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Highlands Today

A New Builder On The Block

JASMINA MEYER, Highlands Today

From left: Michael Scheipsmeier and Michael Webb of Florida Heartland Homes Inc., will be featuring this home in the 2009 Spring Parade of Homes.

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By BILL ROGERS

Highlands Today

Published: February 15, 2009

SEBRING - The first home in Highlands County by legendary builder Arthur Rutenberg has been completed in Sebring.

Located in Highland Lakes Reserve, off Sparta Road, the St. Augustine 1053 will be included in the 2009 Spring Parade of Homes sponsored by the Highlands County Builders Association. The parade begins Feb. 20.

It has 3,810 square feet under air and a total of 5,291 square feet. There are four bedrooms and 4 1/2 bath rooms.

The custom-built home has several features including glass tile, granite/corian counter tops, stainless steel appliances, grass wallpaper, designer pool, pool spa and fire pit.

"It's the St. Augustine family, and what we did was we modified it," said Michael Webb, the franchisee owner of Florida Heartland Homes Inc., an independent franchise of Arthur Rutenberg Homes. "We made some other changes in it; we made the house a little wider to accommodate for wider casing on the doors."

According to Webb, the 1053 model has "a unique exterior pool and patio" that was done differently than the standard that would be in the St. Augustine family.

The home has a tremendous amount of storage space, including an interior storage room.

"It is something a lot of houses don't have which is always needed," Webb said. "Things that you don't want to put in the garage or up in the attic. It is humidity controlled."

Although the home at Highland Lakes is fairly large, Webb said Rutenberg builds homes that are smaller.

"There is a misconception that we only build the big houses, and we're too expensive," Webb said. "But we are very competitive with the other builders.

"We build homes from 1,600 square foot and up," Webb said. "If you can dream it, we can build it."

Webb said Rutenberg has agreements with corporations, such as GE, so it is able to buy a lot of product for less.

"We buy in bulk and therefore we can pass that onto the customer," he said.

Webb has the franchise for Arthur Rutenberg Homes in Highlands, Hardee, DeSoto and Okeechobee counties. He said has been a real estate broker for 35 years, and has extensive experience in land development and the construction industry.

Mike Scheipsmeier is the vice president of construction. A native of Hardee County, Scheipsmeier has been building custom homes since 1996.

"They bring a lot to the table," Scheipsmeier said of the Rutenberg company. "We've got probably some of the finest draftsmen that the state has to offer. Plus you have Art himself. He's just creative, and he's very intelligent."

Art visited the job site a few months, Scheipsmeier said, and took Webb and him to lunch at Chicanes.

"What he has done is he gives you the tools to build some of the nicest homes that Florida has to offer," Scheipsmeier said. "They have been that successful all over the southeast United States because there is a reason."

The sales office of Florida Heartland Homes will be located in the model at Highland Lakes.

Spring 2009 Parade Of Homes Participating Builders

The Spring 2009 Parade of Homes will run from Feb. 20 through March 1.

The homes can be viewed from noon - 5 p.m. week days, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturdays and 1 - 5 p.m. Sundays.

Participating builders include: J.E. Futch Custom Homes, Indigo Builders of Lake Placid, Hornick Homes, T.E. James Custom Homes, Trinity Development, J & R Village Homes, Sebring Builders, Florida Heartland Homes and J & J Parker Enterprises.

Bill Rogers may be reached at 386-5825 or wrogers@highlandstoday.com

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