Single-family housing starts fell 28 percent in the Orlando metropolitan area during the first quarter compared with the same period in 2010, according to the real estate research firm Metrostudy.

Builders started 922 houses during the quarter. The number of single-family closings during the first three months of the year totaled 1,020 units, or 7 percent fewer than in last year's first quarter.

But the market may have already turned the corner. "We believe Orlando is likely to have hit the bottom for new-home construction for this cycle with the fourth-quarter activity," stated Anthony Crocco, director of Metrostudy for North and Central Florida.

Communities in Orange, Seminole, Osceola and Lake counties with the greatest number of new-home starts during the first quarter included: Wyndham Lakes Estates, 124; Independence, 117; Heritage Hills,94; Eagle Creek, Orange, 89; Berkshire Park, 82; Timber Springs, 73; Village Walk, 71; Espirit-Osceola, 62; Stoneybrook West, 60; and Springlake Village, 57.

Sales

Shelton Granade and Luke Wickham of CB Richard Ellis's Central Florida Multi-Housing Group represented the seller in the $18.2 million sale of the 288-unit Sutton Place apartments in the Winter Park area. Built in 1986, the gated community was 93 percent occupied at closing. ...

Continental Real Estate Cos. brokered the $6.8 million sale of 155 units at the Oasis at Pearl Lake Condominium in Altamonte Springs. The bulk sale included 49 percent of the 316 units at the development, which had an occupancy rate of 97 percent at contract. The sold units have more than 120,000 square feet of space combined, distributed among one- and two-bedroom units. ...

Colliers International Central Florida announced the $2.3 million sale of a 248-acre parcel on State Road 44 northeast of downtown Mount Dora in Lake County. Deborah Mickler and Forrest Askew III, both of Colliers, represented the buyer, Medallion Home. Eagle FL V SPR LLC (BB&T Bank) was the seller. Two phases of the property were developed previously by Pringle Homes and are sold out. Lakes of Mount Dora includes 10 acres of commercial land at the development's entrance. ...

Matt Bates of Homevest Realty represented the seller in the $1 million sale of an 8,634-square-foot store at Colonial Drive and Shine Avenue, the former home of Sam Flax Art Store. The art store was at the location for 20 years until moving recently to a larger building nearby. The buyer was Sunlight Nails & Beauty Supplies.

Leases

Tenant broker Lee Zerivitz, of the Bywater Co., and landlord broker David Hammett, with McNulty Group, negotiated a seven-year lease for a 26,944-square-foot industrial property at 6728 Edgewater Commerce Parkway, Orlando. ...

Grubb & Ellis Co. Office Group Vice President Scot Marschang represented AAR Airlift Group in the 17,000-square-foot expansion of its lease of warehouse/distribution space at 625 Atlantis Road, Melbourne. The company now occupies the entire 42,000-square-foot site. Marschang represented the firm in its original lease of 25,000 square feet of warehouse/distribution space at 625 Atlantis and 50,000 square feet of office space at 2301 Commerce Park Drive in Palm Bay. ...

Fraxedas Mediation Firm leased a new facility from Eola Capital LLC at 500 Winderley Place in Maitland. Paul Kelly, of Coughlin Commercial, represented the tenant, with landlord representation by Jay Dixon, of Lincoln Property Co. ...

NAI Realvest of Orlando recently negotiated a six-year lease renewal for 7,378 square feet of office space at 5757 Blue Lagoon Drive in Miami, representing the tenant, TLC Engineering for Architecture. Paul P. Partyka, managing partner, negotiated the transaction with assistance from Chairman George Livingston and Principal Christie Alexander. The landlord, Metropolitan Life Insurance, was represented by Brian Gale of Taylor & Mathis. NAI also negotiated a new lease for 16,916 square feet of industrial space in Monroe CommerCenter North in Sanford. Michael Heidrich, a principal in the firm, represented the landlord, Maitland-based COP-Monroe North LLC. SCT Performance LLC of Sanford leased the property, which is at 4150 Church St. ...

Mainscape Inc., headquartered in Fishers, Ind., has entered into a three-year lease at 150 Bowness Road, Ocoee. The company will begin its Central Florida operations with the 2,500-square-foot building on 4 acres. Danny Brown, of 828 Realty LLC, represented the landlord, Bill Brown of Tampa.

Other

Cuhaci & Peterson Architects LLC of Orlando completed design work on two grocery stores for Publix Super Markets Inc., one in Brevard County and the other in Sarasota. The Brevard store, in Viera, is 56,000 square feet; the Sarasota store is 45,000 square feet. ...

Piranha Technologies Inc. completed a structured-cable project for the Dr. Phillips Charities. Piranha installed 186 voice and data cables in the organization's new, 20,000-square-foot headquarters in the Dr. Phillips section of southwest Orlando. The company also installed a fiber-optic backbone for future applications. Piranha was contracted by Advanced Integration Technology; the project's general contractor was Brasfield & Gorrie.

Source: The Orlando Sentinel