Make it Personal

It's good to know when to go back into the water.

As 2012 approached and the last decade's economic wreckage eased, Pat Neal and other executives at Lakewood Ranch-based Neal Communities saw sufficient signs of a rebound to feel safe moving south into Lee and Collier counties.

Five years and 11 communities later, Neal Communities expects to expand its southern footprint soon with at least one mega-community of 1,000-plus homes in Collier County. “We have one under contract, but we have not finalized that yet,” says Michael Greenberg, Neal's Southwest Florida regional president.