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Community for retirees honored

Don't let these manufactured homes fool you. A magazine puts the Highlands at Scotland Yards off U.S. 301 in top 100 company.

By MOLLY MOORHEAD
Published July 1, 2005

DADE CITY - When Jose Hernandez and his wife went searching for a place to retire from Tampa, they were drawn to the rolling hills and golf course views offered at the Highlands at Scotland Yards off U.S. 301 south of town.

So, apparently, were the editors of Where to Retire , a 220,000-circulation magazine for people prospecting for retirement homes. The magazine selected the Highlands as one of its 100 Best Master-Planned Communities in its July issue.

The magazine targets communities in beautiful natural settings, such as mountains and deserts, that have a range of amenities.

"We look for not only just a golf course but a good clubhouse, tennis, swimming, good group things," said Lindsay Armstrong, the magazine's public relations assistant.

The list, she said, includes "something for every budget."

A manufactured home community that opened in 2003, the Highlands has houses starting at about $130,000. They top out at $165,000.

"You've got a product that's virtually indistinguishable from a site-built home," said Jeff Heiler, vice president of Heiler Properties, which developed the Highlands.

Every house has a two-car garage and front porch. The foundation is below ground, so there's no step up to the front door, often a dead giveaway of a mobile home.

"We were among the first in the nation to say "Who said a manufactured home has to look like a manufactured home?"' Heiler said.

And some homes, like Hernandez's, overlook fairways and putting greens.

"I couldn't find another house in Florida with a view of a golf course for less than $200,000," said Hernandez, 62, who maintains the air-conditioning systems at Tampa International Airport.

Heiler said most of the 150 homes sold so far have gone to people who originally were in the market for a site-built home.

"We're actually selling to people that were looking at something far more expensive and came to the conclusion that they could get all the amenities at the Highlands for hundreds of thousands of dollars less," he said.

The Highlands will have more than 700 homes when it is built out. Heiler Properties, based in New Port Richey, has developed four other manufactured-home communities in Pasco County.

[Last modified July 1, 2005, 01:24:21]