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<p>hi please see this article, be sure to ask a lot of questions before you buy a Lennar home, especially they control all the development in the upcoming El Toro Great Park project:</p>
<p>Article published Jan 24, 2007
Herald Tribune
Residents Balk at New Developer Fees
By Patrick Whittle
patrick.whittle@heraldtribune.com
SARASOTA COUNTY -- The stalled real estate market turned Stoneybrook at Venice into a very different community than its residents paid for: a half-built subdivision dotted with slow-moving construction sites and "For Sale" signs.
Many residents of the 560-acre east Venice subdivision said they are willing to weather those inconveniences. But the latest news -- that mega-developer Lennar will dump more than $6 million in costs on homeowners -- has Stoneybrook residents crying foul and preparing a lawsuit.
Residents contend the developer never mentioned the costs when homeowners bought property in Stoneybrook, which in 2004 was hailed as Sarasota County's hottest new family-friendly development. The residents believe Lennar is trying to make up for the fact it has sold less than half of the complex's 998 homes.
Lennar contends it acted properly. But the meltdown between the developer and the homeowners is perhaps the starkest example of how Southwest Florida's burst real estate bubble has bled on to private residents.
"What it boils down to is they didn't sell as many homes as they thought they could sell as quickly as they thought they were going to sell," said resident Gary Natiss, who heads a local homeowners group.
The residents' grief came to a head Tuesday when the County Commission granted Lennar the ability to tax its residents for $6.6 million in infrastructure costs.
Lennar had asked the county for designation as a community development district, a special taxing district that issues bonds to pay for things such as drainage and roads.
The commission's vote was 3-2 in favor of Lennar's request. Commissioner Jon Thaxton, who voted against the decision, chalked up the residents' hand-wringing to the real estate market boom of 2004 and 2005, a time when "we had a lot of anxious purchasers and a lot of anxious sales people that were processing disclosures at light speed."
The tax will add more than $700 a year to some residents' yearly payments.
Several residents said Lennar never told them they would have to pay for the infrastructure, which has already been built. Residents said they were under the impression they would only have to pay for future maintenance through their homeowners dues. But commissioners ruled the developer did everything by the book.
The decision, coupled with Lennar recent increase in some homeowner's dues by $200 a year -- another move residents say wasn't properly announced -- has a group of more than 150 Stoneybrook residents ready to take Lennar to court. Several residents said they are seeking an attorney. They also said they plan to appeal the County Commission's decision.
During Tuesday's meeting, Stoneybrook residents loudly applauded a speech by Natiss, in which Natiss threatened a lawsuit and said the "only thing Lennar could be building in this county are license plates while they are wearing their little orange uniforms."
Resident Jennifer Schmidt cited the "almost unanimous opposition" by Stoneybrook's residents to Lennar's tax. Others cited a petition, with more than 150 signatures, protesting the levy. Many residents held signs with slogans such as "we have been Lennarred."
Read More - <a href="http://www.lennar-homes.info/">www.Lennar-Homes.info</a> </p>
<p>Article published Jan 24, 2007
Herald Tribune
Residents Balk at New Developer Fees
By Patrick Whittle
patrick.whittle@heraldtribune.com
SARASOTA COUNTY -- The stalled real estate market turned Stoneybrook at Venice into a very different community than its residents paid for: a half-built subdivision dotted with slow-moving construction sites and "For Sale" signs.
Many residents of the 560-acre east Venice subdivision said they are willing to weather those inconveniences. But the latest news -- that mega-developer Lennar will dump more than $6 million in costs on homeowners -- has Stoneybrook residents crying foul and preparing a lawsuit.
Residents contend the developer never mentioned the costs when homeowners bought property in Stoneybrook, which in 2004 was hailed as Sarasota County's hottest new family-friendly development. The residents believe Lennar is trying to make up for the fact it has sold less than half of the complex's 998 homes.
Lennar contends it acted properly. But the meltdown between the developer and the homeowners is perhaps the starkest example of how Southwest Florida's burst real estate bubble has bled on to private residents.
"What it boils down to is they didn't sell as many homes as they thought they could sell as quickly as they thought they were going to sell," said resident Gary Natiss, who heads a local homeowners group.
The residents' grief came to a head Tuesday when the County Commission granted Lennar the ability to tax its residents for $6.6 million in infrastructure costs.
Lennar had asked the county for designation as a community development district, a special taxing district that issues bonds to pay for things such as drainage and roads.
The commission's vote was 3-2 in favor of Lennar's request. Commissioner Jon Thaxton, who voted against the decision, chalked up the residents' hand-wringing to the real estate market boom of 2004 and 2005, a time when "we had a lot of anxious purchasers and a lot of anxious sales people that were processing disclosures at light speed."
The tax will add more than $700 a year to some residents' yearly payments.
Several residents said Lennar never told them they would have to pay for the infrastructure, which has already been built. Residents said they were under the impression they would only have to pay for future maintenance through their homeowners dues. But commissioners ruled the developer did everything by the book.
The decision, coupled with Lennar recent increase in some homeowner's dues by $200 a year -- another move residents say wasn't properly announced -- has a group of more than 150 Stoneybrook residents ready to take Lennar to court. Several residents said they are seeking an attorney. They also said they plan to appeal the County Commission's decision.
During Tuesday's meeting, Stoneybrook residents loudly applauded a speech by Natiss, in which Natiss threatened a lawsuit and said the "only thing Lennar could be building in this county are license plates while they are wearing their little orange uniforms."
Resident Jennifer Schmidt cited the "almost unanimous opposition" by Stoneybrook's residents to Lennar's tax. Others cited a petition, with more than 150 signatures, protesting the levy. Many residents held signs with slogans such as "we have been Lennarred."
Read More - <a href="http://www.lennar-homes.info/">www.Lennar-Homes.info</a> </p>