Parade Winners and Much More

As I'm writing this, another Parade of Homes has just wrapped up. Sponsored by the Northeast Florida Builders Association, the Parade is the building industry's annual coming-out party, during which the latest and greatest in housing styles-in all price ranges-are on display.

As usual, it was an impressive event. I was one of many volunteers who drove out-of-town judges on their rounds to evaluate the entries, and I can tell you that they were impressed by the quality of construction and the value offered by builders in Northeast Florida.

If you weren't able to get out and visit the Parade of Homes, this issue of Jacksonville Homebuyer has the winners-the homes chosen by those same judges, all of whom are industry pros, as the best of the best.

Many of the Parade homes were in master-planned communities. In fact, Northeast Florida has become a mecca for such projects, which are typically self-contained developments with a variety of housing styles as well as recreational amenities, parks, schools and picturesque town centers.

Our region is already home to some of the most successful master-planned communities in the nation, and other huge projects are on the drawing board. In this issue, we examine the growing trend toward master-planned communities and look at the history of New Urbanism, the movement that sparked heightened interest in such projects.

We'll also take a look at the best places to buy furniture and accessories for your new home. Jacksonville and the surrounding area is filled with retailers selling everything from one-of-a-kind French antiques to the latest styles from major national manufacturers-so naturally, our list will have some omissions. But we hope to give you a taste of the variety you can expect when you're out shopping.

Our profile is on Linda Sherrer of Prudential Network Realty. Linda is a remarkable woman with an incredible success story. We're proud to introduce her to you.

And there's so much more. Our community directories are getting bigger than ever as new projects are announced. In fact, no other publication offers such a comprehensive resource. Same with our school directories, our neighborhood roundups and all the other components that combine to make Jacksonville Homebuyer the most valuable tool a new-home buyer can have.

And that's not just our opinion. We're very proud that, for the third year in a row, Jacksonville Homebuyer is the Laurel Award winner for "Best Magazine for Consumers." The Laurel Awards are judged by out-of-market experts and presented by NEFBA's Sales and Marketing Council to honor outstanding achievement.

The print publication category is highly competitive, but ever since the category has existed, Jacksonville Homebuyer has won it. This year's "three-peat" thrilled us, but we're not going to rest on our laurels, so to speak. We know we have to work harder than ever to keep your confidence and trust-and that's exactly what we're going to do.

So enjoy this issue of Jacksonville Homebuyer-and have a terrific summer.