Lakewood Ranch Among Top 10 Fastest-Growing Communities In U.S.

LAKEWOOD RANCH, FL – Lakewood Ranch is among the top 10 fastest-growing communities in the country, according to a study by Realtor.com.

Realtor.com’s data team set out to identify the nation's most sought-after suburbs—areas experiencing construction booms (adding much-needed inventory to the market), home appreciation and population growth.

“These are places that have what people want,” said Javier Vivas, director of economic research for realtor.com. “They aren’t right in the city, and they aren’t too far out where commute times are long.”

To find the country’s fastest-growing suburbs, realtor.com analyzed more than 7,000 ZIP codes, focusing on the ones outside a city's limits and within an hour's commute in rush hour to the center of the nearest urban area.

Realtor.com also calculated home appreciation over the last three years, the increase in the number of home listings in that same time frame, population growth and new construction at the county level.

Lakewood Ranch came in at #5 in realtor.com’s analysis.

Approved in the mid-1990s, the master-planned community is close to both Bradenton and Sarasota, and is attracting both retirees and young families, noted realtor.com.

Kelly Murphy, a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate-Florida, said one reason the community is doing so well is its aggressive marking campaign.

"They are all over social media and newsprint. They do lots of promotional things,” she said.

Here are the results of realtor.com's analysis:

1. Apex, North Carolina

ZIP code: 27523

Metropolitan area: Raleigh, North Carolina

Median home list price: $494,900

Three-year price appreciation: 50 percent

Three-year home listing increase: 307.4 percent

2. Ponte Vedra, Florida

ZIP code: 32081

Metropolitan area: Jacksonville

Median home list price: $443,300

Three-year price appreciation: 13.4 percent

Three-year home listing increase: 70.7 percent

3. Frisco, Texas

ZIP code: 75035

Metropolitan area: Dallas

Median home list price: $474,200

Three-year price appreciation: 21.2 percent

Three-year home listing increase: 177.9 percent

4. Scottdale, Georgia

ZIP code: 30079

Metropolitan area: Atlanta

Median home list price: $404,700

Three-year price appreciation: 207 percent

Three-year home listing increase: 14 percent

5. Lakewood Ranch

ZIP code: 34211

Metropolitan area: Sarasota and Bradenton

Median home list price: $427,000

Three-year price appreciation: 5.7 percent

Three-year home listing increase: 73.4 percent

6. Arabi, Louisiana

ZIP code: 70032

Metropolitan area: New Orleans

Median home list price: $249,700

Three-year price appreciation: 86.7 percent

Three-year home listing increase: 76.3 percent

7. Manor, Texas

ZIP code: 78653

Metropolitan area: Austin

Median home list price: $237,800

Three-year price appreciation: 23.6 percent

Three-year home listing increase: 142.4 percent

8. Aurora, Colorado

ZIP code: 80018

Metropolitan area: Denver

Median home list price: $418,400

Three-year price appreciation: 19.4 percent

Three-year home listing increase: 175.1 percent

9. Waukee, Iowa

ZIP code: 50263

Metropolitan area: Des Moines

Median home list price: $342,900

Three-year price appreciation: 12.8 percent

Three-year home listing increase: 24.9 percent

10. Nolensville, Tennessee

ZIP code: 37135

Metropolitan area: Nashville

Median home list price: $511,100

Three-year price appreciation: 34.3 percent

Three-year home listing increase: 55.3 percent.

Images via realtor.com

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