Total new-home closings: 2,671
Population: 114,350
The good: The market has given consistent, record-setting performances for 14 years running.
The bad: Downsides simply aren’t applicable to this area.
The bottom line: With nearly a decade and a half of first-place trophies on its shelf as one the nation’s top-performing communities, there’s no losing here.
Though it may not be the largest, few—if any—metro statistical areas compare to America’s champion of planned communities. Since its inception in 2001, this development has held the spotlight, year over year delivering the steadiest stream of annual starts in the nation, becoming the most successful master planned community (MPC) in history and eventually its own metro statistical area. A decade after its start, The Villages remained on top of Metrostudy’s top MPCs list, accounting for around 38% of all starts production in Central Florida. And since its 10-year anniversary, this community hasn’t looked back—consistently producing annual starts in the mid-2,000 figures. With the area delivering more lots over the 12-month period ending in the second quarter of 2014 than any other in the region, it’s clear that there’s no stopping this freight train in Central Florida.
