A prominent Northwest Florida developer is launching a boutique real estate brokerage to focus on home sales along the Gulf Coast now that the Panhandle is emerging as a housing market on the rise.
The St. Joe Co. said the brokerage will open its first office in St. Joe’s WaterColor Town Center in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida, this spring and plans to open additional offices.
As home prices increase and land becomes scarcer in South and Central Florida and the Tampa Bay region, more professionals and retirees are discovering the Florida Panhandle. The area has pristine beaches and a lower cost of living than other parts of the state.
St. Joe, founded in 1936 as the St. Joe Paper Co., said it owns more than 22,000 lots in 23 northwest Florida developments in various stages of development, including Latitude Margaritaville Watersound, a 55-and-over development in Panama City Beach tied to the late singer Jimmy Buffett. It's expected to have roughly 3,500 homes.
Industry veteran Diane Hausler will lead the brokerage as senior vice president, and the firm's primary focus will be resales in St. Joe communities and across the region, according to the developer.
“Our extensive market presence, the continued migration of residents from all over the country and Diane’s record of success positions us well to grow this business into a regional presence in south Walton, Bay and Gulf counties,” said Jorge Gonzalez, president and CEO of St. Joe, in a statement.
In addition, the new venture is consistent with the developer's strategy of growing "asset-light" businesses, such as its Watersound Insurance Agency and Watersound Title Agency, that generate recurring revenue from the capital investments in St. Joe developments, Gonzalez said.
Publicly held St. Joe was once one of the largest private landowners in Florida, eventually switching its focus from industrial to real estate. In 2010, it moved its headquarters from Jacksonville, Florida, to Panama City Beach. The vast majority of its land holdings are now in Bay, Gulf and Walton counties within 15 miles of the Gulf of Mexico.