Russell Lands has developed neighborhoods on Lake Martin for over thirty years, but its newest, The Ridge, is vastly different from any one it has done before.
Russell Lands has gated communities like Willow Point, and the Ridge is near to its other developments of Windermere, Windermere West, and Windover. But The Ridge is a totally new animal. Here are 5 Things That Make The Ridge Different:
1. Heavy emphasis on selling through approved builders - Russell Lands started this Lake Martin trend a few years ago with Phase I of The Ridge, and continues it with Phase III. They sell a certain number of lots to "approved" builders, who build spec houses and then turn around and sell them for the builders. In prior developments, they sold almost 100% to the end homeowner. The use of approved builders gives them much greater control over the quality of the homes. They also get a lot of design consistency on the look of the homes by also having "approved" architects. I think this also drives up the price so that their initial offering lot price to homeowners is pretty high. As far as I can figure there is no real "pre-construction" pricing.
2. The Ridge Marina - Russell Lands owns plenty of marinas around Lake Martin, but The Ridge Marina is the only one that is inside the gates of one of their developments. It is a safe bet to say that The Ridge Marina is one of the largest marinas 
on the lake. The marina is close to Chimney Rock by water. They sell gas, they have a huge line of boats that they sell, and also sell boating and skiing accessories. Another big part of their business is boat storage. You can rent a wet slip (a parking spot at a dock), but they are more expensive and rare than dry storage. Dry storage is where they stack your boat on a huge rack inside their warehouse. When you are ready to go, they come pick it off the rack with a forklift and put it in the water. No matter how many times I see that it still makes me nervous. They are adding on to the dry storage. A company official was quoted as saying the The Ridge Marina will have the "biggest dry storage east of the Mississippi." That's big, friends.
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