
home sites.
People have gotten creative withthe pavers, with the curving
around their landscaping theuplighting, so you can do all of
the, all of that after you moveinto the
Christina (09:26):
home.
Jim (09:26):
Okay.
And while we're talking aboutthat, what about pools?
Can you put pools in?
Is there room for a pool?
Christina (09:31):
Yeah.
Is
Jim (09:32):
that an option as we're building?
Or is that a
Christina (09:34):
post build?
All of our floor plans canpretty much fit a pool.
Our largest single story.
Is gonna fit a much smallerpool.
It's definitely not going to beolympic size by any means But
you can usually fit something onit.
But yes people a lot of peoplein the neighborhood have added
pools so far
Jim (09:51):
Okay, I think that's a big deal in florida Obviously when
it's warm in the summer makes anice easy jump in and you're
good to go Yeah, so how does thedeveloper support homeowners
after the sale
Josh (10:07):
That's a good question.
Can you clarify a little bitmore?
Jim (10:09):
Sure.
Looking at what kind ofwarranties are involved, what
kind of follow up, obviously youguys are there at the office to
deal with it.
It's not a, Hey, you bought thehouse.
Have a good time.
A lot of, when they walk in andsee you guys there and they're
smiling and they know you andyou know them.
That goes a long way towardssolving any issue or being able
to point them in the rightdirection.
Josh (10:29):
It's a good question.
And to your point, Jim, we don'tonce they sign for the closing,
see you later, you're on yourown and have a great day.
We are still with them everystep of the way through the
purchasing process.
And then afterwards they do geta warranty.
One of the benefits of that,purchasing with new
construction.
With our warranty in DeerHorton, they get a 10 year
warranty on a major structuralthe foundation structure of the
(10:53):
home.
The two year warranty they getis on all the systems in the
HVAC, electrical, plumbing, andthen the one year is Any
hardware or manufacturer defectsor anything like that is all
going to be included.
The only thing that's notincluded in that one year is
going to be more of the cosmeticitems, which they would address
before they closed on the home.
Jim (11:13):
Okay.
And what kind of roof is are weputting in there?
Obviously it's been a tough yearas hurricanes go.
But what kind of roofing styleis in the, it comes with the
home.
Christina (11:23):
You know this now, right?
Jim (11:25):
Yeah.
Josh (11:25):
It's going to be a hip roof.
We do a three tab, a Floridarated shingle or an
architectural shingle, dependingon the series of the home.
Jim (11:33):
Okay.
And then I'm going to step backa little bit and talk about
vertical integration.
When you talked about one stopshop, what do you have as far
as, a mortgage company, titleinsurance, Can all of that be
purchased at one stop?
Christina (11:48):
Yes.
So we have D.
H.
I.
M.
which is our lending team withD.
R.
Horton.
And then we also have D.
H.
I.
Title, which is our titlecompany.
Josh (11:57):
Okay.
Christina (11:57):
We also have D.
R.
Horton insurance.
So you can get insurance throughus.
What else?
Josh (12:03):
Yeah, there's a lot of affiliates.
Those are definitely the mainones.
But everything can be integratedand there's benefit to using all
of the other agencies under DRHorton as well, right?
You think about the process andit's a lot of moving parts when
you're purchasing a new home.
So in order for all of thatstuff to be integrated under one
umbrella and one team, it makesthe process go a lot more
(12:24):
smooth.
And there's also usually morediscounts involved for the buyer
for using our short term teamand services.
Jim (12:32):
Yep.
And those will vary depending onthe month, time of year, what's
left.
We'll put a link in the shownotes that anybody wants to
reach out, they can reach out.
So you can see, are we doingdiscounts on mortgage rates or
buy downs or, whatever's goingon at that particular time.
Josh (12:46):
Absolutely.
Jim (12:48):
So let's talk a little bit about the area.
We're out there in parish.
I know North river ranch is upthe road.
You've got mocks and wallowgrowing.
What kind of institutions orshopping centers?
What else is going on out inthat area that's going to be
there for that homeowner?
Josh (13:03):
Great questions.
There is a lot.
So what we usually tell and toyour point, we are right in the
heart of the North RiverDistrict here.
Actually the North River Ranchcommunity abuts to Bella Lago.
And engulfs our community aswell, so they are a quick access
to North River Ranch andeverything that's coming in that
in their development to themocks and wallow corridor.
(13:24):
You mentioned earlier.
That's where a lot of thedevelopment is happening right
now in in parish.
And also along the 301 corridorin Parrish, there's more
shopping centers.
Creekside Commons is a new mallwith lots of restaurants,
retail, shopping for residentsand consumers too.
But more specifically in ourarea, Just all I mean within a
(13:46):
five mile radius of Bella Lago,there's going to be four Publix
grocery stores The brand new onewas just open about six months
ago right outside of thecommunity It's a quick golf cart
ride there
Jim (13:58):
right
Josh (13:59):
new Publix shopping center Neal communities They just
announced there's going to be apizza shop a breakfast cafe a
bank a gym Yep, a gym, there'sgoing to be spa, nail salon, and
a lot of other things in thatshopping center specifically
there too.
Also, directly south of ourcommunity, there's going to be a
new hospital.
There's going to be twohospitals on the Moxon Mala
(14:20):
Corridor, an HCA and a BayCarehospital.
Those have been announced for alittle while now too, but you're
going to see a new lagooncommunity that'll be open to the
public as well.
So that's about a five to 10minute ride down Moxon Wallow
road.
Christina (14:35):
And there's a bunch of restaurants and stuff coming
around that area as well, rightaround that lagoon.
Jim (14:40):
I think one of the things that Manatee County is doing
too, is getting, taking care ofthe roads now.
Before the homes get builtrather than the other way around
with the construction of mocksand wallow and all those things,
I think they're targeting atleast some of those sections
will be opening by the middle orsecond half of 25.
So
Josh (14:58):
we see
Jim (14:58):
it every day right now
Josh (15:00):
through it.
So for a homeowner that'slooking to purchase in the
future soon, they'll be pastthat, that patch right now.
But some parts of Maxwell, yes.
Expanding up to six lines even.
And in there, we're gonna havethat.
You mentioned the countyinfrastructure.
They're bringing new parks andnew schools to the community to
(15:20):
there's a new county park that'sopening pretty soon.
It's gonna have an amphitheaterwalking trails picnic areas,
open play fields.
So all that's coming.
There's also gonna be in parishtown center where they're gonna
have some new shops andrestaurants in a main street
area with all of that as well.
Jim (15:37):
Yeah.
And then you're really not farfrom Fort hammer where they're
building the park hammersomething which is going in and
then Lake Manatee and the statepark out there.
Christina (15:49):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Jim (15:50):
Very central to everything.
So are there any specificguidelines or restrictions for
homeowners when we're talkingabout pets, dogs or rentals?
Christina (15:59):
With rentals, it has to be at least a six month
rental.
So no short term rentals, noAirbnbs, things like that.
As far as dogs go or breedrestrictions, we do not have
any.
Jim (16:10):
Okay.
And I think homeowners like thatwhen there's going to be
continuity in the neighborhood,not transients for.
Yeah, a weekend or a month.
So that's a good thing.
I think.
Yeah.
What are we seeing in, in yourcommunity as far as the local
real estate market?
How is the pricing going?
How is that being impacted?
And what do you see as far as atrend in that neighborhood?
Josh (16:34):
I would say overall In this area and in our community,
prices are trending up now.
There's always going to be somedips, depending on market and
rates right now.
And and, this as well, Jim,typically as rates increase,
price of homes will decrease andvice versa.
So we're in a.
I would say more of a middlesteady market right now and
(16:58):
trying to get through theholidays in our community,
specifically, since we do haveso many options, traffic really
hasn't been an issue for us inhere, we're still getting people
through the door.
There's always going to bebuyers looking to move in.
Jim (17:13):
Yeah, absolutely.
And he said, you said it wasabout 300 homes left to go or
so.
What do you, is that a, Twoyear, three year plan, roughly.
Christina (17:22):
About a two year plan or less.
Can
Jim (17:27):
you share any stories or testimonials from current
residents that talk about theirpositive experience or
interactions that you've hadwith them?
Josh (17:36):
Oh I mean, we have our Google reviews page.
There's some really great thingsin there.
Christina and I do, the best jobwe can to help our buyers get to
closing.
And then after that, So we havehad a lot of instances where,
the homeowner is extremelyhappy.
This is their first home or thisis their last home and
(17:57):
everything.
And so we do get a lot ofmessages, a lot of emails.
And after the home buyer closes,they take a survey and, directly
with Christina and I, we havenot scored anything less than.
In our surveys than what wasexpected.
Jim (18:12):
Yeah, nice.
And I was thinking about the,that customer that comes in,
that as soon as they walk in,you guys are like, Hey, they've
got that great experience andthey come back and it's fun just
to reminisce and share withthem.
Christina (18:24):
It's definitely fun.
It's also fun to see.
Now that we've been here forabout four years, now we're
seeing.
moms and dads purchased becausethey're right in here or vice
versa or an aunt is moving downand coming to see us.
So it's good to see familiesgrow within our community as
well.
And everybody's referringeverybody in here.
Jim (18:43):
Excellent.
Do you guys have any last wordsfor anybody listening about
Bella Lago and coming out to seeyou guys?
Josh (18:52):
So for homebuyers and realtors here in our community,
we like to have a lot of funwith DR Horton.
We usually have a lot of eventshappening outside of the HOA for
the residents and more so forour prospective homebuyers and
for the realtors that work in DRHorton as well.
So we love our realtors.
(19:13):
We're always paying our realtorsas well.
We take care of that for thehome buyers.
So that's, a burden off of theirchest too.
But we do events where we, we'llgive away bonus cards or we'll
host your lunch for your officeand your team.
And then we'll even do eventsfor our home buyers as well,
where we sometimes give them,gifts and treats and welcome
them into the community.
So we'll always post thosethings to our social media pages
(19:35):
and keep people in the loop withthat.
Jim (19:38):
Fantastic.
Guys, I want to thank you somuch for joining me this
afternoon.
I hope everybody has been ableto learn something about Bella
Lago and come out and see Joshand Christina.
Thank you.
Christina (19:48):
Thank you so much for having us.
Jim (19:50):
Thanks, Jim.
We appreciate you.
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Therapy Gecko
An unlicensed lizard psychologist travels the universe talking to strangers about absolutely nothing. TO CALL THE GECKO: follow me on https://www.twitch.tv/lyleforever to get a notification for when I am taking calls. I am usually live Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays but lately a lot of other times too. I am a gecko.