Luxury homes market rising

Last year was a good one for Neal Signature Homes, a semi-custom luxury homebuilder under the Neal Communities brand, but this year could be better.

Much better.

The firm sold 40 new homes in 2014, at an average sales price of $812,000, according to a statement. That's good for more than $32 million in revenues. Executives expect to sell at least 80 homes in 2015, and they also intend to break the unit out of its comfort zone of building primarily in east Manatee County, in Lakewood Ranch. Areas of expansion include Sarasota, other parts of Manatee County and Hillsborough County.

Longtime homebuilder Randy Turkovics, named president of Neal Signature Homes last year, says 2014 was mostly a retooling and refining year for the entity, previously named John Neal Homes. “We have an exciting year ahead with new neighborhoods, new floor plans and tremendous growth,” Turkovics says in the release.

Part of the strategy to grow sales is to increase the presence in communities where Neal Signature Homes is the exclusive builder. The unit will also expand its options and floor plans to include slightly lower priced homes, in the $550,000-$650,000 range. Neal Signature Homes will debut four new models in four new communities in the first quarter of 2015.

On geographic expansion, the plan is to fortify the position in Lakewood Ranch while dipping into new regions. In Lakewood Ranch, for instance, Neal Signature Homes expects to close on two groups of home sites in Country Club East totaling about $12 million in the first quarter. Communities outside Lakewood Ranch it plans to build in this year include Wildgrass in Sarasota, River Wind in Manatee County and MiraBay in Hillsborough. Neal Signature Homes also offers “on your lot” building services for buyers who have already purchased a home site.