The Forest

McGreevy and Comisar are the team The Forest sellers call first, and the team buyers call when they want a straight answer to the first question everyone asks here: do I have to join the club? Jesse McGreevy and Marc Comisar lead Domain Realty Group, the #1 real estate team in Southwest Florida since 2012, and are Top 1% Real Estate Agents Nationally Since 2008, with over $900 million in personal sales between them. The Forest is a gated, non-bundled golf community of 789 residences in Fort Myers, Florida. It sits in unincorporated Lee County in south Fort Myers, between US 41 and Island Park Road, around two 18-hole courses, the Bear and the Bobcat, that the members of The Forest Country Club own.

Three facts set The Forest apart, and each is proven on the record rather than repeated from marketing copy. First, club membership is optional: The Forest Country Club’s own membership page describes “a non bundled gated community offering resident and non resident memberships,” and the master association’s resident portal says, independently, “The Forest is a non-bundled gated community.” Buying a home does not make you a member. Second, Sparrowood’s three buildings are the only three-story residential buildings in The Forest, according to the Lee County parcel roll, which places Sparrowood alone under Florida’s milestone-inspection law (s. 553.899) and structural integrity reserve study rule (s. 718.112). Third, there is no community development district and no county street-lighting MSTU: The Forest does not appear on Lee County’s official roster of special districts, and the county’s MSTBU map returns no taxing unit at four points spread across the community.

The home count, the acreage and the golf-course credits that circulate in older listing copy do not match the records, so this guide states the figures the records support. The master association counts 789 residences, 302 single-family homes and 487 condominiums and villas, in its 2022 Emergency Preparedness Plan and again on its portal in 2026. No single acreage figure describes the whole community: seven published and measured figures exist, and each measures something different. Both courses trace to an original Gordon Lewis design, per Golf Digest’s course database, and the Bear reopened on December 1, 2025 after a full renovation that the club’s own December 2025 scorecard credits to Kipp Schulties. Every home sits in FEMA flood Zone AE with a base flood elevation of 11 feet, on map panels effective November 17, 2022.

We built this page the way we price a listing here: from every Southwest Florida MLS closing in The Forest over the last four years, pulled September 23, 2026, checked address by address against the county roll, plus the association’s and the club’s own documents, the club’s federal tax filings, Lee County’s parcel, zoning and flood layers, and Florida statute. If you own in The Forest, the market section shows what homes in your neighborhood have sold for and what you are competing against today. If you are buying, the fee stack and neighborhood sections show what you will pay, what you must request before closing, and where the record goes silent.

Updated September 2026 · Jesse McGreevy and Marc Comisar, Domain Realty

Why McGreevy and Comisar Are the Best Realtor for The Forest

McGreevy and Comisar are the best realtor for The Forest because the case is a matter of record: the #1 team in Southwest Florida since 2012, Top 1% of agents nationally since 2008, over $900 million in personal sales, and a The Forest market read built on every MLS closing, the county roll, the club’s filings and FEMA’s maps.

If you’re searching for the best realtor for The Forest, whether you’re ready to sell your home in The Forest or buy your next one, McGreevy and Comisar is the team that delivers. We lead Domain Realty Group, the #1 real estate team in Southwest Florida since 2012, Top 1% Nationally since 2008, with over $2.5 billion sold as a team and $900 million in personal sales between Jesse and Marc. As the leaders of Domain Realty Group our team has closed over $2.5 billion in real estate, and Jesse and Marc together account for over $900 million in personal sales inside that number.

Recent The Forest track record, from the Southwest Florida MLS Matrix. In the last 12 months we tracked 45 The Forest closings in the Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026, covering closings dated 09/24/2025 to 09/23/2026: 15 single-family homes and 30 condominiums or villas, for $20,135,000 in closed volume. The median sold price was $375,000 (n=45, which is odd, so the median is an observed sale; because it mixes houses and condominiums it describes neither one precisely). The median time on market was 76 days, the median sold-to-list ratio was 94.59%, and 4 of the 45 sales closed at or above asking. The highest sale was $1,250,000, a home in The Oaks that closed at its full list price in October 2025, and the fastest sale recorded 0 days on market, a Waters Edge condominium that closed at full list price in May 2026. Today 29 homes are active (11 single-family, 18 condominium or villa) and 2 are pending, which is about 7.7 months of supply. The market section below breaks every one of those 45 closings out by month and neighborhood.

For The Forest sellers: premium marketing, including cinematic video, drone, professional photography, a qualified-buyer database, and discretion with off-market capability when a sale needs to stay quiet. A sale in The Forest also runs on paperwork that has to be ordered in the right sequence, and some of it is not published anywhere. The master association is managed by FirstService Residential, and its estoppel certificate is ordered through the manager’s resale and lender documents page; that certificate is the only document that states the current master assessment, because the association does not publish it. The manager does not publish its estoppel fee either, but Florida law caps what an association may charge for an estoppel certificate (s. 720.30851 for homeowners’ associations and s. 718.116 for condominiums). If you own a condominium or villa, your buyer also needs a second estoppel from your own neighborhood association, and at the Heron a third layer, The Heron Master Association, sits between the unit association and the master. Whether a particular neighborhood association requires its own approval of a buyer or tenant is set in that association’s governing documents, which are not published online, so we request them with the estoppel package on the first day of the listing. Buyers will ask about the club before they ask about the kitchen: because The Forest is non-bundled, a club membership is a separate asset and should not be assumed to transfer with a home, and the club does not publish its dues or initiation schedule, so we answer the question with the club’s and the association’s own words rather than a guess. Showings need gate access: visitors are pre-registered by residents through the association’s DwellingLive system, so we arrange access before we schedule. Flood paperwork belongs in the listing file from day one, because every home in The Forest is in Zone AE and a current elevation certificate is what an insurer prices. And if you own at Sparrowood, a buyer’s lender and inspector will ask for the milestone inspection report and the structural integrity reserve study; whether those have been completed is not in public records, so we ask the association for both before the home goes on the market. That is a documents and marketing problem, and it is the one we are built for.

Honors and recognition:

• Top 1% Real Estate Agents Nationally Since 2008
• 5 Star Award for Customer Satisfaction for 21 Straight Years. Only 5 out of 21k+ Licensees (Gulfshore Life Magazine)
• #1 Team in Southwest Florida since 2012
• McGreevy and Comisar and their Domain Realty Group team have sold over $2.5 Billion in Real Estate
• McGreevy and Comisar alone have over $900 million in Sales
• Nationally Recognized Top Producing Realtors
• Platinum Sales Production Award Winners

McGreevy and Comisar lead Domain Realty Group, a full-service Southwest Florida real estate team. Learn more about our team at DomainRealtyGroup.com.

Selling your home in The Forest? Get a free home valuation for your home in The Forest, or Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072. Confidential conversations are welcome for luxury listings.

Buying a home in The Forest? Call Marc at (239) 287-5873 for a personalized buyer consultation, or read how we represent buyers in Southwest Florida.

Office: 24031 S Tamiami Trl #101, Bonita Springs, FL 34134 · Jesse McGreevy: (239) 898-6072 · [email protected] · Marc Comisar: (239) 287-5873

Jesse McGreevy (Sales Associate) and Marc Comisar (Broker Associate) are licensed Florida REALTORS® with Domain Realty; Florida real estate licensure is regulated by the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC).

Key Takeaways

The Forest comes down to eight load-bearing facts: what you must join, how many homes there are, what districts tax it, which building carries Florida’s newest condominium obligations, what the flood maps say, what the golf and the club really are, what the fees are, and what the market is doing. Each is drawn from a first-party document, a government record or the Southwest Florida MLS, and each is sourced again further down.

• Club membership is optional: The Forest is non-bundled. Buying a home does not require joining The Forest Country Club. The club’s membership page and the master association’s resident portal both describe The Forest as non-bundled, and the club sells memberships to residents and non-residents alike. Golf, tennis, the pro shop and the clubhouse are available with a club membership.
• 789 residences: 302 single-family homes and 487 condominiums and villas. That is the master association’s count, published in its 2022 Emergency Preparedness Plan and again in 2026. Lee County’s community record reaches the same 789, classed 350 single-family and 439 condominium, because it codes three fee-simple villa neighborhoods (48 homes) as single-family.
• No CDD and no county MSTU. The Forest is absent from Lee County’s official roster of special districts, and the county’s MSTBU layer returns no unit at four points across the community. The master association owns the 54.81-acre private street network and carries the streets, lighting, landscaping and drainage in its own assessment.
• Sparrowood is the only three-story residential building group. Its three buildings are the only ones the Lee County parcel roll records at three stories, which places Sparrowood alone under Florida’s milestone-inspection (s. 553.899) and structural integrity reserve study (s. 718.112) requirements. Every other condominium building is recorded at one or two stories.
• Every home is in FEMA Zone AE, base flood elevation 11 feet, and in Evacuation Zone A. The effective panels, 12071C0438H and 12071C0576H, took effect November 17, 2022, per FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer, and Lee County places the whole community in Evacuation Zone A. No home sits in Zone X.
• Two 18-hole courses on land the members own, and member assessments behind them. The club owns the roughly 280-acre golf parcel, bought in 1989 for $7,900,000 per the county roll. The Bear reopened December 1, 2025 after a full renovation. The club’s Form 990 filings describe a private, member-owned 501(c)(7) club and show special assessments on members in 2022, 2023 and 2024.
• The association fees are not published at any layer. The master association, each neighborhood association and the club publish no assessment, dues or initiation amount. The amounts appear in each association’s budget and on the estoppel certificate issued with every resale, and the club provides its figures to prospective members on inquiry.
• 45 closings in the last 12 months, and about 7.7 months of supply. Fifteen single-family homes at a median of $685,000 and 30 condominiums and villas at a median of $286,500, a community median of $375,000, a median 76 days on market and 94.59% of list price, per the Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026. Twenty-nine homes are listed today.

Table of Contents

This guide to The Forest runs from what the club requires and what the market is doing, through the community’s origins, master plan, governance and full fee stack, every neighborhood inside the gates, the club, golf and amenities, storms, flood zones and insurance, schools, healthcare, drive times, what is changing nearby, honest pros and cons, and both FAQ sets. Jump to what you need, or read it in order.

• Why McGreevy and Comisar Are the Best Realtor for The Forest
• Key Takeaways
• Living in The Forest as a Homebuyer
• What Is The Forest Real Estate Market Doing Right Now?
• How Did The Forest Come to Be?
• How Big Is The Forest, and How Is the Master Plan Laid Out?
• Who Governs The Forest?
• What Will You Actually Pay to Own a Home in The Forest? (The Fee Stack)
• What Neighborhoods Make Up The Forest?
• How Does The Forest Country Club Work, and Do You Have to Join?
• What Are the Bear and Bobcat Golf Courses Like?
• Does The Forest Have a Marina or Boat Access?
• How Far Is The Forest From the Beach?
• What Tennis, Pickleball and Bocce Facilities Does The Forest Offer?
• What Fitness and Wellness Amenities Are at The Forest?
• Where Do You Eat at The Forest Country Club?
• How Did The Forest Fare in Hurricane Ian, and How Storm-Ready Is It?
• What Flood Zone Is The Forest In?
• What Should You Know About Insuring a Home in The Forest?
• Which Schools Serve The Forest?
• Where Is the Nearest Hospital to The Forest?
• How Long Are the Drives From The Forest?
• What Is Being Built or Changed Near The Forest?
• How Do Gates, Guests, Trash, Utilities and Internet Work in The Forest?
• What Clubs, Events and Social Life Does The Forest Offer?
• How Does The Forest Compare With Other Fort Myers Golf Communities?
• What Are the Honest Pros and Cons of Buying in The Forest?
• Thinking of Selling Your The Forest Home? List With the #1 Team in Southwest Florida Since 2012
• Your Local Real Estate Experts
• Frequently Asked Questions, Buyer Edition
• Frequently Asked Questions, Seller Edition
• Sources and Authoritative References
• Downloadable Documents

Living in The Forest as a Homebuyer

Living in The Forest means a gated, wooded 1980s golf community in unincorporated south Fort Myers, where two 18-hole courses thread between 19 recorded neighborhoods, from 1,161-square-foot walk-up condominiums to homes of more than 7,000 square feet. Club membership is optional, the main gate is staffed, and a Publix, Bell Tower Shops and Gulf Coast Medical Center are minutes away.

The Forest sits in Sections 1 and 2 of Township 46 South, Range 24 East, a block of land Lee County’s own community boundary draws between US 41 and Island Park Road on its landward side and the state-owned mangrove along Hendry Creek on the south and west. Every home inside that boundary carries a Fort Myers mailing address and ZIP 33908, but none of it is inside the City of Fort Myers: each parcel on the Lee County parcel roll is coded to unincorporated Lee County and to the San Carlos Park fire district. That matters in practice, because county government, not a city, handles zoning, building permits and flood-plain rules here.

The Setting: South Fort Myers, Unincorporated Lee County

The Forest sits in unincorporated Lee County in south Fort Myers, between US 41 and Island Park Road, in the Hendry Creek watershed; Estero Marsh Preserve is about a mile away. Lee County’s Planning Communities layer assigns it to the San Carlos planning community, and the county’s watershed layer returns Hendry Creek and nothing else at the community’s center. The nearest county preserve is Estero Marsh Preserve, about 1.9 kilometers from the center of the community, and Mullock Creek Preserve is about 4.7 kilometers away, both measured against the county’s preserve locations layer.

The land beyond the south and west edges is not going to be developed. The parcel roll shows a 609.9-acre mangrove parcel owned by the Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund of the State of Florida immediately west and south of The Oaks, and Lee County’s easements layer records a 236.04-acre perpetual conservation easement granted by the county to the South Florida Water Management District, abutting the community’s southern edge. The Lee Plan’s future land use map classes the community itself as Suburban.

What the Gates and the Master Association Provide

The Forest has two gates. Per the master association’s 2022 Emergency Preparedness Plan, the Main Gate on Forest Boulevard at Tamiami Trail is staffed 24 hours a day, the Island Park Gate is staffed seven days a week from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM, and a patrol runs nightly. Gate staffing hours are from the association’s 2022 emergency plan. Residents enter by vehicle barcode, requested through the association’s online barcode request form, which asks for the Forest address, the vehicle’s details, the registration and a driver license. Guests are pre-registered by residents through the association’s DwellingLive visitor system, administered by the association’s manager, FirstService Residential, per the association’s website.

Behind the gates, the master association owns the street network outright. The parcel roll lists a 54.81-acre association parcel covering all of the community’s private right of way and its canal easement tracts, plus a 0.92-acre conservation and water-retention tract. Because The Forest sits in no county taxing unit for lighting, roads or landscaping, the association carries all of that in its own assessment. Along Island Park Road, the association obtained a county variance in 2012 (VAR2012-00007) to replace the perimeter fence with an 8-foot wall without the usual exterior landscape strip.

What You Get Without a Club Membership

A homeowner who never joins the club still gets a gated, staffed community with a nightly patrol, the private streets and sidewalks, and the association’s playground. The master association’s resident portal puts it in its own words: “The Forest includes a children’s playground, known as Ruthie’s Park, and miles of sidewalks for the avid morning walker. A Tennis Court, Pro Shop, Clubhouse and the award-winning golf courses are available with a membership at the Forest Country Club.” The association also has a community-wide fiber arrangement with Hotwire Communications, per its website; the community has a Hotwire fiber arrangement, and whether it is billed through the association is not published.

Some amenities belong to individual neighborhoods rather than to the whole community. The club does not list a pool among its amenities; pools at The Forest belong to individual neighborhood associations. The parcel roll shows one example: a 0.565-acre recreation parcel at 16220 Fairway Woods Drive, owned by the Fairway Woods recreation association and flagged with a pool, which serves Fairway Woods Sections II and III. A buyer who wants a pool without a club membership should confirm, neighborhood by neighborhood, which associations own one.

Who Lives Here: Year-Round and Seasonal

The master association’s 2022 plan estimates a year-round population of about 1,000 and a peak-season population of about 2,000, so roughly half of The Forest’s residents are seasonal. That pattern shows up in the market as well: 13 of the 45 closings of the past 12 months were recorded in February 2026 alone, per the Southwest Florida MLS Matrix.

From Walk-Up Condominiums to 7,000-Square-Foot Homes

The Forest’s price and size spread inside one set of gates is unusually wide. On the county roll, every unit at Partridge Place and Partridge Court measures 1,161 heated square feet, while the largest home in The Oaks measures 7,533. The median heated area runs from 1,387 square feet at Pheasant Court Villas to 3,286 square feet in The Oaks, and the county’s 2026 median just value runs from $119,694 at Partridge Place and Partridge Court to $715,746 in The Oaks. Just value is a mass-appraisal figure set for taxation, not a market price, but it shows the spread across the whole community, including homes that have not sold.

Daily Errands, Parks and the Hospital

From The Forest Country Club’s address at 6100 Club Boulevard, near the center of the community, a Publix on Alico Mission Way is about 1.4 miles and 4 minutes away, a CVS pharmacy about 1.2 miles, and a Walmart Supercenter on Six Mile Cypress Parkway about 2.1 miles. Lakes Regional Park, a 279-acre county park, is about 2.3 miles and 5 minutes away, Bell Tower Shops about 3.9 miles, and Gulf Coast Medical Center, which the Florida Department of Health lists as Lee County’s state-designated Level II trauma center, about 4.5 miles and 9 minutes. Drive times are typical free-flow times measured from The Forest Country Club’s address at 6100 Club Boulevard, near the center of the community; in-season traffic is longer.

What Is Changing Inside the Gates

Very little is being built. Lee County’s development activity layer shows no pending rezoning, plat or major site plan inside The Forest, and the parcel roll showed three vacant residential lots inside the community boundary as of September 2026. The live case is on the golf property: a special exception and variance for a 149-foot wireless monopole (Lee County cases SEZ2026-00001 and VAR2026-00001) were In Review as of September 23, 2026. No hearing has been scheduled and no decision has been made. The applicant filed a fourth round of additional information dated September 21, 2026, after three county insufficiency letters.

Next Door, Across Island Park Road

Forest Villas and Timberwood Village sit outside The Forest’s gates, across Island Park Road, with their own associations. The master association’s own map in its 2022 plan draws Forest Villas outside the Back Gate and does not show Timberwood Village at all, and Lee County keeps each as a separate, non-gated community record. They share the Forest name and the 33908 ZIP, and both are neighbors rather than parts of The Forest; none of the figures on this page include them.

What Is The Forest Real Estate Market Doing Right Now?

The Forest recorded 45 closings in the 12 months to September 23, 2026: 15 single-family homes at a median of $685,000 and 30 condominiums and villas at a median of $286,500, a community median of $375,000, 76 median days on market and 94.59% of list price. Twenty-nine are listed, about 7.7 months of supply, per the Southwest Florida MLS.

Data updated: September 2026

The Forest is really two markets under one name: single-family homes on four platted phases and three small fee-simple villa pockets, and condominiums and villas across twelve attached neighborhoods. Read the segment figures, not the community median, and read a neighborhood’s own sales before either.

Where These The Forest Numbers Come From

Every sale, listing, days-on-market figure and sold-to-list ratio in this section comes from the Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026, searched by the MLS development name The Forest. That search returned 252 records: 221 closings dated September 24, 2022 to September 23, 2026, 29 active listings, 1 pending and 1 pending with contingencies. We checked every address against the Lee County parcel roll: all 252 are in the Fort Myers ZIP 33908 inside the community’s two sections, and a second search by every interior street name returned the same 252 records and no others. Forest Villas and Timberwood Village carry their own MLS development names and are excluded, so the population here is the 789-home community the association and the county both count.

Segments follow the county’s ownership coding, not listing labels. Single-family means The Forest Units One, Two and Three, The Oaks, and the three fee-simple villa neighborhoods the county codes single-family: Pheasant Court Villas, Eagle’s Landing and Falcon Crest One. Condominium or villa means every condominium and land condominium: Partridge Place, Partridge Court, Dove Hollow, Dove’s Nest, Quail Cove, Waters Edge, Sparrowood, Fairway Woods, the Heron Coach Houses and the Heron Coach House Villas.

The Trailing 12 Months: All Homes, Single-Family and Condominium

Source: Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026, closings dated 09/24/2025 to 09/23/2026. When n is even, the median is the mean of the middle pair, shown beside it. Per-square-foot figures are medians of each sale’s own ratio, on MLS living area. No sale in the window was a sold-data-entry record, and none failed our arm’s-length screen.

Both segments are negotiating off list at nearly the same rate, about 94.6%, which is a softer reading than many Fort Myers golf communities. The single-family sample is small, 15 sales, and spans a 1,835-square-foot Unit One home to a 5,292-square-foot Unit Three home, so its median describes the mix of homes that sold as much as the market. Only 4 of 45 homes reached their asking price.

Every Trailing-12-Month The Forest Sale, Month by Month

With 45 closings, the individual sales say more than any single median. Beds and baths are as entered on the MLS listing (a “.5” is a half bath); living area is MLS living area.

Source: Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026. Sold-to-list ratios are calculated from the list and sold prices shown.

Three patterns stand out. February 2026 alone carried 13 of the 45 closings, the seasonal peak you would expect in a community where about half the residents are seasonal. Days on market run from 0 to 633 inside the same segment, and some of the longest waits ended well below list (a Sparrowood condominium at 88.63% after 633 days, a Quail Cove condominium at 84.44% after 405), which is a pricing story more than a neighborhood story. And at the top, The Forest’s single-family homes above $1 million sold in only three cases: The Oaks at $1,250,000 and two Unit Three homes at $1,025,000 and $1,162,500.

The Forest Sales by Neighborhood, Trailing 12 Months

Source: Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026. Every row is a small sample (fewer than 10 sales).

Neighborhoods with one or two closings are listed rather than given a median: The Forest Unit Two, $825,000 (January 2026, 3,550 sq ft) and $392,000 (February 2026, 2,232 sq ft); Fairway Woods II, $395,000 (February 2026, 2,962 sq ft) and $325,000 (December 2025, 2,230 sq ft); Heron Coach Houses, $385,000 (February 2026, 1,956 sq ft) and $308,000 (June 2026, 1,714 sq ft); Dove’s Nest, $260,000 (May 2026, 1,418 sq ft) and $200,000 (June 2026, 1,420 sq ft); Partridge Place, $170,000 (January 2026, 1,161 sq ft) and $145,000 (October 2025, 1,200 sq ft); Quail Cove, $257,500 (June 2026, 1,766 sq ft) and $190,000 (January 2026, 1,381 sq ft); The Oaks, one sale, $1,250,000 (October 2025, 3,247 sq ft, at list); Eagle’s Landing, one sale, $505,000 (May 2026, 2,410 sq ft); Falcon Crest One, one sale, $435,000 (August 2026, 2,483 sq ft). Pheasant Court Villas and Partridge Court had no closing in the trailing 12 months, so any price there has to be built from the 48-month record below.

Waters Edge sold closest to asking, a median 99.05% on three sales, and the Heron Coach House Villas moved fastest among the multi-sale neighborhoods, a median 33 days. Sparrowood was the slowest, a median 337 days and 88.63% of list on three sales. All are small samples, and none says anything about a specific home until it is priced against its own comparables.

How the Last 12 Months Compare With the 12 Before

Source: Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026. Per-square-foot figures are on MLS living area.

Closings rose from 42 to 45 and the community median did not move. Read the single-family line carefully: the median sale rose, but the median price per square foot of living area was flat, $231.86 against $232.39, so the higher median reflects larger homes selling in a 15-sale sample, not homes gaining value. The condominium and villa median per square foot fell from $167.96 to $148.88, partly because larger units sold this year (a median 1,782 square feet against 1,420). Days on market shortened in both segments, from 89 to 71 for single-family homes and from 130 to 81 for condominiums and villas.

The 48-Month View and Calendar-Year Medians

Four years of closings give each segment a sample large enough to read.

Source: Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026. One single-family sale in November 2023 was a sold-data-entry record with no days on market; it is included in price medians and excluded from the days-on-market median (n=220).

Source: Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026.

The single-family calendar medians swing between $557,500 and $735,000 on 12 to 23 sales a year, and that swing is mostly which homes sold: a year heavy in Unit Three and The Oaks prints high, a year heavy in Unit One prints low. The steadier single-family signal is price per square foot of living area, which was $232.39 over the full 48 months and $232.39 again in the last 12. The condominium and villa median peaked in 2024 at $330,000 and has settled back near $285,000 since. We do not show a condominium median for the last quarter of 2022: it is dominated by the Partridge Place sales described below and would misstate the market.

The 48-Month View by The Forest Neighborhood

Source: Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026, closings dated 09/24/2022 to 09/23/2026. Falcon Crest One had two sales in the window, $510,000 (June 2024) and $435,000 (August 2026), and is listed rather than given a median. Rows under 10 sales are small samples.

The Partridge Place Sales Right After Hurricane Ian

Eight Partridge Place condominiums closed between November 10 and December 2, 2022, about six weeks after Hurricane Ian, at $75,000 to $145,000, most within 0 to 5 days on market and several above list. They read as as-is or investor transactions in a disrupted market rather than normal resales. They are recorded MLS closings, so they remain in the 48-month figures above, but they pull the 48-month Partridge Place median down, and they are the reason we show no condominium median for late 2022. Anyone pricing a Partridge Place unit should use the 2023 and later sales.

What Is for Sale in The Forest Today

Source: Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026. Listings change daily; call us for today’s list.

The 29 active listings are 3.7% of the 789 residences. The median asking price is $325,000 across all 29 (n=29, odd), $1,150,000 for the 11 single-family listings and $287,000 for the 18 condominium and villa listings (middle pair $285,000 and $289,000). Asking prices run from $174,000 at Partridge Place to $1,620,000 in Unit One, and the median active listing has been on the market 110 days.

The single-family numbers deserve a second look. The median single-family asking price is $1,150,000, against a median single-family sale of $685,000 over the last 12 months. The active set is weighted toward large Unit One, Unit Three and Oaks homes, so the gap is partly mix, but it also means the upper end of The Forest is being tested by asking prices the last 12 months of closings have not yet confirmed: only one closing in the past year, in The Oaks, reached $1,250,000.

Months of Supply by Segment

Source: Southwest Florida MLS Matrix, pulled September 23, 2026. Months of supply is active listings divided by the average monthly closings of the past 12 months.

Both segments sit above six months of supply, which by the usual rule of thumb leans toward buyers. For a seller that is the case for pricing discipline from the first day; for a buyer it is room to negotiate, particularly on listings past 200 days.

Price per Square Foot: Living Area, Not the County Roll

Every per-square-foot figure in this section is sold price divided by MLS living area, and it is a median of each sale’s own ratio. The Lee County roll measures heated area and, on some records, total area under roof, which are different denominators. A per-square-foot figure from this page should never be set against a square footage from a tax bill or the county roll, and we do not compute any price per square foot from county data.

The 2026 County Roll as Context, Not Prices

The Lee County Property Appraiser’s 2026 just values cover every home, including the ones that have not sold, which makes them useful for comparing neighborhoods with each other. Median 2026 just values on the county parcel roll run from $715,746 in The Oaks, $533,505 in Unit Three, $488,175 in Unit Two and $411,684 in Unit One, through $334,217 at the Heron Coach House Villas and $300,820 at Waters Edge, to $225,330 at Sparrowood and $119,694 at Partridge Place and Partridge Court. These are mass-appraisal values set for taxation, not prices; the county roll lags the market and is set on a different basis. Use the roll to compare homes with each other, and the MLS record to price one.

If you want your own home priced against every closing in your neighborhood since 2022, get a free home valuation for your home in The Forest or Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072. Buyers can Call Marc at (239) 287-5873 before writing an offer, or read how we represent buyers in Southwest Florida.

How Did The Forest Come to Be?

The Forest began in 1979 and 1980, when Timberlakes Limited Partnership was formed, the master association was incorporated and Lee County rezoned the land for residential use; the first plat was recorded May 23, 1980. Forest Joint Venture carried the later build-out, and in 1989 the golf courses passed to the members’ own club for $7,900,000.

The public record tells The Forest’s history through corporate filings, plats, condominium registrations and the parcel roll rather than through a developer’s brochure, and it is more precise than the dates that circulate. The club’s own writing refers to “over four decades” at The Forest, in a 2025 club article, which is consistent with everything below.

The Developers: Timberlakes and Forest Joint Venture

The original development entity was Timberlakes Limited Partnership, a Florida limited partnership filed May 31, 1979 and voluntarily cancelled on March 4, 1992, per the Florida Division of Corporations. Its name survives in Timberlakes Drive, the loop road through Units Two and Three, Eagle’s Landing, the Dove condominiums and Sparrowood. Timberlakes is the recorded dedicator on the plat of The Forest Unit Two, and the Florida condominium registry names it as developer of record for Partridge Place, Partridge Court and Quail Cove, per the DBPR condominium search.

A second entity, Forest Joint Venture, is the recorded dedicator on the plats of The Forest Unit Three and The Oaks Unit One, per Lee County’s easements layer, and the state registry names it as developer of Dove’s Nest, the Heron Coach Houses and the Heron Coach House Villas. Forest Joint Venture does not appear in the Division of Corporations index; Florida joint ventures of that era were not required to register. A private sewer utility formed in the same period, Forest Utilities, Inc., was filed September 12, 1980 and is still active, per its Division of Corporations record; it still serves The Forest today.

Several attached neighborhoods came from other developers of record. The state registry names Mare Properties, Inc. and then Sun-Op Forest, Inc. for Sparrowood’s phases (1984 to 1987), Rutenberg-Gnagey, Ltd. for Fairway Woods Section I and Arthur Rutenberg Corp. for Sections II and III, and Forest-Waters Edge Inc. as the subsequent developer at Waters Edge. For the single-family phases and the fee-simple villa neighborhoods, the county names plat dedicators only, not home builders, and this guide does not name any.

The Master Association, 1979

The Forest Property Owners’ Association, Inc. was filed as a Florida not-for-profit corporation on December 7, 1979, before a single plat was recorded, and it has filed annual reports without a lapse from 1995 through March 31, 2026, per its Division of Corporations record. Its most recent corporate event is a set of Amended and Restated Articles filed March 24, 2010. The association’s portal gives 1979 as the year The Forest was developed.

The 1980 Rezoning and the Separate 1982 Oaks Approval

Most of The Forest was rezoned for residential use in 1980 under Lee County’s RM-2 district; The Oaks was approved separately as a planned development in 1982. Lee County’s zoning notes layer records the land before that as agricultural, and the county’s planned developments layer shows The Oaks as the one planned development on the community’s western side, 161.24 acres. The only master concept plan amendments the county records for any part of The Forest are two administrative amendments to The Oaks, in 1996 (adding 11 zero-lot-line home sites in place of 11 multifamily units) and 1999 (adding backyards for those lots). Nothing has been amended since, before or after Hurricane Ian.

The First Plat, May 23, 1980

The founding plat is The Forest Unit One, Plat Book 33, Pages 85 through 88, recorded May 23, 1980 in the Lee County Clerk’s official records. Unit Two followed at Plat Book 34, Pages 20 through 22, Unit Three at Plat Book 35, Pages 34 through 38, and The Oaks Unit One at Plat Book 37, Pages 51 through 55. The last new subdivision platted inside the community was Falcon Crest One, Plat Book 65, Pages 96 and 97, built out between 1998 and 2004. The oldest condominium registration is Partridge Place, licensed by the state on July 7, 1980, per the DBPR registry.

1989: The Members Buy the Golf Courses

The Forest Country Club Membership Association, Inc. was incorporated July 15, 1988, and the following year it bought the golf course: the county roll records a 1989 sale of the 280.35-acre golf parcel for $7,900,000, at Official Records Book 2042, Page 4511. The master association’s common areas, including the private right of way, were conveyed in the same recording period (Official Records Book 2058). The club restated its articles on September 27, 1994 and now operates as The Forest Country Club, Inc., per its Division of Corporations record. That 1989 purchase is why the golf land belongs to the members’ club rather than to a developer or to the homeowners’ association, and it is the structural root of The Forest’s non-bundled model.

Build-Out by Decade

About three quarters of the homes inside The Forest’s county boundary were finished in the 1980s and about 95 percent by 1999, per the Lee County parcel roll. The first statewide Florida Building Code took effect March 1, 2002, per the Florida Building Commission, so nearly every building in The Forest predates it.

Source: Lee County Property Appraiser first-year-built on each residential parcel, as of September 2, 2026.

The attached neighborhoods went up in sequence: Partridge Place, Partridge Court and Pheasant Court Villas all date to 1981; Dove Hollow and Quail Cove to 1981 and 1982; Dove’s Nest, Eagle’s Landing and Sparrowood to 1983 to 1985; Fairway Woods Sections I to III to 1986 to 1991; the Heron Coach Houses to 1990 to 1992; and the Heron Coach House Villas to 1994 to 1996. On the single-family side, Unit One began in 1980, The Oaks in 1987, and the one 2020s completion in the community is a single home in The Oaks, finished in 2022.

Buying or Selling in The Forest, the Non-Bundled Golf Community? Talk to McGreevy and Comisar First

Because club membership at The Forest is optional, a buyer can choose the home first and decide on a club category second, and a seller can market to golfers and non-golfers alike. McGreevy and Comisar are Top 1% Real Estate Agents Nationally Since 2008, and we request the estoppel certificates, budgets and governing documents on day one, so the unpublished fees stop being a surprise. Selling? Find out what your home in The Forest is worth, or Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072. Buying? Call Marc at (239) 287-5873, or read how we represent buyers in Southwest Florida.

How Big Is The Forest, and How Is the Master Plan Laid Out?

The Forest has no single correct acreage, because each published figure measures something different: the club places its courses on 620 acres, the master association says 650 and 420 on the same page, and Lee County’s parcel records sum to about 629 to 722 acres depending on what is included. The golf parcel alone is about 280 acres.

No single acreage figure is correct for The Forest, and any page that gives one is choosing among measurements without saying so. What the records support is a plan that is easy to picture: a golf parcel of about 280 acres at the center, a private street network wrapped around and through it, four platted single-family phases, and nineteen recorded neighborhoods in all.

Seven Acreage Figures, and What Each One Measures

Published acreage figures for The Forest differ because they measure different things. The Forest Country Club describes its two courses as standing on 620 acres, on its home page and golf page. The master association’s website gives two figures on the same page: 650 acres in its description of the community and 420 acres in its statistics panel. Lee County parcel records for the original Forest development sum to about 629 acres, about 654 acres with the Heron Coach Houses, and about 722 acres with The Oaks; the county’s mapped boundary for the community measures about 588 acres. The club-owned golf course parcel alone is about 280 acres.

The club’s 620 and the county’s 629-acre parcel sum agree closely, but neither is a survey of “the community,” and the association’s 420 cannot be the whole community, because the golf parcel and the association’s street parcel alone total about 335 acres.

How the Land Is Used

The preserve land inside The Forest is not one recorded community preserve: it is held as common elements by the associations and, in The Oaks, as privately owned tracts. We do not publish a count of “preserve lots.” The appraiser’s roll marks many lots with a code describing what a lot backs onto, and that code is not a conservation designation.

Four Lots Phases and the Villa and Condominium Side

The master association organizes its single-family side by phase, and each phase is one platted subdivision: Phase I is The Forest Unit One (Deer Run, Bobcat Drive, Fox Den), Phase II is Unit Two (Bear Cub Court, Bobcat Court and part of Timberlakes Drive), Phase III is Unit Three (Timberlakes Drive and Spotted Fawn Court) and Phase IV is The Oaks (Forest Oaks Drive, Panther Paw Court, Spotted Fawn Court and Cottontail Court). The Oaks is one of The Forest’s single-family neighborhoods: the master association seats its lot owners as Phase IV on its board roster, although The Oaks was approved by Lee County as a separate planned development in 1982.

The attached side is seated on the association’s “Condos and Villas” board: Dove Hollow, Dove’s Nest, Eagle’s Landing, Fairway Woods I, Fairway Woods II, Falcon Crest, The Heron, The Heron Villas, Partridge Court, Partridge Place, Pheasant Court, Quail Cove, Sparrowood and Waters Edge, as named on the association’s 2022 board roster.

How Many Homes: 789 Counted Two Ways

The master association counts 789 residences in The Forest: 302 single-family homes and 487 condominiums and villas, a figure it published in 2022 and again in 2026. Lee County’s community record reaches the same 789 total but classes 350 as single-family and 439 as condominium, because it codes three fee-simple villa neighborhoods (Pheasant Court Villas, Eagle’s Landing and Falcon Crest One, 48 homes in all) as single-family. Lee County’s parcel roll showed three vacant residential lots inside the community boundary as of September 2026, one in Unit One and two in The Oaks, so The Forest is effectively built out.

Streets, Gates and the Land Around the Edges

The Forest is a closed street network with two entrances: the Main Gate on Forest Boulevard off US 41 and the Island Park Gate off Island Park Road. Every interior street is private and owned by the master association. To the south and west, The Forest backs onto state-owned mangrove and a 236-acre conservation easement held by the South Florida Water Management District, so there is no road connection and no development frontier on those sides. Along the US 41 frontage sits the Lee County Industrial Park plat, commercial land that is not part of The Forest, and across Island Park Road sit Forest Villas and Timberwood Village.

Who Governs The Forest?

The Forest is governed in layers: a master association, The Forest Property Owners’ Association, Inc., owns the private streets and runs the gates, and each condominium or villa neighborhood has its own association beneath it. The country club is a separate corporation that owns the golf land, and no special district sits on top.

For a buyer, the practical question is which of those layers you will belong to, pay and answer to. A home in one of the four platted phases answers to the master association only. A condominium or villa answers to its own neighborhood association and the master association. A Heron home answers to three. And no layer obliges you to join the club.

The Master Association and How Its Board Is Seated

The Forest Property Owners’ Association, Inc. is an active Florida not-for-profit corporation filed December 7, 1979, with its office at 5990 Forest Boulevard, per its Division of Corporations record. It is professionally managed by FirstService Residential, per the association’s website, and it owns the community’s two association parcels on the county roll: the 54.81-acre private right of way and a 0.92-acre conservation and water-retention tract.

Its board has two kinds of seats, per the association’s 2022 Emergency Preparedness Plan (roster dated May 5, 2022). “Lots” seats go to the single-family phases, three each for Phases I, II, III and IV, and “Condos and Villas” seats go one to each member neighborhood association. That structure means the single-family owners and the attached neighborhoods each have a defined voice, and it is how the association itself draws the line between the two halves of The Forest. The association publishes a monthly newsletter, “Forest Matters,” to residents.

Neighborhood Associations Beneath the Master

The neighborhood associations holding seats on the master board, as the association’s 2022 roster names them, are Dove Hollow, Dove’s Nest, Eagle’s Landing, Fairway Woods I, Fairway Woods II, Falcon Crest, The Heron, The Heron Villas, Partridge Court, Partridge Place, Pheasant Court, Quail Cove, Sparrowood and Waters Edge. Most are condominium associations under Florida’s Condominium Act, Chapter 718. Eagle’s Landing and Pheasant Court Villas are fee-simple villa neighborhoods governed by homeowners’ associations, not condominiums, and Falcon Crest One is a small platted subdivision with its own homeowners’ association, per its Division of Corporations record. Homeowners’ associations fall under Chapter 720, which sets different disclosure and estoppel rules.

Each neighborhood association sets its own budget, insurance and reserves, and in the condominiums it is responsible for the building exteriors and roofs. Buyers should treat the neighborhood association as the layer that most affects their costs, because it is the layer that insures and repairs the building.

The Heron: The Only Three-Tier Structure

The Heron is the one place in The Forest with three association layers. The Heron Master Association, Inc., filed March 21, 1990 per its Division of Corporations record, sits between the two Heron unit associations (the Heron Coach Houses condominium and the Heron Coach House Villas land condominium) and The Forest’s master association. A Heron owner is therefore a member of a unit association, the Heron Master and The Forest Property Owners’ Association, and a buyer there needs estoppel certificates from each assessing layer.

Fairway Woods: Three Sections, Two Associations

Fairway Woods at The Forest was recorded in three sections, but it has two associations. Section III’s own association merged into Section II’s on August 23, 1991, per the Division of Corporations record for the Section III corporation, now inactive. So a Fairway Woods II or III owner belongs to one condominium association, and a Fairway Woods I owner to another.

Sparrowood and Florida’s Newest Condominium Rules

Sparrowood’s three buildings are the only three-story residential buildings in The Forest, according to Lee County property records, which places Sparrowood alone under Florida’s milestone-inspection and structural integrity reserve study requirements for condominiums of three or more stories. Buyers there should ask the association for its milestone inspection report and reserve study. Every other condominium building in The Forest is recorded at one or two stories, which places it outside both requirements; the single-family and fee-simple villa neighborhoods are not condominiums at all.

The two statutes turn on height. Section 553.899 requires milestone structural inspections of condominium buildings three habitable stories or more in height, as determined under the Florida Building Code, and section 718.112(2)(g) requires a structural integrity reserve study for the same class of building and states that it does not apply to buildings less than three stories in height. Whether Sparrowood’s milestone inspection and reserve study have been completed is not in public records we could reach; buyers should request both from the association. The Department of Business and Professional Regulation publishes its SIRS reporting pages for anyone who wants to check the state’s side.

The Club Is a Separate Corporation

The Forest Country Club, Inc. is a separate Florida not-for-profit corporation, filed July 15, 1988 as The Forest Country Club Membership Association, Inc. and restated in 1994, per its Division of Corporations record. Its address is 6100 Club Boulevard, Fort Myers, FL 33908. It owns the golf parcel in fee simple, has its own board, and sells memberships to residents and non-residents. The master association neither owns nor governs the courses. The club describes itself in its federal tax filings as a private, member-owned club, and members vote on special capital purchases, debt over $200,000 and by-law changes, per its 2023 Form 990.

What No One Governs: No CDD, No MSTU

The Forest has no community development district and sits in no county municipal service taxing or benefit unit: it does not appear on Lee County’s official roster of special districts, and the county’s MSTBU map returns no unit at four points spread across the community. Streets, lighting, landscaping and drainage inside the gates are the master association’s responsibility, carried in its assessment. Lee County creates such units only on petition of the affected owners, per the county’s MSTBU page, so a new one cannot appear on a Forest tax bill without the owners asking for it. The only independent special district that reaches The Forest is the San Carlos Park Fire Protection and Rescue Service District, which appears on the same county roster.

Where the Rules Are Written, and What Is Not Online

The master association’s recorded declaration is not available in the county’s online records; rules described here come from the association’s and the club’s own published materials. Leasing, pet and architectural rules are set by the master and neighborhood associations and are not published publicly; they are in each association’s governing documents, provided at resale. The club’s Amended and Restated By-Laws are public, but the document is undated, so we link it rather than quote it. Before you sign, ask for the full governing-document set for both your neighborhood association and the master association; for a condominium resale, section 718.503 requires the seller to provide the declaration, by-laws, rules and the association’s most recent financial information.

Forest Villas and Timberwood Village Are Neighbors, Not Neighborhoods

Forest Villas and Timberwood Village sit outside The Forest’s gates, across Island Park Road, with their own associations. Neither appears on the master association’s own map or board roster in its 2022 plan, both are reached from the public Island Park Road without passing a Forest gate, and each is a separate community record in Lee County’s subdivisions layer. Timberwood Village has its own recreation association, per the Division of Corporations, and Forest Villas has its own homeowners’ association.

What Will You Actually Pay to Own a Home in The Forest? (The Fee Stack)

Owning in The Forest means several billed layers: the master association, your neighborhood association (and at the Heron a third tier), the Lee County solid waste assessment and San Carlos Park fire millage on your tax bill, and club dues only if you join. The Forest adds no CDD and no county MSTU.

That last point is the one to plan around. No association layer at The Forest publishes its budget, so the only way to see the real number for a specific home is to request it. Below is every layer a buyer will actually be billed, what each covers, where the amount is and is not published, and what to ask for.

The Fee Stack, Layer by Layer

Master Association Assessment: Not Published

The master association does not publish its assessment. The amount appears in the association’s annual budget and on the estoppel certificate issued with every resale. The association’s public website carries a hurricane plan, a barcode request form and a contact form; its resident portal carries a community profile, but account balances and homeowner documents sit behind a login. The billing frequency is not published either. What the assessment covers is not in doubt: the association owns the private streets and canal easements, runs a staffed Main Gate around the clock and a staffed Island Park Gate from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM, and, because The Forest sits in no county MSTU, pays for street lighting, landscaping and drainage maintenance inside the gates.

Neighborhood Association and Condominium Fees: Not Published

Each neighborhood association sets its own fee, which is not published; it appears in that association’s budget and resale estoppel certificate. No association at The Forest maintains a public website that posts a budget, the Division of Corporations publishes no financial data, and the state condominium registry publishes only unit counts and the state’s own per-unit filing fee. At the Heron, add the Heron Master Association’s layer. Neighborhood associations’ special assessments are not published; buyers can find them in the association’s estoppel certificate and meeting minutes. For a 1980s condominium in Florida after 2022, that is the line to read first.

What Is on the Lee County Tax Bill

Two lines on a Forest tax bill are specific to where The Forest sits. The San Carlos Park Fire Protection and Rescue Service District levies 2.3590 mills for fiscal year 2025/26, adopted September 15, 2025, per the district’s final budget. As an illustration only, at 2.3590 mills, $500,000 of taxable value owes $1,179.50 to the fire district; the actual figure scales with each home’s taxable value and exemptions. And Lee County bills solid waste as a non-ad-valorem assessment: The Forest is in Service Area 2, proven by both the county’s solid waste districts layer and the district code on every residential parcel, at $348.75 per single-family unit for fiscal year 2026 plus a $2.55 administrative charge, with a 4 percent discount for early payment, per the county’s adopted rates. There is no CDD line, no MSTU line and no separate county stormwater line identified for The Forest. The rest of the bill is the ordinary ad valorem property tax that every home in unincorporated Lee County pays; it depends on each home’s taxable value after exemptions such as the homestead exemption (see the homestead questions in the buyer FAQ), so it is specific to the home, not to The Forest, and we do not publish a figure for it.

Private Sewer and Bulk Fiber

Lee County’s utility franchise maps place The Forest in Lee County Utilities’ water service area. Sewer service is provided by Forest Utilities, Inc., a private utility; The Forest lies outside the county’s wastewater service area, per the county’s wastewater service area layer. Forest Utilities, Inc., a private utility, provides sewer service; its rates are not published online. Ask the seller for twelve months of sewer bills. The community has a Hotwire fiber arrangement; whether it is billed through the association is not published.

Club Costs: Only If You Join

Because The Forest is non-bundled, club costs belong in the stack only for owners who choose to join. The club does not publish its dues or initiation schedule; figures are provided to prospective members on inquiry. Because membership is separate from home ownership, a club membership should not be assumed to transfer with a home. The club does not publish which membership categories carry an equity interest.

What the club’s public tax filings do show is the level of capital money its members have put in. The Forest Country Club is organized as a tax-exempt social club under section 501(c)(7), and its filings show members were specially assessed in each of 2022, 2023 and 2024: a recurring capital assessment, a golf-course renovation assessment, and a hurricane capital assessment. The figures below are club-wide totals from the filings, not amounts per member, and they fall on members only; a homeowner who does not join pays none of them.

Source: The Forest Country Club Form 990 filings for 2022, 2023 and 2024, Schedule O. The filings are under the club’s former name, Forest Country Club Membership Association Inc.

The renovation assessments total about $3.8 million across the three years, consistent with the Bear’s full renovation and its reopening on December 1, 2025. The same filings show membership dues and assessments of $6,215,018 in 2024. One caution for anyone reading the returns: the club’s operating line shows a loss every year because capital assessments and membership issuances are booked directly to net assets rather than to revenue, and net assets rose from about $7.1 million in 2011 to about $20.8 million in 2024.

What a Buyer Must Request Before Closing

For a single-family home in Phases I to IV, request the master association’s estoppel certificate, its current budget and its governing documents. For a condominium or villa, request all of that plus the neighborhood association’s estoppel certificate, budget, reserve schedule, insurance summary and the last year of board minutes; at the Heron, add the Heron Master’s estoppel. At Sparrowood, add the milestone inspection report and the structural integrity reserve study. If you plan to join the club, ask the membership office for the current membership plan, the category’s dues and initiation, any capital or food and beverage obligations, and whether any assessment is pending, in writing. Flood insurance is a separate cost that depends on each building’s elevation certificate, which is specific to the home.

What Neighborhoods Make Up The Forest?

The Forest is made up of 19 recorded neighborhoods inside Lee County’s boundary for the community: four platted single-family phases, including The Oaks, three fee-simple villa and small-lot pockets, and twelve condominium neighborhoods, from 1981 walk-ups to 1990s coach homes. Every one of them is in FEMA Zone AE, and only Sparrowood rises to three stories.

We built this roster from four independent lists: the recorded plats and condominium declarations, the Division of Corporations, the Lee County Property Appraiser’s subdivision coding, and the subdivision field on every MLS sale. A name made the roster only if at least two of those lists carry it. The units below add up, row by row, to the county’s 788 built homes plus 3 vacant lots, the same single parcel short of the association’s 789 that the county’s own summary record shows, and every one of the 45 closings of the last 12 months lands in exactly one row.

The Roster: Every Neighborhood Inside the Gates

Source: Lee County parcel roll and the county’s recorded subdivisions and condominiums layer, as of September 2, 2026; association layers from the master association’s 2022 plan and the Division of Corporations. Every row is in FEMA Zone AE, base flood elevation 11 feet NAVD88, effective November 17, 2022, and in Lee County Evacuation Zone A. Ground elevations below are the nearest 2018 LiDAR ground point to each parcel from the county’s spot elevations layer, in feet NAVD88; they are ground, not finished floor.

The Forest Unit One (Phase I)

The Forest Unit One is the founding plat, Plat Book 33, Pages 85 through 88, recorded May 23, 1980: 95 single-family homes plus one vacant lot on Deer Run, Bobcat Drive and Fox Den, seated on the master board as Phase I. The county roll dates its homes from 1980 to 2010 (median 1985), with a median of 2,582 heated square feet across a wide range, 1,494 to 5,939, and a median lot of about 0.32 acres. The median 2026 just value is $411,684.

Unit One is the most active single-family market in The Forest: 32 closings in the last 48 months at a median of $535,000, and five in the last 12 months at a median of $525,000 and $254.84 per square foot of living area, per the Southwest Florida MLS Matrix. It also holds the largest active listing in the community today, a 5,939-square-foot home. Most lots are on FEMA panel 12071C0576H, with 15 on 0438H; median ground is 6.8 feet, ranging from 4.5 to 9.8. Unit One has no neighborhood association of its own; owners answer to the master association only.

The Forest Unit Two (Phase II)

The Forest Unit Two, Plat Book 34, Pages 20 through 22, dedicated by Timberlakes Limited Partnership, holds 50 single-family homes on Bear Cub Court, Bobcat Court and three lots on Timberlakes Drive. It has the largest lots in The Forest: a median of about 0.44 acres and one of about 1.57. Homes date from 1982 to 2010 (median 1985) with a median of 3,082 heated square feet, and the median 2026 just value is $488,175. Bear Cub Court is a street inside Unit Two, not a separate neighborhood.

Unit Two traded 13 times in the last 48 months at a median of $750,000 and twice in the last 12: $825,000 for a 3,550-square-foot home in January 2026 and $392,000 for a 2,232-square-foot home in February 2026. It sits on panel 12071C0438H, with median ground of 7.0 feet.

The Forest Unit Three (Phase III)

The Forest Unit Three, Plat Book 35, Pages 34 through 38, dedicated by Forest Joint Venture, holds 84 single-family homes along Timberlakes Drive and one on Spotted Fawn Court, seated as Phase III. Homes date from 1983 to 2012 (median 1986), with a median of 2,786 heated square feet and lots of about 0.40 acres. The median 2026 just value is $533,505.

Unit Three produced the highest single-family median of the last 12 months among neighborhoods with more than two sales: five closings at a median of $900,000 and $242.91 per square foot of living area, including two sales above $1 million in June 2026. Over 48 months it recorded 25 closings at a median of $740,000. Most homes are on panel 12071C0438H (59) and the rest on 0576H (25), with median ground of 7.2 feet.

The Oaks at The Forest (Phase IV)

The Oaks is one of The Forest’s single-family neighborhoods: the master association seats its lot owners as Phase IV on its board roster, although The Oaks was approved by Lee County as a separate planned development in 1982. Its plat, The Oaks Unit One, Plat Book 37, Pages 51 through 55, was dedicated by Forest Joint Venture, and its 72 homes and 2 vacant lots sit on Forest Oaks Drive, Panther Paw Court, Spotted Fawn Court and Cottontail Court. It is the newest of the four phases, built from 1987 to 2022 (median 1989), and the largest by house: a median of 3,286 heated square feet and a maximum of 7,533.

The Oaks is the top of The Forest’s market. Its median 2026 just value is $715,746, its 48-month median sale was $902,500 on 10 closings, and its one sale of the last 12 months, $1,250,000 in October 2025, was the highest in the community. Four homes are listed and one is pending today. Most lots are on panel 12071C0438H (65) and the rest on 0576H (14), with median ground of 7.4 feet. The Oaks has no neighborhood association of its own, and search results for “The Oaks” in Fort Myers often mean other communities, so a buyer should confirm the Forest Oaks Drive, Panther Paw, Spotted Fawn or Cottontail address.

Falcon Crest One

Falcon Crest One is the last subdivision platted inside The Forest, Plat Book 65, Pages 96 and 97: 11 single-family homes on small lots of about 0.11 acres along Falcon Crest Court, built from 1998 to 2004. It has its own homeowners’ association, per the Division of Corporations, and the master association seats it on the Condos and Villas side of its board. Median heated area is 2,663 square feet and the median 2026 just value is $436,212.

With 11 homes, Falcon Crest One trades rarely: two sales in 48 months, $510,000 in June 2024 and $435,000 in August 2026. It is the newest construction in The Forest’s attached-and-villa half, and the only neighborhood built entirely after 1997. The MLS spells it “Falcons Crest.” It sits on panel 12071C0438H with median ground of 7.4 feet.

Pheasant Court Villas

Pheasant Court Villas is 17 one-story fee-simple villas on Pheasant Court, all built in 1981, recorded at Official Records Book 1453, Page 1657. Eagle’s Landing and Pheasant Court Villas are fee-simple villa neighborhoods governed by homeowners’ associations, not condominiums; the Pheasant Court association is on file with the Division of Corporations. Median heated area is 1,387 square feet and the median 2026 just value is $276,707.

Pheasant Court Villas had three sales in 48 months at a median of $219,000 and none in the last 12. It sits on panel 12071C0576H and has the lowest ground in The Forest: a median of 5.9 feet, ranging from 4.8 to 6.5, more than five feet below the 11-foot base flood elevation.

Eagle’s Landing

Eagle’s Landing is 20 fee-simple detached homes and villas on Timberlakes Drive, all built in 1984, recorded at Official Records Book 1752, Page 2437. It is governed by a homeowners’ association, not a condominium association, and the master association seats it on the Condos and Villas side of its board. Homes are one and two stories with a median of 2,002 heated square feet, and the median 2026 just value is $358,033. The association granted a communication easement to Hotwire Communications in 2022, part of the community-wide fiber build recorded in Lee County’s easements layer.

Eagle’s Landing traded four times in 48 months at a median of $347,500, and once in the last 12, $505,000 for a 2,410-square-foot home in May 2026. It sits on panel 12071C0438H with median ground of 6.4 feet.

A dedicated Eagle’s Landing sub-page is coming with its association details, recent sale comps, and street-by-street analysis. We’ll link it here when it goes live.

Partridge Place

Partridge Place is The Forest’s oldest condominium and its entry point on price: 56 units in seven two-story walk-up buildings of eight, all built in 1981, recorded at Official Records Book 1488, Page 372. The state registry shows it licensed July 7, 1980 with Timberlakes, Ltd. as developer of record. Every unit measures 1,161 heated square feet, and the median 2026 just value is $119,694, the lowest in The Forest.

Partridge Place is also one of the busiest resale markets in the community: 28 closings in 48 months at a median of $157,500, and two in the last 12 months, $170,000 and $145,000. That 48-month median includes eight sales in November and December 2022, weeks after Hurricane Ian, at $75,000 to $145,000; they pull the median down and should not be used to price a unit today. FEMA’s index shows one Letter of Map Amendment request inside The Forest, for a Partridge Place building, and it was denied. Partridge Place sits on panel 12071C0576H with median ground of 6.3 feet. Two units are listed today.

A dedicated Partridge Place sub-page is coming with its association details, recent sale comps, and street-by-street analysis. We’ll link it here when it goes live.

Partridge Court

Partridge Court is Partridge Place’s smaller neighbor: 16 units in two two-story walk-up buildings of eight, built in 1981, recorded at Official Records Book 1544, Page 228, and licensed by the state on December 8, 1980 with Timberlakes Ltd. as developer. Every unit is 1,161 heated square feet. It is a separate condominium with its own association, so crossing from Partridge Place to Partridge Court changes the association, the budget and the manager, even though the buildings are the same design.

Partridge Court had nine closings in 48 months at a median of $180,000 and none in the last 12, so there is no current median; a price here has to be built from the 48-month sales and from Partridge Place. It sits on panel 12071C0438H with median ground of 6.2 feet.

A dedicated Partridge Court sub-page is coming with its association details, recent sale comps, and street-by-street analysis. We’ll link it here when it goes live.

Dove Hollow

Dove Hollow is a condominium (recorded declaration, Lee County): 48 units in six buildings of eight, built in 1981 and 1982, with one-story and two-story units in the same building, recorded at Official Records Book 1569, Page 2023. Its association was filed February 9, 1981 and is active, per the Division of Corporations. The median unit is 1,419 heated square feet and the median 2026 just value is $191,445.

Dove Hollow recorded 10 closings in 48 months at a median of $297,500 and three in the last 12 months at a median of $230,000 and 105 days on market. Two units are listed today. It sits on panel 12071C0438H with median ground of 6.5 feet. Dove Hollow and Dove’s Nest share a name and a product, but they are separate condominiums with separate declarations, associations and budgets.

A dedicated Dove Hollow sub-page is coming with its association details, recent sale comps, and street-by-street analysis. We’ll link it here when it goes live.

Dove’s Nest

Dove’s Nest is 48 condominium units in six buildings of eight, one and two stories, built in 1983 and 1984, recorded at Official Records Book 1701, Page 283, and licensed by the state on May 17, 1983 with Forest Joint Venture as developer. The MLS spells it “Dove Nest.” The median unit is 1,419 heated square feet, almost identical to Dove Hollow, and the median 2026 just value is $192,298.

Dove’s Nest had 10 closings in 48 months at a median of $279,500 and two in the last 12 months, $260,000 in May 2026 and $200,000 in June 2026. Two units are listed today. The association received a 2023 county development order to reseal and restripe its parking. It sits on panel 12071C0438H with median ground of 6.3 feet.

A dedicated Dove’s Nest sub-page is coming with its association details, recent sale comps, and street-by-street analysis. We’ll link it here when it goes live.

Quail Cove

Quail Cove is 24 condominium units in three two-story buildings of eight, built in 1982, recorded at Official Records Book 1606, Page 1563, and licensed by the state on July 2, 1981 with Timberlakes Ltd. as developer. It is the one neighborhood addressed on Forest Boulevard itself. Units run 1,372 to 1,538 heated square feet (median 1,460), and the median 2026 just value is $202,740. In August 2025 the association received a county development order to mill and repave its parking area with a new asphalt overlay.

Quail Cove recorded nine closings in 48 months at a median of $325,000 and two in the last 12 months, $257,500 in June 2026 and $190,000 in January 2026. Two units are listed today. It sits on panel 12071C0438H with median ground of 6.3 feet.

A dedicated Quail Cove sub-page is coming with its association details, recent sale comps, and street-by-street analysis. We’ll link it here when it goes live.

Waters Edge at The Forest

Waters Edge is one condominium with two products: four two-story buildings of four units and two one-story duplexes built in 1984 and 1985, and eight one-story attached duplex villas added in 1991, 36 units in all, recorded at Official Records Book 1988, Page 2827. It has the highest median 2026 just value of any condominium in The Forest, $300,820, and a median of 1,989 heated square feet.

Waters Edge sold closest to asking of any neighborhood in the last 12 months: three closings at a median of $425,000 and 99.05% of list, including the community’s fastest sale, a full-price closing with 0 days on market in May 2026. Over 48 months it recorded 11 closings at a median of $425,000. U.S. Geological Survey crews surveyed a Hurricane Ian high-water mark about 2.9 feet above ground at a Waters Edge building, per the USGS high-water mark record. Most units are on panel 12071C0438H, with six on 0576H; median ground is 6.6 feet. In August 2026 the association received a county development order to reseal and restripe its parking with 38 new car stops.

A dedicated Waters Edge at The Forest sub-page is coming with its association details, recent sale comps, and street-by-street analysis. We’ll link it here when it goes live.

Sparrowood

Sparrowood is the one building group in The Forest that Florida’s post-2022 condominium safety laws reach. Its three buildings at 6216, 6258 and 6300 Cougar Run, two of nine units and one of twelve, are the only three-story residential buildings in the community, per the Lee County parcel roll and the county’s building footprint layer. Built in 1984 and 1985, recorded at Official Records Book 1741, Page 1403, the condominium was licensed by the state on March 13, 1984, with Mare Properties, Inc. and then Sun-Op Forest, Inc. as developers of record. Essentially every unit shares one floor plan of about 1,773 heated square feet, and the median 2026 just value is $225,330.

Sparrowood’s three buildings are the only three-story residential buildings in The Forest, according to Lee County property records, which places Sparrowood alone under Florida’s milestone-inspection and structural integrity reserve study requirements for condominiums of three or more stories. Buyers there should ask the association for its milestone inspection report and reserve study. Whether Sparrowood’s milestone inspection and reserve study have been completed is not in public records we could reach; buyers should request both from the association.

The market reflects the extra diligence. Sparrowood recorded three closings in the last 12 months at a median of $245,000, a median 337 days on market and 88.63% of list, the slowest and deepest-discounted of any multi-sale neighborhood, and eight closings over 48 months at a median of $282,500. Two units are listed today. It sits on panel 12071C0438H with median ground of 7.5 feet.

A dedicated Sparrowood sub-page is coming with its association details, recent sale comps, and street-by-street analysis. We’ll link it here when it goes live.

Fairway Woods at The Forest

Fairway Woods at The Forest is the largest condominium cluster in the community: 118 units recorded in three sections, Section I (40 units, 1986 to 1987), Section II (38 units, 1988 to 1990) and Section III (40 units, 1989 to 1991), in one- and two-story buildings. The state registry names Rutenberg-Gnagey, Ltd. as developer of Section I and Arthur Rutenberg Corp. for Sections II and III, and Section III’s association merged into Section II’s in 1991. Units run 1,782 to 2,962 heated square feet (median 1,937), and median 2026 just values sit between $218,505 and $221,917 across the three sections. Sections II and III share a recreation parcel with a pool at 16220 Fairway Woods Drive. Fairway Woods also sits on the highest ground in The Forest, a median of 8.5 to 9.1 feet by section, all on panel 12071C0438H.

Fairway Woods is the most active attached market: nine closings in the last 12 months (three in Section I at a median of $262,000, four in Section III at a median of $360,000, and two in Section II at $395,000 and $325,000) and 31 over 48 months. Five units are listed today. Its large units sell at some of the lowest prices per square foot of living area in the community, a median of $131.71 in Section III over the last 12 months, which is the value case for a buyer who wants space.

A dedicated Fairway Woods at The Forest sub-page is coming with its association details, recent sale comps, and street-by-street analysis. We’ll link it here when it goes live.

The Heron at The Forest

The Heron is two neighborhoods under one sub-master association: the Heron Coach Houses, 48 condominium coach homes in six buildings of eight on Heron Coach Way, built 1990 to 1992, and the Heron Coach House Villas, 15 one-story villas held as a land condominium, built 1994 to 1996. Forest Joint Venture is the developer of record for both. The Heron Master Association sits between the two unit associations and The Forest’s master association, making the Heron the only three-tier governance structure in the community. Median heated areas are 1,679 square feet at the Coach Houses and 1,993 at the Villas, and median 2026 just values are $246,498 and $334,217.

The MLS carries both under the name Heron Coach Houses, and a few older listings say “Heron at the Forest.” The Villas were among the fastest sellers of the last 12 months, four closings at a median of $397,000 and 33 days on market; the Coach Houses had two, $385,000 and $308,000. Over 48 months the Villas’ median was $400,000 on eight sales and the Coach Houses’ $336,250 on eight. Two Coach House units are listed today. The Coach Houses sit mostly on panel 12071C0438H with 16 units on 0576H, at median ground of 6.2 feet; the Villas are on 0438H at 6.6 feet.

A dedicated The Heron at The Forest sub-page is coming with its association details, recent sale comps, and street-by-street analysis. We’ll link it here when it goes live.

Reading a Unit Number at The Forest

At The Forest the first digit of a unit number identifies the building, not the floor: Heron Coach Houses units 701 to 708 sit in buildings the county records at one and two stories. The same is true of units 401 to 406 at 16540 Heron Coach Way and of Fairway Woods I units 301 to 306 at 16341 Fairway Woods Drive. Never read a floor or a building height from a unit number anywhere in The Forest; the county’s recorded story count is the only reliable source, and it shows one three-story building group, Sparrowood.

Next Door: Timberwood Village and Forest Villas

Forest Villas and Timberwood Village sit outside The Forest’s gates, across Island Park Road, with their own associations. Forest Villas is 64 fee-simple villas and 2 vacant lots in an unrecorded subdivision on Forest Villas Circle and Villas Square, and Timberwood Village is three single-story condominiums, Timberwood Village I, II and III, with 92 units under their own recreation association. Both carry their own MLS development names, so none of their sales is in any figure on this page. They are close neighbors in the same ZIP and the same flood zone, and they deserve their own analysis rather than being counted as part of The Forest.

How Does The Forest Country Club Work, and Do You Have to Join?

You do not have to join The Forest Country Club to buy a home in The Forest. The club is a separate, member-owned corporation that owns the golf land and sells memberships to residents and non-residents alike, in categories from full family golf to a no-golf Lifestyle membership. The club does not publish its dues or initiation fees.

Data updated: September 2026

The Forest Country Club, Inc. is the club’s current Florida corporate name, and its address is 6100 Club Boulevard, Fort Myers, FL 33908. It is the owner of record of the roughly 280-acre golf parcel at the center of the community, per the Lee County parcel roll, and it answers to its own members and its own board, not to the master association. Everything in this section comes from the club’s own website, its federal tax filings and the county record. Where the club does not publish something, we say so rather than fill the gap with a figure from somewhere else.

Non-Bundled, in the Club’s and the Association’s Own Words

The Forest is a non-bundled community: buying a home does not require joining the club. Both The Forest Country Club and the master association describe The Forest as non-bundled on their own websites, and the club sells memberships to residents and non-residents alike. Golf, tennis, the pro shop and the clubhouse are available with a club membership.

The two statements are independent of each other. The club’s membership page calls The Forest “a non bundled gated community offering resident and non resident memberships,” and its home page adds, “You can live anywhere as we offer resident and non resident memberships!” The master association’s resident portal says, in its own words, “The Forest is a non-bundled gated community,” and lists golf, tennis, the pro shop and the clubhouse as “available with a membership at the Forest Country Club.” When two separately governed bodies say the same thing on their own sites, a buyer can rely on it as the community-wide rule.

Marketing language that describes a membership as covering everything is describing what a membership includes once you buy one, not an obligation to buy one. It does not make The Forest a bundled community.

The club’s federal tax filings point the same way. Its 2024 Form 990 reports $673,330 of receipts from public use of club facilities and 9,160 golf rounds related to non-members in 2024, which is the business a club takes when it is open to people who do not live behind its gates. For a buyer, the practical effect is simple: you choose the home first, and the membership second, if at all.

The Membership Categories the Club Publishes

The club’s membership page names six annual categories, plus a seasonal trial. The descriptions below are the club’s own, summarized; the club publishes no price for any of them.

Two rules in that list are unusual enough to plan around. The Executive category is age-gated by the club: it is available only to households whose eldest member is under 54. And the Racquets category carries the only published dining restriction, club dining before 5 pm. The Preview membership is the lowest-commitment way to try the club for a season before deciding, and the club limits it to one use per family.

Incentives for New Homeowners and Neighboring Clubs

As of September 23, 2026, the club’s membership page advertises limited-time opportunities for new homeowners and for neighboring communities, including “a second club incentive if you are a member of a Club within 50 miles with a few spaces remaining,” and notes that a limited-time offer “has been extended.” That is an active incentive campaign with stated limited availability, and it is the clearest first-party evidence that membership is open beyond the gates. It is not a statement about a waiting list either way, and the club does not publish the terms of the incentive. Ask the membership office for them in writing before you rely on them.

Member-Owned: What the Tax Filings Show

The Forest Country Club is organized as a tax-exempt social club under section 501(c)(7) and describes itself in its federal tax filings as a private, member-owned club. Its 2023 Form 990 states, in Schedule O, that the club “IS A PRIVATE MEMBER-OWNED CLUB THAT IS OWNED AND OPERATED FOR THE PLEASURE AND RECREATION OF ITS MEMBERS,” and that “SPECIAL CAPITAL PURCHASES, ANY DEBT OVER $200,000 AND ANY CHANGES TO THE BY-LAWS ARE SUBJECT TO MEMBERSHIP APPROVAL.” The filings are made under the club’s former name, Forest Country Club Membership Association Inc, which is the name on the tax filing; the ProPublica record carries 14 years of extracted returns.

Which of the club’s marketed membership categories carry an equity interest is not published. The same filing lists the voting classes as Golf, Social, Tennis, Equity Exchange and Executive, which do not map one to one onto the seven products on the website, so a buyer who wants an equity membership should ask which category conveys it. The club does not publish which membership categories carry an equity interest.

Special Assessments, 2022 to 2024

The club’s filings show members were specially assessed in each of 2022, 2023 and 2024: a recurring capital assessment, a golf-course renovation assessment ($3.8 million across the three years), and a hurricane capital assessment ($2,732,400 in 2022 and $503,500 in 2023). The year-by-year table is in the fee stack section above. Two points matter for anyone deciding whether to join. First, these assessments fall on members only; a homeowner who does not join pays none of them, because the golf land belongs to the club rather than to the master association. Second, the Bear’s renovation was funded through those member assessments rather than deferred, and the Bear reopened on December 1, 2025, per the club’s membership page.

The Club’s Finances in Its Own Filings

These are club-wide totals from the club’s 2022, 2023 and 2024 Form 990 returns. They are not amounts per member, and nothing below can be divided into a per-member dues figure, because the filings do not state how many members the club has.

Membership dues and assessments rose 16.6 percent from 2022 to 2024, computed from the filed figures. At the end of 2024 the club reported total assets of $31,232,335, total liabilities of $10,464,571, and $5,305,347 of secured mortgages and notes payable, down from $6,093,038 a year earlier.

One caution for anyone reading the returns: the operating line shows a loss every year because the club books capital money, meaning its capital, renovation and hurricane assessments and its membership issuances, directly to net assets rather than to revenue. Net assets rose from about $7.1 million in 2011 to about $20.8 million in 2024 while the operating line showed a loss in every one of those years, per the ProPublica summary of the filings. Read on its own, the operating loss would mislead.

What Membership Costs, and Why It Is Not Published

The club does not publish its dues or initiation schedule; figures are provided to prospective members on inquiry. Every category on the club’s membership page routes to an inquiry form rather than a price, and that includes any capital contribution, food and beverage minimum and transfer fee. Figures for The Forest’s club that circulate on third-party sites are not from the club, and we do not repeat them. When you ask, ask for four things in writing: the category’s initiation and annual dues, any food and beverage minimum, any capital or special assessment currently levied or pending, and what happens to the membership if you sell.

Does a Membership Transfer With a Home?

Because membership is separate from home ownership, a club membership should not be assumed to transfer with a home. At a bundled club the membership rides with the deed; at The Forest it does not, so a seller’s membership and a buyer’s membership are two separate transactions with the club. The club’s Amended and Restated By-Laws are public, but the document is undated, so we link it rather than quote it. A buyer who wants to join should treat the club’s written answer, not the listing, as the authority on transfer.

What a Non-Member Resident Gets, and What They Do Not

A resident who never joins still gets everything the master association provides: the staffed gates, the private streets and sidewalks, the association’s playground, Ruthie’s Park, and any pool or recreation parcel that belongs to their own neighborhood association. The master association’s resident portal states the line itself: the golf courses, a tennis court, the pro shop and the clubhouse “are available with a membership at the Forest Country Club.” A non-member does not play either course, use the club’s tennis, pickleball or bocce courts, use the fitness center, or dine at the clubhouse as a matter of right. The club, not the association, owns the golf parcel, so the view across a fairway comes with the home, and the right to play it comes with a membership.

Selling a home in The Forest? Buyers ask about the club before they ask about the kitchen, and a listing that answers the non-bundled question in the club’s own words sells to golfers and non-golfers alike. Get a free home valuation for your home in The Forest, or Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072. Buying for the golf? Call Marc at (239) 287-5873 and we will line up the club’s written membership quote alongside the association estoppel before you make an offer, or read how we represent buyers in Southwest Florida.

What Are the Bear and Bobcat Golf Courses Like?

The Forest has two par-72, 18-hole courses on land its members own. The Bear, fully renovated and reopened December 1, 2025, plays 7,010 yards from the back tees with a slope of 144; the Bobcat plays 6,607 yards with a slope of 125. Both trace to an original Gordon Lewis design, and the club markets both as walkable.

Data updated: September 2026

From the back tees, the Bear plays 7,010 yards (rating 75.1, slope 144) and the Bobcat 6,607 yards (rating 71.8, slope 125), per the club’s December 2025 scorecard. Every yardage, rating and slope on this page comes from that scorecard, which post-dates the Bear’s renovation. Older yardages printed elsewhere predate the renovation and are not used here.

The Bear: Renovated and Reopened in December 2025

The Bear is the harder and longer of the two, and the newer, after a full renovation. The club announced the plan on December 30, 2024: greens enlarged and resurfaced, bunkers redesigned with new drainage, fairways regraded and re-sodded, cart paths improved, and native plantings and water-saving irrigation added, per the club’s renovation announcement. The Bobcat stayed open while the Bear was closed, per a May 2025 club update, and the Bear reopened on December 1, 2025.

The Bear reopened on December 1, 2025, after a full renovation (club); Lee County issued the renovation’s development order, LDO2024-00579, covering “minor lake modifications and replacement and modification of the existing lake interconnects.” The work was paid for by the members: the club’s filings show golf-course renovation assessments of $841,397 in 2022, $1,402,616 in 2023 and $1,552,573 in 2024, about $3.8 million in all, per its 2024 Form 990. The Bear finishes at the clubhouse, and the club’s Gumbo Limbo outdoor bar overlooks its 18th hole.

The Bobcat

The Bobcat is the more forgiving course. From its back (Black) tee it plays 6,607 yards at a rating of 71.8 and a slope of 125, against the Bear’s 72.2 and 138 from the tee set with the same name, so the two courses rate almost identically from the Black tees while the Bear’s slope runs 13 points higher. The Bobcat has no Gold tee at all; the Bear’s Gold tee at 7,010 yards is the only set on the property over 7,000 yards. For a household with golfers of different abilities, the practical reading is that the Bobcat is the everyday course and the Bear is the test.

Tees, Ratings and Slope: The Bear

The Bear carries ten tee sets, four of them combination sets, per the club’s December 2025 scorecard. Both nines are par 36.

Tees, Ratings and Slope: The Bobcat

The Bobcat carries nine tee sets, four of them combination sets, from the same scorecard. Both nines are par 36.

Nineteen tee sets across 36 holes, running from 4,329 to 7,010 yards, is an unusually wide spread for a 1980s Southwest Florida club, and it is what lets a family of mixed handicaps play the same course together.

Who Designed the Courses

Both courses trace to an original design by Gordon Lewis, with the Bear opening in 1980, according to Golf Digest’s course database for the Bear and the Bobcat, which lists the architect as Gordon G. Lewis. The Bear was fully renovated and reopened on December 1, 2025; the club’s own scorecard credits Kipp Schulties as the Bear’s architect. The Bobcat side of the same scorecard names no architect, and no opening year for the Bobcat is published by the club. Golf Digest also records later remodeling on both courses before the current renovation, so an original-design credit describes where the courses began, not the Bear as it plays today.

Local Rules, Water and Reclaimed Irrigation

The scorecard’s local rules show where the water is. Model Local Rule E-4, internal out of bounds, applies to Bear holes 10 and 18: a ball that comes to rest on the far side of the penalty area on those two holes is out of bounds. Rule E-9 makes the cart path, pavers and clubhouse area behind the 18th green on the Bear a no-play zone with a designated drop. The scorecard also carries a bilingual warning that some ponds contain reclaimed water, not for drinking or swimming, which confirms the courses are irrigated at least in part with reclaimed water. All of it is on the club’s December 2025 scorecard.

Practice Facility, Pace of Play and Access

The club’s golf page describes “two walkable courses designed to deliver an experience and flow from one hole to another,” which matters to golfers who prefer to walk. It also describes the club’s practice facility, with an expanded practice tee, a landing area and a larger short-game area focused on shots from 60 yards in. The same page makes the club’s access promise under the banner “Play Golf Anytime”: no off season, no restricted tee times, no waitlists, 365 days a year, and low-density golf that stays uncrowded even in peak season. The club’s home page adds “Pace of play under 4 hours with numerous groups to join.” Those are the club’s own claims, and the tax filings give a way to read them: about 47,565 rounds in 2024 across two 18-hole courses, or roughly 23,800 per course, computed from the club’s 2024 Form 990.

How the Golf Land Is Held

The two courses, the clubhouse and the club’s support buildings sit on one golf parcel of about 280 acres that the club bought in 1989 for $7,900,000, per the county roll. The parcel carries seven buildings built between 1981 and 1999, with a combined 87,097 square feet under roof, per the Lee County parcel roll. The club describes its courses as standing on 620 acres, a figure for the courses’ whole setting rather than for the parcel.

Does The Forest Have a Marina or Boat Access?

The Forest has no marina. Neither The Forest Country Club nor the master association lists a marina, boat slips or dry storage among its amenities. The community backs onto state-owned mangrove along Hendry Creek, and the nearest county boat ramp now under improvement is Mullock Creek, about 3.5 kilometers south in a straight line.

The club’s lifestyle page lists golf, tennis, pickleball, bocce, fitness and dining, and the master association’s resident portal lists the playground and sidewalks; neither names any boating facility. The Forest is a golf community, not a boating community, and a buyer who needs a dock should look elsewhere or plan on trailering.

Where Forest Boaters Launch

The land beyond The Forest’s south and west edges is a 609.9-acre mangrove parcel owned by the Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund of the State of Florida, per the Lee County parcel roll, so there is no road or dock connection to open water from inside the gates. The master association owns canal easement tracts inside the community for drainage, and we have not measured whether any canal is navigable; we make no claim that any lot has boat access. The closest public launch in the county’s project records is the Mullock Creek Boat Ramp at 18480 Mullock Creek Lane, where Lee County lists a capital improvement project as In Progress as of September 2026, about 3.5 kilometers (a little over 2 miles) south of the community in a straight line.

How Far Is The Forest From the Beach?

The Forest has no beach access of its own. The nearest Gulf beach by road is Bunche Beach Preserve, about 10 miles and 19 minutes away; Fort Myers Beach’s Times Square is about 10.7 miles and 21 minutes, and the Sanibel Causeway’s mainland end is about 12.2 miles, also around 21 minutes.

The Forest’s southwestern edge is mangrove along Hendry Creek, not sand, so every beach day starts with a drive west. The good news is that the drive is short by Southwest Florida standards and does not require crossing the Caloosahatchee.

Beach Drive Times From The Forest

Drive times are typical free-flow times measured from The Forest Country Club’s address at 6100 Club Boulevard, near the center of the community; in-season traffic is longer. Each route was computed on the OpenStreetMap road network with the OSRM routing engine from the US Census Bureau geocode of the club’s address on September 23, 2026. Winter weekends on Summerlin Road and San Carlos Boulevard can add a good deal more than the free-flow figure, so plan beach days early in season.

What Tennis, Pickleball and Bocce Facilities Does The Forest Offer?

The Forest Country Club has six Har-Tru Hydro clay tennis courts, three of them lit for night play, plus pickleball and two lighted bocce courts beside the Gumbo Limbo outdoor bar. Racket access comes with a club membership, including a stand-alone Racquets category; the club does not publish a pickleball court count.

Racket sports at The Forest belong to the club, not to the master association. The association’s resident portal mentions “A Tennis Court” among the things “available with a membership,” but the club’s own count is the one to rely on.

Tennis: Six Har-Tru Hydro Clay Courts

The club’s lifestyle page describes “Six Har-Tru Hydro clay courts with three lighted courts for nighttime play.” Har-Tru Hydro is a clay surface watered from below, which keeps the courts playable through the dry season without daytime sprinkling. The club lists weekly clinics, singles and doubles play, private and group lessons, league play, junior programs, round robins, tournaments and special events, and it states that its head tennis professional has led the program at The Forest for over 22 years. The club reports being voted Best of the Gulfshore by Gulfshore Life, including in 2025 (club announcement, April 2025); we do not repeat a count of consecutive years, because the club’s own pages give more than one.

Pickleball at The Forest

The club offers pickleball, with a weekly social open-play morning and clinics, per its lifestyle page and a March 2025 club article. The club offers pickleball but does not publish a court count, and it does not say whether the courts are dedicated or lined on tennis courts. If pickleball is the reason you are joining, ask to see the courts and the reservation sheet in season.

The Racquets Membership

A buyer who plays tennis or pickleball but not golf does not have to buy a golf membership to play. The club’s membership page sells a stand-alone Racquets Membership with full access to the tennis and pickleball center, advance court reservations, ball machine rental, instruction and clinics, league play, events and tournaments, and club dining before 5 pm. The no-golf Lifestyle Membership also includes tennis and pickleball, with dining that is not limited to daytime.

Bocce and the League Scene

The club has “two lighted Bocce courts located outdoors next to the Gumbo Limbo Outdoor Bar,” per its lifestyle page, and describes “400+ member league play.” That league figure is the club’s own round number rather than a published roster, but it signals that bocce at The Forest is organized, not occasional.

How the Courts Compare With Nearby Clubs

Each club below publishes its own figures. Fiddlesticks publishes seven Har-Tru clay tennis courts, three of them lit, and eight pickleball courts on its amenities page. The Landings publishes 13 lit Har-Tru courts, eight pickleball courts and three bocce courts on its home page. The Forest’s six clay courts put it in the same class for tennis as other south Fort Myers clubs, with fewer courts than The Landings and a published bocce program that Fiddlesticks does not list.

What Fitness and Wellness Amenities Are at The Forest?

The Forest Country Club runs a fitness center inside the clubhouse, overlooking the preserve seven days a week, with group classes including yoga, pilates, barre, and strength and balance. The club does not list a swimming pool or spa; pools at The Forest belong to individual neighborhood associations, not to the club.

The Clubhouse Fitness Center

The club’s lifestyle page places the fitness center inside the clubhouse, “overlooking the nature preserve seven days a week,” staffed by certified professionals, with classes named as yoga, pilates, barre, and strength and balance. The club does not publish the center’s square footage or an equipment list. Fitness is included in every membership category the club lists, from Full Family to Racquets, per its membership page, so a non-golfer can use it through the Lifestyle or Racquets membership.

Pools Belong to the Neighborhoods

The club does not list a pool among its amenities; pools at The Forest belong to individual neighborhood associations. None of the club’s lifestyle, dining or membership pages names a pool or a spa, and the county appraiser’s pool flag on the club’s golf and clubhouse parcel is empty, per the Lee County parcel roll. The same roll shows how neighborhood pools are held: a 0.565-acre recreation parcel at 16220 Fairway Woods Drive, owned by the Fairway Woods recreation association, flagged with a pool, and recorded as a common element of Fairway Woods Sections II and III. We have not counted every neighborhood pool, so confirm with the specific association, and in its governing documents, whether the home you are considering comes with one.

How That Compares

Nearby clubs that include a pool publish it. Gulf Harbour describes a Wellness Center with a heated pool, saunas, steam rooms and a day spa on its membership page, and Fiddlesticks publishes a 5,000-square-foot fitness facility and a pool and cabana on its amenities page. At The Forest, the pool question is answered by your neighborhood association, and the spa question has no answer inside the gates.

Where Do You Eat at The Forest Country Club?

Dining at The Forest Country Club centers on one clubhouse restaurant the club describes as casual and elegant, known for brick-oven pizza, plus the Gumbo Limbo outdoor tiki bar overlooking the Bear’s 18th hole. The clubhouse was remodeled in 2019 and serves members and their guests; there is no public restaurant inside the gates.

The Clubhouse and Its 2019 Remodel

The club’s dining page describes “casual, elegant dining” and “famous brick-oven pizzas,” and its lifestyle page describes a “contemporary-style” clubhouse with floor-to-ceiling windows, a waterfall wall, lounge areas, dining rooms, the fitness center and patio space. A December 2019 club article refers to “our 2019 clubhouse remodel.” The county roll dates the buildings on the club’s parcel to 1981 to 1999, so the 2019 work was a remodel of the existing clubhouse, not a new building. The club also redesigned its golf pro shop in 2024, per a May 2024 entry in its news archive.

The Gumbo Limbo Outdoor Bar

The Gumbo Limbo Outdoor Tiki Bar sits on the patio overlooking the 18th hole of the Bear, per the club’s dining page, with the two lighted bocce courts beside it. It is the club’s casual gathering place after a round or a match. Lee County’s zoning notes record the club’s alcoholic beverage approval, COP2000-00062, granted with conditions on October 6, 2000.

Who Can Dine, and How Much the Club Serves

Dining is a membership privilege. The Racquets Membership includes club dining before 5 pm only, and the other categories include clubhouse dining without that limit, per the club’s membership page. The club’s filings give a sense of scale: food and beverage revenue of $2,489,022 in 2024, of which $314,208 was non-member related, per its 2024 Form 990, which reflects member guests, events and weddings booked through the club. A non-member resident dines outside the gates.

How Did The Forest Fare in Hurricane Ian, and How Storm-Ready Is It?

Hurricane Ian’s surge reached inside The Forest in September 2022: U.S. Geological Survey crews surveyed a high-water mark about 2.9 feet above ground at a Waters Edge building. The golf courses took seawater and reopened within weeks, and the club’s tax filings show hurricane capital assessments on members in 2022 and 2023, without naming the storm.

Data updated: September 2026

The Forest was built mostly in the 1980s, on low ground beside Hendry Creek, and it sits in the county’s first evacuation zone. That combination is what a buyer is really asking about. The record answers it in measurements rather than anecdotes: what the water did in 2022, what the club and the associations changed afterward, and how old the buildings are.

What the Measurements Show

U.S. Geological Survey crews surveyed Hurricane Ian high-water marks of about 2.9 feet above ground at a Waters Edge condominium building inside The Forest (and at a garage in adjacent Forest Villas, which sits outside The Forest’s gates, across Island Park Road). On the golf property, the club’s superintendent later described 5 feet of seawater crossing the courses (Golf Course Management, 2022).

The two USGS marks are in the agency’s Short-Term Network record for Ian. The Waters Edge mark, on building K on Waters Edge Court, reads 9.5 feet NAVD88, 2.89 feet above the ground at the wall; the Forest Villas mark reads 9.7 feet NAVD88, 2.91 feet above ground. Both are seed lines on exterior walls, surveyed October 12, 2022, and rated good to plus or minus 0.10 feet. They measure the water surface at the outside of a building. They do not say whether water entered any home, and nothing in the public record we reached does; interior flooding depends on each building’s finished-floor elevation.

Two cross-checks give the marks weight. The ground implied by the Waters Edge mark, 9.5 minus 2.89, is 6.6 feet, which matches the median 2018 LiDAR ground for Waters Edge in Lee County’s spot elevations layer exactly. And by our arithmetic on those same verified figures, Ian’s measured crest inside The Forest, 9.5 to 9.7 feet, sat about 1.3 to 1.5 feet below today’s 11-foot base flood elevation and roughly at the 10-foot elevation of the maps in force before November 2022.

The Golf Course: Seawater, Salt and Reopening

The golf property took the worst of it. In an interview reported by Golf Course Management, the magazine of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, the club’s superintendent said the staff had prepared the pump station but “did not account for was 5 feet of seawater coming across the entire property.” The article reports that most maintenance equipment was destroyed, there was no irrigation water for the first three weeks, the crew spread 1,000 pounds per acre of gypsum across both courses to counter the salt, the Bear was back in play in about a month, and the Bobcat reopened in mid-November. That is testimony about low golf ground, reported by the trade press; the surveyed figures above are the measurement.

What Changed After the Storm

The paper trail after the storm is specific. The club’s 2022 Form 990 reports $1,635,567 of hurricane expenses that year, and its filings show a hurricane capital assessment on members of $2,732,400 in 2022 and $503,500 in 2023; the filings say “hurricane” and do not name the storm. Lee County’s development order record inside The Forest names Ian exactly once: LDO2024-00288, “(4) new canopies to replace (4) damaged wooden pergolas from hurricane Ian,” closed and finaled February 17, 2025. The same record shows the club adding an 80 kW standby generator with an automatic transfer switch and a 1,000-gallon propane tank under LDO2025-00089, issued March 20, 2025; the order does not state why.

Three associations also granted communication easements to Hotwire Communications in 2022 and 2024, Waters Edge, Eagle’s Landing and Dove Hollow, per Lee County’s easements layer, consistent with the community’s Hotwire fiber arrangement. And two county post-storm layers, the county facility damage inventory and the public initial damage assessment layer, return no features inside The Forest; the public layer carries almost no attributes, so we record that result without leaning on it.

Helene and Milton in 2024

The 2024 storms left a much lighter record here. The USGS holds no surveyed high-water mark within about 6 kilometers of The Forest for either Helene or Milton, and no county development order inside The Forest names either storm.

How Old the Buildings Are, and Why That Matters

About three quarters of the homes inside The Forest’s county boundary were finished in the 1980s and about 95 percent by 1999, per the Lee County parcel roll. The first statewide Florida Building Code took effect March 1, 2002, and the current 8th Edition took effect December 31, 2023, per the Florida Building Commission. Grouped by code era, the county’s first-year-built dates inside the community boundary fall as follows.

Source: Lee County parcel roll, first year built on each residential parcel, September 2026; code eras are our grouping of those dates against the Florida Building Commission’s effective dates.

Every condominium building except the Heron Coach House Villas (built 1994 to 1996) predates 1993, and no condominium at The Forest was built under the Florida Building Code. The homes built after 2002 are scattered single-family rebuilds and infill in the four platted phases and Falcon Crest One. None of that means a 1980s building is unsound: a roof, windows or shutters replaced after 2002 were permitted under the code in force when the work was done, and the county roll does not record re-roof dates. It does mean the paperwork matters more than the year: ask for the roof permit date, the wind-mitigation report and, for a condominium, the association’s insurance and reserve documents.

Sparrowood and the Post-2022 Condominium Laws

Sparrowood’s three buildings are the only three-story residential buildings in The Forest, according to Lee County property records, which places Sparrowood alone under Florida’s milestone-inspection and structural integrity reserve study requirements for condominiums of three or more stories. Buyers there should ask the association for its milestone inspection report and reserve study. Whether Sparrowood’s milestone inspection and reserve study have been completed is not in public records we could reach; buyers should request both from the association. The governing statutes are section 553.899 and section 718.112(2)(g). Every other condominium building in The Forest is recorded at one or two stories, which places it outside both requirements.

Getting Out: Evacuation Zone A

The whole community is in Lee County Evacuation Zone A (A is the first letter in the county’s A to E scheme) and Storm Surge Zone 1. The master association keeps an Emergency Preparedness Plan, updated May 2022, with re-entry procedures that admit contractors on a prior pass or barcode and require challenge of any contractor without one, a rule written to protect residents from post-storm fraud. Owners who leave for the summer should register a key holder with their neighborhood association before the season starts.

What Flood Zone Is The Forest In?

Every home in The Forest is in FEMA flood Zone AE, a Special Flood Hazard Area, with a base flood elevation of 11 feet NAVD88, on map panels effective November 17, 2022. The whole community is in Lee County Evacuation Zone A. Median ground elevations run roughly 6 to 9 feet, below the base flood elevation everywhere.

Data updated: September 2026

“Is The Forest in a flood zone?” has a one-word answer, yes, and a more useful longer one. The zone is the same everywhere inside the gates; what differs from neighborhood to neighborhood is how far the ground sits below the base flood elevation, and that gap is what drives rebuilding rules and, through each building’s elevation certificate, insurance.

Zone AE, 11 Feet, in Every Neighborhood

Every home and the club property in The Forest are in FEMA flood Zone AE with a base flood elevation of 11 feet (NAVD88), on FIRM panels 12071C0438H and 12071C0576H, effective November 17, 2022. We tested every residential parcel in the community, not a sample, against FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer and Lee County’s own republished FIRM layer, and the two agree to the foot: Zone AE, coastal floodplain, base flood elevation 11 feet, inside the Special Flood Hazard Area, outside any floodway. A third county layer that tags each building footprint returns the same answer, building by building. No home in The Forest sits in Zone X or a VE zone. For flood insurance purposes the whole community is in NFIP community 125124, Lee County Unincorporated Areas.

The neighbors across Island Park Road, Forest Villas and Timberwood Village, sit outside The Forest’s gates and are in the same Zone AE with the same 11-foot base flood elevation. The nearest ground outside the Special Flood Hazard Area lies east of The Forest, toward US 41 and the industrial park, in shaded Zone X; no Forest parcel falls in it.

The Two Map Panels and the 2022 Change

The community spans two effective panels, both dated November 17, 2022, per FEMA’s panel index: 12071C0438H covers the northern and western part, including Units Two and Three, The Oaks, the Heron, Fairway Woods and most of the condominiums, and 12071C0576H covers the southern and eastern part, including most of Unit One, Partridge Place and Pheasant Court Villas.

The November 2022 map revision raised the base flood elevation across The Forest by one foot, from 10 to 11 feet NAVD88. Lee County keeps the superseded map as a separate pre-coastal-study layer, dated the day before the new panels took effect, and on it every Forest parcel reads Zone AE at 10 feet, on panels 12071C0438G and 12071C0576G effective December 7, 2018. The zone did not change; the elevation did. Older documents that describe The Forest’s flood zone with an older label or a 10-foot elevation predate the current map.

Ground Elevation by Neighborhood

The table below gives, for each neighborhood inside the gates, the FIRM panel and the median ground elevation of its parcels, taken from the nearest 2018 LiDAR ground point to each parcel in Lee County’s spot elevations layer, in feet NAVD88 (stated vertical accuracy plus or minus 0.57 feet). These are ground elevations, not finished floors. The last column is simple arithmetic, 11 feet minus the median ground, and is our calculation, not a county figure.

Panel numbers are shortened: 0438H is 12071C0438H and 0576H is 12071C0576H, both effective November 17, 2022. Every row is Zone AE, base flood elevation 11 feet, Evacuation Zone A. Parcel counts include common-element parcels carrying the neighborhood’s county code.

Two readings stand out. Pheasant Court Villas has the lowest ground in The Forest, a median of 5.9 feet, and Fairway Woods sits highest, 8.5 to 9.1 feet by section. The county’s building-footprint layer, which records a mean ground height under each building, agrees within a few tenths of a foot (for example Unit One 6.7, The Oaks 7.4, Sparrowood 7.4 and Fairway Woods I 8.9). Flood insurance cost depends on each building’s elevation certificate, which is specific to the home; ground is a starting point, not a substitute.

One Map Amendment Request, Denied

FEMA’s index of Letters of Map Change shows one Letter of Map Amendment request inside The Forest, for a Partridge Place building, and it was denied, per FEMA’s LOMA layer. No Letter of Map Revision touches any Forest parcel, per the LOMR layer. The map amendments that do appear nearby belong to communities outside the gates. FEMA’s index is a point index and may not include older paper letters, so “one, denied” is what the federal index holds.

Evacuation Zone A

The whole community is in Lee County Evacuation Zone A, Storm Surge Zone 1, per the county’s evacuation zones layer and its Zone A map. One county polygon covers every neighborhood and the club, so there is no part of The Forest that is told to stay while another is told to go. Zone A is the first letter in Lee County’s A to E scheme.

Lee County’s 50 Percent Rule and the 12-Foot Build Line

Lee County applies FEMA’s substantial improvement and substantial damage rule in unincorporated Lee County: work whose cost equals or exceeds 50 percent of the building’s market value, or damage that would cost that much to restore, requires the whole structure to be brought into compliance with current flood regulations, including elevation and mechanical equipment, per the county’s substantial improvement page. The county uses the Property Appraiser’s building value, not land, as market value, and an owner may challenge it with a depreciated-value appraisal. New and substantially improved buildings in the Special Flood Hazard Area must be built one additional foot above the FEMA base flood elevation. By our arithmetic, at The Forest that puts a rebuilt or substantially improved home’s lowest floor at 12 feet NAVD88, which is about 3 to 6 feet above today’s median ground in every neighborhood in the table above. For a buyer planning a major renovation of a 1980s home, that line is the budget question to answer first.

How to Check a Specific Address

For any address, pull the current panel from FEMA’s Map Service Center and Lee County’s flood information pages, and ask the seller for the elevation certificate. A seller who has one in the listing file removes a week from a buyer’s insurance shopping.

What Should You Know About Insuring a Home in The Forest?

Because every home in The Forest sits in a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area, a federally backed mortgage requires flood insurance, and Citizens Property Insurance requires flood coverage on its homeowner policies there. Unincorporated Lee County’s Class 5 rating in FEMA’s Community Rating System cuts NFIP flood premiums 25 percent inside the flood zone.

Data updated: September 2026

We do not publish premiums for The Forest, because there is no public source for one that we would stand behind, and a premium quoted without the home’s elevation certificate, roof age and wind-mitigation report is a guess. What we can publish is every rule that moves the number, and the documents that lower it.

Flood Insurance: When It Is Required

FEMA’s flood maps still drive the mandatory purchase requirement, per FEMA’s Risk Rating 2.0 page, and every Forest home is inside the Special Flood Hazard Area. Applying that stated rule, a mortgage from a federally regulated or insured lender on any home in The Forest will require flood insurance; a cash buyer is not required to carry it, but would be self-insuring against the water that reached Waters Edge in 2022.

How NFIP Prices a Policy Now

Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP prices each building rather than each zone. FEMA’s Risk Rating 2.0 page says new policies moved to the new pricing on October 1, 2021, renewals from April 1, 2022, with full implementation April 1, 2023; rating uses flood frequency, multiple flood types including storm surge and heavy rainfall, distance to a water source, and property characteristics such as elevation and the cost to rebuild; and most rates may not increase more than 18 percent per year. That is why two homes on the same street in The Forest can carry very different flood premiums.

The Community Rating System Discount

Unincorporated Lee County is a Class 5 community in FEMA’s Community Rating System, worth a 25 percent discount on NFIP flood premiums inside the Special Flood Hazard Area; that is Class 5 as of FEMA’s April 2025 list, which records the county’s CRS entry in 1991 and its current class since October 1, 2007, per the FEMA CRS eligible communities list. Lee County states that property owners in unincorporated Lee County “will automatically receive a 25% discount,” on its CRS discount page. The discount survived FEMA’s post-Ian review: on November 21, 2024 FEMA kept unincorporated Lee County’s 25 percent discount while Fort Myers Beach lost its own, per WGCU.

One detail catches buyers out. The Forest has a Fort Myers mailing address, but it is not in the City of Fort Myers, which the same FEMA list rates Class 9, a 5 percent discount. The Forest takes the county’s Class 5.

Citizens Rules That Apply Here

Florida law makes flood coverage mandatory for Citizens Property Insurance personal-lines policies on property inside the Special Flood Hazard Area, for new policies from April 1, 2023 and at renewal from July 1, 2023, per section 627.351(6), Florida Statutes. Because every Forest home is in that area, the rule reaches every Citizens homeowner policy on a Forest house or villa. The statute exempts policies without wind coverage and policies written on a condominium unit-owners form. The same statute makes a dwelling with a replacement cost of $700,000 or more, or a condominium unit with combined dwelling and contents replacement cost of $700,000 or more, ineligible for Citizens, and makes a new applicant ineligible if a private insurer offers comparable coverage at a premium no more than 20 percent above Citizens’.

Condominium Master Policies and Unit-Owner Coverage

In the condominium neighborhoods, the association insures the building under its master policy, as section 718.111(11) of Florida’s Condominium Act provides, and the unit owner insures the interior and contents under a unit-owners (HO-6) policy. That split is why a condominium buyer’s insurance review starts with the association, not the unit: ask the neighborhood association for its current master policy declarations, its deductible, and whether it carries flood coverage on the building. The master policy premium is inside the association’s budget, which is not published; it appears in the budget and estoppel package provided at resale.

Roof Age and Wind-Mitigation Credits

Two statutes matter for 1980s homes. Under section 627.7011(5), an insurer may not refuse to issue or renew a homeowner’s policy solely because a roof is less than 15 years old, and for a roof 15 or more years old, it may not refuse solely on roof age if an inspection shows at least 5 years of useful life remaining. Under section 627.0629(1), residential rate filings must include discounts for wind-resistive features, including roof strength, roof-to-wall connections and opening protection, and insurers must describe those discounts on their websites. A current wind-mitigation inspection is the document that turns those features into credits.

My Safe Florida Home Grants

The state’s My Safe Florida Home program offers matching grants for hardening, under section 215.5586: the home must be homesteaded, site-built and owner-occupied, single-family detached or attached and not more than three stories, insured for $700,000 or less, and built before January 1, 2008 per the property appraiser, and the applicant must meet the program’s income test; the state matches $2 for every $1 up to a $10,000 state contribution. By our count of the county roll, about 99 percent of homes in The Forest pass the pre-2008 test; the homestead, income and value tests depend on the owner. The program’s website advertises grants but shows no application dates. Check the program’s current funding status before applying.

Documents to Gather Before You Bind

For a house or villa: the elevation certificate, the roof permit date, a current wind-mitigation report and a four-point inspection. For a condominium: the same wind report where the association has one, plus the association’s master policy declarations, and at Sparrowood the milestone inspection report and structural integrity reserve study. Flood insurance cost depends on each building’s elevation certificate, which is specific to the home.

Which Schools Serve The Forest?

Every neighborhood in The Forest falls in the same Lee County school choice zones: Elementary Zone O, Middle School Zone MM and High School South Zone 2. Rayma C. Page Elementary, the nearest Zone O choice at 1.4 miles, has earned an A from the Florida Department of Education three years running.

Data updated: September 2026

We tested two parcel points in every neighborhood inside the gates, and in the neighbors across Island Park Road, plus four geocoded addresses, against the district’s own zone lookup, and all 50 returned the same zones. There is no split anywhere inside The Forest.

How Lee County Assigns Students

Lee County assigns students through a zone of school choices, not a single school per address. The district’s plan “relies on three choice zones (East, South, West) broken into subzones,” and families choose through a Choice Application in the Focus Parent Portal, per the district’s transportation optimization page and student enrollment page. The Forest sits in Elementary Zone O, Middle School Zone MM and High School South Zone 2 (subzone S2), per the district-linked 2026-27 zone map.

Elementary Zone O Choices

The Zone O choices are Rayma C. Page, Heights, Tanglewood and Villas elementaries. Rayma C. Page is the nearest by a wide margin, 1.4 miles from the clubhouse against 5.3 to 7.4 miles for the other three.

Middle School Zone MM Choices

The district’s own grades release notes that Lexington Middle “improved to a ‘B’ from a ‘C.’”

High School South Zone 2 and the Busing Rule

Dunbar High School is among the South Zone 2 high school choices, but the district’s 2026-27 transportation plan does not provide Dunbar bus service to The Forest’s subzone (S2). The district is explicit that the plan “does not limit a student’s access to choose a school for the programs it offers. The plan only limits the transportation,” per its transportation optimization page. The barrier-island schools, The Sanibel School, Pine Island Elementary and Fort Myers Beach Elementary, are open to every zone by request, without district transportation, per the district’s school zones page.

All grades in this section are 2026 school grades (Florida Department of Education), from the state’s 2026 school grades file, with the two prior years from the same file. The district reported that no Lee school received a D or F in 2025-26.

Charter and College Options Nearby

Florida SouthWestern Collegiate High School, a charter high school on the FSW Lee campus at 8099 College Parkway, earned an A in 2026, 2025 and 2024, with 91 percent of possible points in 2026, per the state’s 2026 school grades file; it is 5.4 miles and 12 minutes away. Harlem Heights Community Charter School, an elementary at 15570 Hagie Drive, earned a C in 2026 after D grades in 2025 and 2024; it is 6.3 miles away. For college, Florida SouthWestern State College’s Lee campus is 5.4 miles and 12 minutes from the clubhouse and Florida Gulf Coast University, at 10501 FGCU Boulevard South, is 7.9 miles and 16 minutes.

Private Schools Nearby

Each private school’s grades and accreditations below are its own published claims, read on its own website; drive times are computed from the clubhouse.

A New School Under Construction

A K-12 charter school is under construction about two miles north; its opening date is not yet set. Lee County’s development activity layer lists Gladiolus Classical Academy Charter School as a proposed 72,130-square-foot, two-story K-12 school with a status of Construction. It has no state grade yet, and whether it will enroll students from The Forest is not published.

Where Is the Nearest Hospital to The Forest?

The nearest hospital to The Forest is Gulf Coast Medical Center, about 4.5 miles and 9 minutes away, which the Florida Department of Health lists as Lee County’s only designated Level II trauma center. HealthPark Medical Center and Golisano Children’s Hospital share a campus about 5.8 miles away, and three Lee Health urgent care clinics are within 9 miles.

Data updated: September 2026

Gulf Coast Medical Center

Gulf Coast Medical Center, 13681 Doctors Way, is Lee County’s state-designated Level II trauma center (Florida Department of Health). The department’s trauma center list, updated July 23, 2026, lists it as the only designated trauma center in Lee County. Lee Health’s own Gulf Coast Medical Center page describes 699 licensed beds and an emergency department of 70 rooms, “Including 4 Trauma Bays and 8 Fast-Track Rooms,” and calls it the “Only Level II Trauma Center between Bradenton and Miami.” From the clubhouse it is 4.5 miles and about 9 minutes, most of it on US 41.

HealthPark and Golisano Children’s Hospital

HealthPark Medical Center, 9981 S HealthPark Drive, is 5.8 miles and about 12 minutes away. Lee Health’s HealthPark page describes 326 beds and a 24-hour emergency room, and places Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida on the same campus, which Lee Health calls “the only children’s hospital in the region.” Golisano has its own emergency care listing at the same address, per Lee Health’s location finder. Neither HealthPark nor Golisano appears on the state trauma center list.

Lee Memorial Hospital

Lee Memorial Hospital, 2776 Cleveland Avenue, is 9.2 miles and about 18 minutes north, in central Fort Myers. Lee Health lists 336 acute-care beds and 18 skilled nursing beds on its Lee Memorial page. For trauma, the state’s designation belongs to Gulf Coast Medical Center, which is also the closer of the two to The Forest.

Urgent Care

Lee Health’s current urgent care roster lists six clinics, which it says are open seven days a week. The three nearest The Forest are:

Drive times are typical free-flow times measured from The Forest Country Club’s address at 6100 Club Boulevard, near the center of the community; in-season traffic is longer.

How Long Are the Drives From The Forest?

From The Forest, Southwest Florida International Airport’s terminal is about 8.6 miles and 16 minutes away, Bell Tower Shops about 3.9 miles, and both spring-training ballparks are within 10 miles. Downtown Fort Myers is about 21 minutes and Naples about 44, measured as typical free-flow drives from the clubhouse address.

Data updated: September 2026

Drive times are typical free-flow times measured from The Forest Country Club’s address at 6100 Club Boulevard, near the center of the community; in-season traffic is longer. We geocoded the club’s address with the US Census Bureau geocoder and computed every route on the OpenStreetMap road network with the OSRM routing engine on September 23, 2026. OSRM has no traffic model, so these are off-peak figures; January to April traffic on US 41, Summerlin Road and I-75 runs longer. The clubhouse is less than a mile inside the gates, so add a minute or two from a home near the edge.

Airport, Downtown and Naples

The airport run is the one that sells The Forest to seasonal owners: about a quarter hour to RSW, without crossing a bridge.

Shopping, Ballparks and Parks

Beaches, Hospitals and Colleges

Everyday Errands

The everyday trips are short. From the clubhouse, a Publix on Alico Mission Way is about 1.4 miles and 4 minutes, a CVS pharmacy beside it about 1.2 miles, and a Walmart Supercenter on Six Mile Cypress Parkway about 2.1 miles and 6 minutes; Lakes Regional Library, on Bass Road, is about 5.2 miles. Those storefront positions come from OpenStreetMap, a community-maintained map, so confirm hours with each store.

What Is Being Built or Changed Near The Forest?

Inside The Forest almost nothing new is being built: Lee County’s new-construction permit extract shows one new single-family home inside the gates since late 2023, and the live case is a proposed 149-foot wireless monopole on the golf property, In Review with no decision. Outside the gates, a proposed 61-acre mixed-use rezoning is the largest nearby change.

Data updated: September 2026

The Forest is built out, so the changes that matter to an owner are the few projects on its own land and the ones on the commercial and industrial land between it and US 41. Everything below is from Lee County’s own case, permit and capital-project records and FDOT District One’s project pages; case numbers are public county record numbers, so you can look any of them up yourself.

The Proposed Cell Tower on the Golf Course

A special exception and variance for a 149-foot wireless monopole on the golf course property (Lee County cases SEZ2026-00001 and VAR2026-00001) were In Review as of September 23, 2026. No hearing has been scheduled and no decision has been made. The applicant filed a fourth round of additional information dated September 21, 2026, after three county insufficiency letters.

The record is detailed enough to follow. The special exception asks “to allow a 149-foot monopole wireless communication facility,” and the companion variance covers height, setbacks and landscaping, per the county’s Accela record for SEZ2026-00001 and for VAR2026-00001. The applicant is a tower developer, and the work location is the club’s golf parcel. The county’s case file shows the original application dated January 12, 2026, insufficiency letters dated February 16, June 16 and August 13, 2026, and additional-information filings dated May 21, July 20 and September 21, 2026. The county’s zoning-case map layer may still show an earlier status; the permitting record above is the live one. Until a hearing is scheduled and held, nothing about the tower has been approved.

For context, the county record holds an older tower case about a mile east: a 1993 special exception for a 500-foot communication tower in the industrial district along Old US 41, per the county’s zoning cases layer.

Permits and Projects Inside the Gates

Lee County’s residential new-construction permit extract, dated March 2025, holds one record inside The Forest: RES2023-17131, a single-family residence on Bear Cub Court in The Forest Unit Two, opened December 15, 2023 and issued July 31, 2024. A second record, a two-family building under RES2023-16315, is at Forest Villas, outside the gates. Lee County’s development activity layer shows no pending rezoning, plat or major site plan inside The Forest.

The county’s development orders inside the gates since late 2024 are maintenance and club projects:

Lee County publishes no bulk layer of re-roof, pool or repair permits, so we do not publish a count of them.

Zoning Cases Within About a Mile

The nearest changes are on the US 41 side. Distances are straight-line from the center of the community to each case, computed from the county’s zoning cases layer.

Dia Crossing is the one to watch. We describe its figures as proposed maximums until the county’s zoning resolution for the case is read.

Larger Projects a Little Farther Out

Lee County’s development activity layer lists two apartment projects about 1.5 miles away: Ellison Fort Myers, the redevelopment of a mobile home community into 376 multifamily units (development order issued), and Cypress Apartments, 320 units (under construction). A K-12 charter school is under construction about two miles north; its opening date is not yet set.

Roads

Lee County’s own five-year major road program, fiscal years 2025/26 to 2029/30, programs no project on US 41, Island Park Road, Gladiolus Drive, Summerlin Road, Six Mile Cypress Parkway, Estero Bay Drive, Winkler Road, Bass Road or San Carlos Boulevard, and the county’s road-expansion layer returns nothing within about 2 miles. The state is studying the busiest nearby intersection: FDOT District One’s US 41 at Six Mile Cypress Parkway PD&E study, FPN 444328-1, is evaluating at-grade and grade-separated options on 0.9 miles around the intersection, about 2.2 miles north of The Forest, with a public hearing scheduled for 2026 according to the project page. FDOT also lists an intersection improvement at SR 865 and US 41, FPN 430886-1, whose posted schedule is out of date, and a resurfacing of SR 865 from south of Summerlin Road to Old McGregor Boulevard, with construction tentatively in fall or winter 2027.

Drainage and Parks

Lee County’s capital projects layer carries the Ten Mile Canal South flood-mitigation project, about a mile from The Forest: a $37,000,000 estimate to install seawall, dredge and remove obstructions in the Ten Mile Canal south of US 41, “to provide additional flood relief in the event of an extreme storm event,” in Design and planned through December 31, 2027. The county notes that many communities depend on the canal for drainage and that it was overwhelmed in earlier storms. A smaller study of the Lee County Industrial Park drainage and the canal berm beside it is complete. On the parks side, the county’s parks projects layer lists capital work at Lakes Regional Park in design and planning, a water quality project there under construction, and the Mullock Creek Boat Ramp improvement in progress. The nearest post-Ian federal disaster-recovery infrastructure project, Constitution Circle, is about 2.9 miles away, per the county’s CDBG-DR layer; none is inside The Forest.

How Do Gates, Guests, Trash, Utilities and Internet Work in The Forest?

Daily life in The Forest runs through the master association: residents enter by vehicle barcode, guests are pre-registered through the DwellingLive system, and the main gate is staffed around the clock. Water comes from Lee County Utilities, sewer from the private Forest Utilities, Inc., trash is a county Service Area 2 assessment, and Hotwire provides fiber.

The master association, The Forest Property Owners’ Association, Inc., runs the gates and the streets from its office at 5990 Forest Boulevard, and it is professionally managed by FirstService Residential, per the association’s website. Everything below comes from the association’s own public pages and plan, Lee County’s utility and solid waste records, and the county parcel roll.

Gates, Barcodes and Guests

The Main Gate is staffed 24 hours a day, the Island Park Gate is staffed seven days a week from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM, and a patrol runs nightly, per the master association’s 2022 Emergency Preparedness Plan. Gate staffing hours are from the association’s 2022 emergency plan. Entry is by “vehicle bar codes, authorized pass, or resident/guest look up.” Residents request a barcode through the association’s online vehicle barcode request form, which asks for the Forest address, the vehicle’s year, make, model, color, plate and state, and an upload of the registration and driver license; no barcode fee is published on the form. Guests and visitors are pre-registered by residents through the DwellingLive visitor and gate access system, with resident accounts activated by the association’s manager.

Contractors and Vendors

The association’s plan confirms a contractor-pass system: after a storm, the gate is to “allow contractor entry with previous contractor pass or bar code entry without challenge,” while contractors without a previous pass “MUST be challenged to protect residents from fraud and scams,” per the 2022 plan. The everyday contractor procedure and any work hours are not published; register your contractors through DwellingLive before they arrive.

Water and Sewer

Lee County’s utility franchise maps place The Forest in Lee County Utilities’ water service area. Sewer service is provided by Forest Utilities, Inc., a private utility; The Forest lies outside the county’s wastewater service area. The county’s water franchise, wastewater franchise, wastewater service area and future sewer service area layers return that result at four points spread across the community. Forest Utilities, Inc., a private utility, provides sewer service; its rates are not published online. It has operated since 1980, per its Division of Corporations record, from a 6.38-acre plant parcel on Deer Run. Ask the seller for twelve months of water and sewer bills; they are two separate bills from two separate providers.

Trash and Recycling

Lee County bills solid waste on the property tax bill as a non-ad-valorem assessment. The Forest is in Service Area 2, at $348.75 per single-family unit for fiscal year 2026 plus a $2.55 administrative charge, with a 4 percent early-payment discount, per the county’s adopted solid waste rates and its solid waste districts layer. The association does not publish pickup days or the recycling schedule on its public pages; in the condominiums, collection points are set by the neighborhood association.

Internet and TV

The community has a Hotwire fiber arrangement; whether it is billed through the association is not published. The association’s website confirms the arrangement and posts the Hotwire information package only inside the resident portal. Lee County’s easements layer records communication easements granted to Hotwire Communications by Waters Edge, Eagle’s Landing and Dove Hollow in 2022 and 2024, consistent with the same arrangement. A buyer should ask the seller whether the Hotwire service appears on the association bill or on a separate Hotwire bill.

Leasing, Pets and Architectural Rules

Leasing, pet and architectural rules are set by the master and neighborhood associations and are not published publicly; they are in each association’s governing documents, provided at resale. The master association posts its homeowner documents and forms only inside its resident portal, and the master association’s recorded declaration is not available in the county’s online records. In practice, the neighborhood association is usually where the leasing minimum and pet rule for a condominium live, so a buyer who plans to rent, or to bring a dog, should read that association’s declaration and rules before signing, not after. For a condominium resale, section 718.503 requires the seller to provide the declaration, by-laws and rules.

Golf Carts on the Streets

Golf-cart rules on The Forest’s private streets are not published; they sit in the same association rules as leasing and pets. Because the master association owns the streets, ask for its current rules before you drive a cart to the clubhouse.

The Association Office and Resale Documents

The association office is at 5990 Forest Boulevard, Fort Myers, FL 33908. Estoppel certificates and resale documents are ordered through FirstService Residential’s resale and lender documents page, and Florida law caps what an association may charge for an estoppel certificate. The association also publishes a monthly newsletter, “Forest Matters,” to residents, per its 2022 plan.

Selling in The Forest? We order the estoppel certificates and governing documents on day one and set up gate access for showings through DwellingLive, so buyers see a clean file. Find out what your home in The Forest is worth, or Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072. Buying? Call Marc at (239) 287-5873, or read how we represent buyers in Southwest Florida.

What Clubs, Events and Social Life Does The Forest Offer?

Social life at The Forest orbits the country club: member golf trips, Nine and Dine evenings, a Ladies Wimbledon tennis event, holiday parties, Sunday football, and the long-running Red Sox Celebrity Classic charity golf event, now in its 33rd edition. Non-members have the association’s playground, sidewalks, neighborhood pools and the county parks nearby.

The Club’s Event Calendar

The club’s dated news archive, 2019 to 2026, documents the kinds of events it runs: member golf trips (Scotland, Pinehurst and Sand Valley in 2026), membership outings and member events, themed Nine and Dine evenings, a Ladies Wimbledon tennis event in 2025, holiday events, Sunday NFL football viewing, and weddings and private events booked through the club. Clinics, leagues, round robins and tournaments run through the tennis and pickleball programs, and the bocce league runs beside the Gumbo Limbo bar, per the club’s lifestyle page. The event calendar itself is for members.

Charity Golf: The Red Sox Celebrity Classic

The Forest hosts an annual charity golf event connected to the Boston Red Sox, whose spring-training home, JetBlue Park, is about 10 miles away. The club’s news archive dates the 33rd Red Sox Celebrity Classic to March 2, 2026, and the 31st annual golf classic to February 20, 2024. It is the most visible event on The Forest’s calendar and one of the few that brings the wider community onto the courses.

Reciprocal Play and Awards

The club described a reciprocal-club program in a June 2021 article in its news archive; the current partner list is not published, so ask the membership office which clubs participate. The club reports being voted Best of the Gulfshore by Gulfshore Life, including in 2025 (club announcement, April 2025, in a club article). The same article refers to the club’s “over four decades” at The Forest.

Community Life Outside the Club

A resident who does not join still has a neighborhood. The master association’s resident portal describes “a children’s playground, known as Ruthie’s Park, and miles of sidewalks for the avid morning walker,” and the association publishes “Forest Matters,” a monthly newsletter, per its 2022 plan. Neighborhood pools, where an association has one, are the other everyday gathering places. The club’s marketing also describes its grounds as a nature preserve and claims “over 200 bird species” identified there, in a 2023 club article; that is the club’s own claim, without a cited survey, but the wading birds on the lakes are easy to see from the sidewalks.

Parks and Preserves Nearby

Lee County’s parks carry the rest. Lakes Regional Park, a 279-acre county park, is about 2.3 miles and 5 minutes away, and the county’s John Yarbrough Linear Park runs from Six Mile Cypress to Crystal Drive and connects to it. Estero Marsh Preserve is about a mile from the center of The Forest, and Mullock Creek Preserve about 4.7 kilometers. For a household that wants a walkable, green neighborhood without a club bill, that combination is The Forest’s quiet advantage.

How Does The Forest Compare With Other Fort Myers Golf Communities?

Among the eight Fort Myers golf clubs in this benchmark, The Forest is the only one whose club and master association both state that membership is optional, and it posted the lowest median price per square foot of living area in the table, $175.63 on 45 closings in the 12 months to September 23, 2026.

Data updated: September 2026

Yardstick: each club’s or community’s own published record (its website or governing document) for courses, membership and access, as of September 23, 2026; “not published” means no first-party or authority source states it, and we do not infer it. Market columns come from the Southwest Florida MLS, closed sales dated 09/24/2025 to 09/23/2026, pulled September 23, 2026, with every community searched by its own MLS development name and every median computed by the same method (price per square foot is the median of each sale’s price divided by its MLS living area).

Source: courses, membership and access from each club’s own site as linked, as of September 23, 2026; market columns from the Southwest Florida MLS, closed sales 09/24/2025 to 09/23/2026, pulled September 23, 2026. When n is even the median is the mean of the middle pair, shown beside it. Median days on market excludes sold-data-entry records that carry no days on market. The MLS carries Cross Creek as two development names, so we show both lines and the combined figure. Cross Creek Country Club carries one duplicate record; excluding it leaves the median sold at $205,000. The Forest’s median is an observed sale (n=45, odd).

What the Benchmark Shows

• Only The Forest says “optional” in both places. Two clubs in the set, Fiddlesticks and Heritage Palms, publish bundled, mandatory membership on their own sites. The Forest is the one club whose own site and whose master association both describe the community as non-bundled. The other five publish neither, and we leave them as “not published” rather than guess.
• The lowest price per square foot in the table. The Forest’s $175.63 per square foot of living area is below The Landings ($186.26) and Cross Creek Country Club ($181.18), and well below Pelican Preserve ($236.70), Eagle Ridge ($237.96), Heritage Palms ($255.87) and Gulf Harbour ($324.88). For a buyer that is the value case; for a seller it is the reason pricing discipline matters.
• A mid-pack median on a split market. The Forest’s $375,000 all-home median sits in the middle of the table only because its 15 single-family sales were large homes (a median of 2,728 square feet of living area). Its single-family median was $685,000 and its condominium and villa median $286,500.
• Slower and softer than the busiest peers. The Forest’s 76-day median time on market is slower than Heritage Palms (33 days) and Pelican Preserve (43), and its 94.59% median sold-to-list ratio is among the softer readings in the set, though firmer than Fiddlesticks (92.75%).
• One of three with 36 holes. The Forest, Fiddlesticks and Heritage Palms each have 36 holes; Pelican Preserve has 27; Gulf Harbour, The Landings, Cross Creek and Eagle Ridge have 18, two of them executive layouts.

The Forest Against Fiddlesticks

Fiddlesticks is The Forest’s closest structural match and its clearest contrast. Both have two full 18-hole courses and both clubs are owned by their members, but Fiddlesticks states on its membership page that “membership is required upon home purchase,” and its governing rules require every lot or unit buyer to purchase and maintain a Vested Equity membership. At The Forest, buying a home does not require joining the club. Fiddlesticks describes itself as “just 585 homes and two golf courses,” a lower housing density than The Forest’s 789 residences on the same 36 holes. In the market columns, Fiddlesticks closed 44 homes at a median of $576,075 and $211.11 per square foot of living area over the same 12 months, against The Forest’s 45 at $375,000 and $175.63. Its single-family median was $850,000 on 26 sales. Our Fiddlesticks Country Club guide covers it in depth.

The Forest Against Heritage Palms

Heritage Palms is the other bundled club in the set. Its own site describes “a gated, bundled golf community where membership and golf privileges are included with every home purchase,” with “all 1662 owners” also members, on 36 holes across its Royal and Sabal courses (club golf page). Heritage Palms was the fastest market in the table, a median 33 days on market on 84 closings, with a 96.64% median sold-to-list ratio and a median sale of $359,700, close to The Forest’s $375,000. The price per square foot of living area is where they part: $255.87 at Heritage Palms against $175.63 at The Forest. The comparison a buyer is really making is a bundled membership priced into every home against an optional one priced separately, and the square-foot gap is part of that difference, not a verdict on either community.

The Forest Against Gulf Harbour

Gulf Harbour Yacht and Country Club is the most expensive community in the table: 87 closings at a median of $670,000 and $324.88 per square foot of living area, with a single-family median of $1,500,000 on 21 sales. It combines an 18-hole championship course with an executive course inside it, per its golf page, and it adds a marina and a wellness center with a heated pool, saunas, steam rooms and a day spa, per its membership page. Gulf Harbour does not publish whether membership is bundled or optional, so we mark it “not published.” The Forest has no marina and no club pool; it is a golf-first community at a little more than half Gulf Harbour’s price per square foot. See our Gulf Harbour Yacht and Country Club guide.

The Forest Against The Landings

The Landings Yacht, Golf and Tennis Club is the nearest match on price per square foot: 47 closings at a median of $307,000 and $186.26 per square foot of living area, against The Forest’s $175.63. The Landings is mostly mid-rise condominium product, with 38 of its 47 sales attached homes by MLS building design, and its golf is an 18-hole executive course, per the club’s site, which also publishes 13 lit Har-Tru tennis courts, eight pickleball courts and three bocce courts. The Landings does not publish bundled or optional status; it sells separate social memberships “for non-residents.” The Forest offers two full-length championship courses instead of one executive course, and single-family homes on platted lots rather than a mostly mid-rise mix. Our The Landings guide goes deeper.

The Forest Against Cross Creek

Cross Creek is one Fort Myers golf community that the MLS carries as two development names: Cross Creek Estates, all single-family (24 closings, median $431,000, $213.15 per square foot of living area), and Cross Creek Country Club, mostly villa and condominium villages (42 closings, median $205,000, $181.18 per square foot). Combined, the two lines closed 66 homes at a median of $249,500 and $191.37 per square foot. Cross Creek’s golf is an 18-hole executive course, par 60, designed in 1985 and built in 1987, per the club’s golf course page, and its rate card offers play to “members, tenants, golf associates and public golfers.” It does not publish bundled or optional status. The Forest’s two par-72 courses are a different golf product, and its condominium and villa median ($286,500) runs above Cross Creek Country Club’s.

The Forest Against Eagle Ridge

Eagle Ridge is the one public course in the set: a daily-fee 18-hole “championship layout” that sells annual memberships to the public, per its course page and membership page. Golf Digest’s course database credits Eagle Ridge to Gordon G. Lewis, the same original designer it credits at The Forest (Golf Digest). Eagle Ridge closed 25 homes at a median of $535,000 and $237.96 per square foot of living area, mostly single-family (20 of 25 by MLS building design). For a golfer who wants to live in The Forest without joining the club, Eagle Ridge is one of the nearby public options.

The Forest Against Pelican Preserve

Pelican Preserve is the largest and busiest community in the table: 170 closings at a median of $412,500 and $236.70 per square foot of living area, with a median 43 days on market. Its club has 27 holes across three nines, the Heron, Egret and Ibis, per its golf page, and states on its membership page that it is “proudly owned and operated by Heritage Golf Group,” which makes it the one proven non-equity club in the set. The Forest’s club is member-owned, a 501(c)(7) social club under its federal filings, and members vote on major capital decisions. Our Pelican Preserve guide has the detail.

Homes per 18 Holes

A rough measure of how many households share each course is homes per 18 holes, computed from each club’s own published home count. It measures housing density, not how busy a tee sheet is, and at The Forest the home count is not the member count, because membership is optional and the club sells non-resident memberships.

Where The Forest Sits for Sellers and Buyers

Read together, the benchmark tells a Forest seller that the community competes on value and on choice: the lowest price per square foot in the table, and the only published optional membership. That is a real selling point to buyers who have ruled out bundled clubs, and it means a listing here should be priced from its own neighborhood’s comparables, not from the higher per-foot figures at Heritage Palms or Pelican Preserve. For a buyer, the same table says The Forest offers 36 holes of private golf without a mandatory membership at a lower entry price per square foot than any other community here.

Selling and wondering where your home sits against these neighbors? Get a free home valuation for your home in The Forest or Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072. Comparing The Forest with other Fort Myers golf communities as a buyer? Call Marc at (239) 287-5873, or read how we represent buyers in Southwest Florida.

What Are the Honest Pros and Cons of Buying in The Forest?

The Forest’s strengths are record-proven: optional club membership, no CDD, a staffed gate, an A-rated elementary school and a trauma hospital nearby, and a newly renovated Bear course. Its trade-offs are just as documented: every home is in a flood zone, most buildings predate the Florida Building Code, and association fees are not published.

Data updated: September 2026

Every item below links to the section of this guide that proves it, and every one comes from a public record or the Southwest Florida MLS, not from marketing copy.

The Pros, With the Record Behind Each

• Club membership is optional. The Forest is non-bundled: the club and the master association both say so on their own sites, and the club sells memberships to residents and non-residents alike. You choose the home first and a membership second, if at all. See How Does The Forest Country Club Work, and Do You Have to Join?
• No CDD and no county MSTU. The Forest is absent from Lee County’s official roster of special districts, and the county’s MSTBU layer returns no unit inside the community, so the tax bill carries no CDD or MSTU line; the location-specific lines are the San Carlos Park fire district and the county solid waste assessment.
• Two 18-hole courses, one newly renovated. The Bear reopened on December 1, 2025 after a full renovation, and the Bobcat plays 6,607 yards from its back tee, per the club’s December 2025 scorecard.
• The club is member-owned. Its federal tax filings describe a private, member-owned 501(c)(7) club in which members vote on special capital purchases, debt over $200,000 and by-law changes.
• A staffed, gated community. The Main Gate is staffed 24 hours a day and the Island Park Gate from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM, with a nightly patrol, per the master association’s 2022 Emergency Preparedness Plan.
• Newer condominium rules reach only one building group. Sparrowood is the only three-story residential building group, so it alone falls under Florida’s milestone-inspection (s. 553.899) and structural integrity reserve study (s. 718.112) requirements; every other condominium building is one or two stories.
• An A-rated elementary school close by. Rayma C. Page Elementary, the nearest Zone O choice at 1.4 miles, earned an A in 2024, 2025 and 2026, per the state’s 2026 school grades file.
• A trauma hospital 4.5 miles away. Gulf Coast Medical Center is Lee County’s state-designated Level II trauma center, per the Florida Department of Health, about 9 minutes from the clubhouse.
• The airport in about 16 minutes. Southwest Florida International Airport’s terminal is about 8.6 miles away, a typical free-flow drive from the clubhouse address.
• A 25 percent flood-insurance discount. Unincorporated Lee County is a Class 5 community in FEMA’s Community Rating System, worth 25 percent off NFIP premiums inside the flood zone, per FEMA’s April 2025 list.
• The lowest price per square foot among the golf communities we benchmarked. $175.63 per square foot of living area on 45 closings in the 12 months to September 23, 2026, per the Southwest Florida MLS.
• Room to negotiate. About 7.7 months of supply on September 23, 2026 (29 active listings against 45 closings in the prior 12 months), and a median sold-to-list ratio of 94.59%.

The Cons, With the Record Behind Each

• Every home is in a flood zone. Every home and the club property are in FEMA Zone AE with a base flood elevation of 11 feet NAVD88, on panels effective November 17, 2022, per FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer, and median ground in every neighborhood sits below that elevation. The whole community is in Lee County Evacuation Zone A.
• Hurricane Ian’s surge reached inside the gates. USGS crews surveyed a high-water mark about 2.9 feet above ground at a Waters Edge building, per the USGS high-water mark record, and the club’s superintendent described 5 feet of seawater crossing the golf property (Golf Course Management, 2022).
• Most buildings predate the statewide building code. About three quarters of homes were finished in the 1980s and about 95 percent by 1999, per the Lee County parcel roll; the first statewide Florida Building Code took effect March 1, 2002, per the Florida Building Commission.
• No association layer publishes its fees. The master association, each neighborhood association and the Heron Master publish no assessment; the amounts appear in each association’s budget and on the estoppel certificate issued with every resale.
• Club members have been specially assessed. The club’s Form 990 filings show capital, golf-course renovation and hurricane assessments on members in 2022, 2023 and 2024. Non-members pay none of them.
• A private sewer utility with unpublished rates. Forest Utilities, Inc., a private utility, provides sewer service; its rates are not published online.
• The master declaration is not online. The master association’s recorded declaration is not available in the county’s online records, so leasing, pet and architectural rules must be read in the governing documents provided at resale.
• A cell tower application is pending. A special exception and variance for a 149-foot wireless monopole on the golf course property (Lee County cases SEZ2026-00001 and VAR2026-00001) were In Review as of September 23, 2026. No hearing has been scheduled and no decision has been made.
• No marina, no beach and no club pool. The Forest is a golf community; pools belong to individual neighborhood associations, and the nearest Gulf beach by road, Bunche Beach Preserve, is about 10 miles away.
• A slower, softer market than some peers. A median 76 days on market and 94.59% of list over the last 12 months, with 4 of 45 sales at or above asking.

Who The Forest Suits Best

The Forest suits a buyer who wants a gated golf community without a mandatory club membership, who values a staffed gate and a short drive to the airport, a trauma hospital and an A-rated elementary school, and who wants a choice between a condominium (last year’s sales ran $145,000 to $570,000) and a single-family home ($375,000 to $1,250,000), per the Southwest Florida MLS, pulled September 23, 2026. It suits less well a buyer who wants a boat slip, a beach inside the gates, a club pool, or a published fee schedule before making an offer, or who is not prepared to read an elevation certificate and a flood policy quote on a 1980s building.

Talk It Through With Us

McGreevy and Comisar are Top 1% Real Estate Agents Nationally Since 2008, and the homes that sell best in The Forest are the ones whose trade-offs are explained up front. Thinking of selling? Get a free home valuation for your home in The Forest, or Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072. Considering buying? Call Marc at (239) 287-5873 for a straight conversation about whether The Forest fits, or read how we represent buyers in Southwest Florida.

Thinking of Selling Your The Forest Home? List With the #1 Team in Southwest Florida Since 2012

Selling in The Forest means selling one of 789 residences in a built-out golf community where 45 homes closed in the last 12 months and 29 were listed on September 23, 2026. Single-family homes sold for a median $685,000 and condominiums and villas for $286,500. The winning listing is priced against its own neighborhood and documented before the first showing.

Data updated: September 2026

If you’re searching for the best The Forest listing agent, or thinking, ‘I need to sell my house in The Forest…’ you are selling into about 7.7 months of supply, a condominium market that has settled back since its 2024 peak, and a single-family market whose median price per square foot of living area was the same over the last 12 months as over the last four years, $232.39. McGreevy and Comisar sell The Forest on the record. A buyer’s first question here is “do I have to join the club?”, and we answer it in the club’s and the master association’s own words: The Forest is non-bundled, so buying a home does not require joining The Forest Country Club. As the leaders of Domain Realty Group our team has closed over $2.5 billion in real estate, and that discipline is what a Forest listing needs: a price built from the right neighborhood’s sales, a resale file that clears every association layer without a delay, and a flood and insurance packet that answers a lender’s questions before an underwriter asks them.

Honors and recognition:

• Top 1% Real Estate Agents Nationally Since 2008
• 5 Star Award for Customer Satisfaction for 21 Straight Years. Only 5 out of 21k+ Licensees (Gulfshore Life Magazine)
• #1 Team in Southwest Florida since 2012
• McGreevy and Comisar and their Domain Realty Group team have sold over $2.5 Billion in Real Estate
• McGreevy and Comisar alone have over $900 million in Sales
• Nationally Recognized Top Producing Realtors
• Platinum Sales Production Award Winners

What The Forest Homes Sold For in the Last 12 Months

In the last 12 months we tracked 45 The Forest closings in the Southwest Florida MLS, pulled September 23, 2026, covering closings dated 09/24/2025 to 09/23/2026. Every figure below is read from those closed records.

• 45 closings, $20.1 million in total volume ($20,135,000), sold prices from $145,000 to $1,250,000
• Community median: $375,000 (n=45, odd, so this is an observed sale)
• Single-family: n=15, median $685,000 (an observed sale; a small sample), range $375,000 to $1,250,000
• Condominium and villa: n=30, median $286,500 (the mean of the middle pair, $265,000 and $308,000), range $145,000 to $570,000
• Median days on market: 76 overall; 71 for single-family homes and 81 for condominiums and villas
• Median sold-to-list ratio: 94.6%; 4 of 45 closed at or above asking
• Median sold price per square foot of living area: $175.63 ($232.39 single-family, $148.88 condominium and villa), the median of each sale’s own ratio on MLS living area
• 29 active listings on September 23, 2026: about 7.7 months of supply (single-family about 8.8, condominium and villa about 7.2), asking $174,000 to $1,620,000 at a median of $325,000

Sellers at The Forest closed at a median 94.6% of list price over the last 12 months, after a median 76 days on market. For context, the prior 12 months (09/24/2024 to 09/23/2025) produced 42 closings at the same $375,000 median. The single-family median rose, but single-family price per square foot of living area was flat ($231.86 to $232.39), so the higher median reflects larger homes selling in a 15-sale sample, not appreciation. Days on market shortened in both segments, from 89 to 71 days for single-family homes and from 130 to 81 for condominiums and villas.

The Forest Seller Playbook: Pricing by Neighborhood, Not by Community

The Forest is 19 recorded neighborhoods inside one set of gates, and they do not trade as one market. Over 48 months (09/24/2022 to 09/23/2026) the neighborhood medians ran from $157,500 at Partridge Place (28 sales) to $902,500 in The Oaks (10 sales), per the Southwest Florida MLS. Between them sit The Forest Unit Two at $750,000 (13 sales), Unit Three at $740,000 (25), Unit One at $535,000 (32), Waters Edge at $425,000 (11), the Heron Coach House Villas at $400,000 (8), Fairway Woods III at $352,500 (14) and Sparrowood at $282,500 (8). A community-wide figure that mixes a 1,161-square-foot Partridge Place walk-up with a 3,286-square-foot Oaks home tells a seller nothing, so we price every Forest home from its own neighborhood’s sales, then its own floor plan.

Two cautions shape that work. The Partridge Place 48-month median includes eight sales in November and December 2022, weeks after Hurricane Ian, at $75,000 to $145,000; they are recorded closings but should not be used to price a unit today. And the single-family calendar-year medians swing from $557,500 to $735,000 on 12 to 23 sales a year, which is mostly which homes sold; the steadier signal is price per square foot of living area, $232.39 over 48 months and again in the last 12.

Pricing Against Today’s Competition

Every Forest listing competes with the homes a buyer sees the same week. On September 23, 2026 the 11 active single-family listings asked a median of $1,150,000, against a median single-family sale of $685,000 in the last 12 months; the active set leans to large Unit One, Unit Three and Oaks homes, but it also means the top of The Forest is being tested by asking prices that closed sales have not yet confirmed. The 18 condominium and villa listings asked a median of $287,000, and the median active listing across both segments had been on the market 110 days. A seller who prices above that aging inventory advertises it. The first price has to sit where the closed sales are.

The Documents File a Forest Buyer Will Ask For

A Forest sale runs on paperwork, and some of it is published nowhere. The file we build with every seller:

• The master association estoppel certificate. Ordered through the manager’s resale and lender documents page, it is the only document that states the current master assessment, because the association does not publish it. Florida law caps what an association may charge for it (s. 720.30851).
• The neighborhood association’s estoppel and documents. For a condominium or villa, a second estoppel from your own association, and for a condominium the governing documents and financial information section 718.503 requires; at the Heron, a third estoppel from The Heron Master Association.
• The homeowners’ association disclosure. For a fee-simple home in a homeowners’ association, the statutory disclosure summary under section 720.401.
• The flood disclosure and elevation certificate. Florida’s residential flood disclosure under section 689.302 applies to every sale, and every Forest home is in Zone AE, so a current elevation certificate belongs in the listing file on day one.
• Roof, wind and four-point reports. The roof permit date, a current wind-mitigation report and a four-point inspection, because most Forest buildings date from the 1980s.
• Sparrowood only: milestone inspection and reserve study. Whether Sparrowood’s milestone inspection and reserve study have been completed is not in public records we could reach, so we request both from the association before the home goes on the market.
• Club membership terms, if you are a member. The club does not publish its transfer terms, so we get them from the club in writing before we list.

The Forest Season Calendar

February 2026 alone carried 13 of the 45 closings of the last 12 months, per the Southwest Florida MLS, and there were no closings at all in November 2025 or July 2026. The master association’s 2022 Emergency Preparedness Plan estimates about 1,000 year-round residents and about 2,000 in peak season, which is why so many buyers are here in winter. Closing month lags listing month by the length of the contract, so a Forest home that is priced, photographed and documented by early January meets the largest pool of in-season buyers. Work backward from that, and allow time for estoppel certificates from every association layer.

What Is Your The Forest Home Worth? Get a Free Valuation in 60 Seconds.

Start with a free home valuation for your home in The Forest. It takes about a minute, and Jesse follows up with the sales that actually fit your home: the same neighborhood, the same floor plan and the same association layers, not a community median that mixes a $145,000 walk-up with a $1,250,000 Oaks home. Prefer to talk first? Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

(239) 898-6072, text or call. Confidential conversations welcome.

How do you price a home in The Forest when condominiums and houses sell so differently?

Separately, and then neighborhood by neighborhood. In the last 12 months The Forest’s 15 single-family homes sold at a median $232.39 per square foot of living area and its 30 condominiums and villas at $148.88, per the Southwest Florida MLS, pulled September 23, 2026. Inside the condominium side the spread is just as wide: Fairway Woods III’s four sales ran a median $131.71 per square foot, the Heron Coach House Villas’ four ran $193.69. We price from your neighborhood’s own sales first, then adjust for floor plan, condition and roof age. Get a free home valuation for your home in The Forest or call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

What will I pay at closing when I sell in The Forest?

A Florida seller typically pays the brokerage commission (negotiated, not set by law), documentary stamp tax on the deed at 70 cents per $100 of price under section 201.02, prorated property taxes and assessments, and whatever title and settlement costs the contract assigns to the seller. In The Forest, add the resale documents each association layer produces. On a $375,000 sale, the median in the last 12 months, documentary stamp tax alone is $2,625 by our arithmetic. We give every seller a line-by-line net sheet before listing.

Does my club membership go with the house?

No, not automatically. Because membership is separate from home ownership, a club membership should not be assumed to transfer with a home. The club does not publish its dues or initiation schedule; figures are provided to prospective members on inquiry, and its transfer terms are not published either. If you are a member, we get the club’s terms in writing before we list, so your buyer knows exactly what joining would involve, per the club’s membership page.

What resale documents will my buyer need from the associations?

Every layer produces its own. The master association issues an estoppel certificate; a condominium or villa owner’s neighborhood association issues a second; and at the Heron, The Heron Master Association issues a third. A condominium seller provides the governing documents and financial information section 718.503 requires, and Florida law caps estoppel fees (s. 718.116 for condominiums, s. 720.30851 for homeowners’ associations). We order them on the first day of the listing.

Is The Forest a buyer’s or seller’s market right now?

It leans toward buyers. On September 23, 2026 The Forest had 29 active listings against 45 closings in the prior 12 months, about 7.7 months of supply (8.8 single-family, 7.2 condominium and villa), per the Southwest Florida MLS. By the usual rule of thumb, more than six months of supply favors buyers. For a seller that is the case for pricing discipline from day one: the homes that closed did so at a median 94.6% of list after 76 days.

How do buyers get through the gate for my showings?

Visitors are pre-registered by residents through the master association’s DwellingLive visitor system, administered by the manager, FirstService Residential, per the association’s website, and the Main Gate is staffed 24 hours a day, per the association’s 2022 plan. We register every showing in advance, so buyers are expected at the gate and never turned away. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072 to set up a listing that runs smoothly behind the gates.

Your Local Real Estate Experts

Jesse McGreevy and Marc Comisar are the McGreevy and Comisar team behind this guide to The Forest, and they lead Domain Realty Group from an office on US 41 in Bonita Springs, south of The Forest on the same highway. Jesse leads the listing side, and Marc works with buyers in the field across Lee and Collier counties.

Jesse McGreevy is a top-reviewed The Forest realtor on Google. Jesse McGreevy, Sales Associate, and Marc Comisar, Broker Associate, built the team on a simple idea: the seller or buyer who understands the record before the first showing negotiates from strength. Read more on our about the McGreevy and Comisar team page.

McGreevy and Comisar lead Domain Realty Group, a full-service Southwest Florida real estate team. Learn more about our team at DomainRealtyGroup.com.

• Top 1% Real Estate Agents Nationally Since 2008
• 5 Star Award for Customer Satisfaction for 21 Straight Years. Only 5 out of 21k+ Licensees (Gulfshore Life Magazine)
• #1 Team in Southwest Florida since 2012
• McGreevy and Comisar and their Domain Realty Group team have sold over $2.5 Billion in Real Estate
• McGreevy and Comisar alone have over $900 million in Sales
• Nationally Recognized Top Producing Realtors
• Platinum Sales Production Award Winners

How We Handle a Listing in The Forest

On a Forest page, the credential that matters more than any award is preparation. Before a word of this guide was written we read the master association’s 2022 plan and portal, the club’s scorecard, by-laws, membership pages and three years of federal tax filings, Lee County’s parcel, zoning, flood, utility and development-order records for every parcel inside the gates, FEMA’s panels and map-change index, the state’s school grades and statutes, and 48 months of Southwest Florida MLS closings checked address by address against the county roll. When we list a Forest home we put that work to use in three ways. We pre-register every showing through the association’s visitor system, so no buyer is stopped at the gate. We explain non-bundled membership in the club’s and the association’s own words, so golfers and non-golfers alike see the home as a fit. And we put the flood facts in the file from day one: the neighborhood’s FIRM panel, its ground elevation and, where the seller has one, the elevation certificate, because every home here is in Zone AE and that is the first thing an insurer prices.

What Our Clients Say

Jesse McGreevy and Marc Comisar are top-reviewed on Google, and the quotes below are five-star client reviews reproduced in each reviewer’s own words. We publish no aggregate score and no star-rating widget. Read the full set on the McGreevy and Comisar Google Business Profile.

★★★★★ “Their attention to detail communication and dedication was known the moment we spoke. Would highly recommend.” Verified Google review

★★★★★ “He was quick to respond with any questions about the purchase of our new home and made sure everything went smoothly! We highly recommend him as an agent!” Verified Google review

★★★★★ “Marc is one of the most down to earth realtors that really listens to your needs and is exceptional at finding the right house.” Verified Google review

★★★★★ “We love working with Marc and Jesse at Domain. The entire team is professional and top notch. They go above and beyond for their clients. Highly recommend” Verified Google review

★★★★★ “Working with Jesse was easy, I was kept up to date on all feedback from showings and the many open houses. Highly recommend!” Verified Google review

Contact McGreevy and Comisar

• Jesse McGreevy: (239) 898-6072 · [email protected]
• Marc Comisar: (239) 287-5873
• Office: 24031 S Tamiami Trl #101, Bonita Springs, FL 34134

Jesse McGreevy (Sales Associate) and Marc Comisar (Broker Associate) are licensed Florida REALTORS® with Domain Realty; Florida real estate licensure is regulated by the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC).

License status for either name can be verified through the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation’s public licensee search, the authority of record for Florida real estate licensure.

Selling a home in The Forest? Get a free home valuation for your home in The Forest, or call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

Buying in The Forest? Call Marc at (239) 287-5873, or read how we represent buyers in Southwest Florida.

More Guides Around The Forest

For the wider market around The Forest, see our Fort Myers guide, our Lee County guide, our roundup of the best real estate agents in Fort Myers, and nearby golf communities including Fiddlesticks Country Club, Gulf Harbour Yacht and Country Club and The Landings.

Frequently Asked Questions, Buyer Edition

These are the questions buyers ask about The Forest and about buying in Fort Myers, answered from the public record: membership, fees, flood zones, insurance, schools, taxes and the market. Where the record is silent, the answer says so and names the document that holds it.

Data updated: September 2026

Who is the best realtor for The Forest in Fort Myers?

McGreevy and Comisar lead Domain Realty Group, the #1 Team in Southwest Florida since 2012, and are Top 1% Real Estate Agents Nationally Since 2008. For a Forest buyer we start with the questions this page answers from the record: whether you want a club membership (it is optional), which neighborhood’s association layers and ground elevation fit you, and what the resale estoppel certificate will show. In the last 12 months we tracked 45 The Forest closings in the Southwest Florida MLS, and we bring that record to every offer. Call Marc at (239) 287-5873, or read how we represent buyers in Southwest Florida.

Is The Forest in Fort Myers a gated community?

Yes. The master association’s 2022 Emergency Preparedness Plan describes a Main Gate staffed 24 hours a day, a second gate on Island Park Road staffed from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM, and a nightly patrol, with resident entry by vehicle barcode, and Lee County’s community record also codes The Forest as gated. Gate staffing hours are from the association’s 2022 emergency plan.

Do you have to join the country club to buy a home in The Forest?

No. The Forest is a non-bundled community: buying a home does not require joining the club. Both The Forest Country Club and the master association describe The Forest as non-bundled on their own websites (club membership page; master association portal), and the club sells memberships to residents and non-residents alike. Golf, tennis, the pro shop and the clubhouse are available with a club membership.

How much does a membership at The Forest Country Club cost?

The club does not publish its dues or initiation schedule; figures are provided to prospective members on inquiry through the club’s membership inquiry form. What is public: the categories on the club’s membership page (Full Family, Individual, Executive for households whose eldest member is under 54, Limited Golf, Lifestyle without golf, Racquets, and a short Preview membership), and the club’s federal tax filings, which show members were specially assessed in 2022, 2023 and 2024. Any per-member figure you see elsewhere is not from the club.

Why join The Forest Country Club if membership is optional?

Membership is how you get onto the Bear and Bobcat courses, the six clay tennis courts, pickleball, bocce, the clubhouse fitness center and the dining room; the master association’s portal says golf, tennis, the pro shop and the clubhouse “are available with a membership.” The club is member-owned, and members vote on special capital purchases, debt over $200,000 and by-law changes, per its 2023 Form 990. Because membership is optional, you can choose the home first and the category second.

Where is The Forest Country Club?

The Forest Country Club is at 6100 Club Boulevard, Fort Myers, FL 33908, inside the gates of The Forest in unincorporated south Fort Myers, between US 41 and Island Park Road, per the club’s website and Lee County’s golf course locations layer.

Where can you play golf in Fort Myers if you live in The Forest?

Members play the club’s two par-72 courses: the Bear, renovated and reopened December 1, 2025, at up to 7,010 yards, and the Bobcat at up to 6,607 yards, per the club’s December 2025 scorecard. Non-members can play public courses nearby: Eagle Ridge operates as a public course, and Cross Creek Country Club publishes public rates.

Who designed the golf courses at The Forest?

Both courses trace to an original design by Gordon Lewis, with the Bear opening in 1980, according to Golf Digest’s course database. The Bear was fully renovated and reopened on December 1, 2025; the club’s own scorecard credits Kipp Schulties as the Bear’s architect.

Is Fort Myers golf cart friendly, and can you drive a golf cart in The Forest?

Golf-cart rules on The Forest’s private streets are set by the master association and are not published publicly; they are in the association’s governing documents provided at resale. The club markets both courses as walkable on its golf page, and Lee County’s easements layer records a cart path easement on the plat of The Forest Unit Two. Rules for carts on county roads outside the gates are Lee County’s.

What are the HOA fees in The Forest?

The master association does not publish its assessment. The amount appears in the association’s annual budget and on the estoppel certificate issued with every resale. Each neighborhood association sets its own fee, which is not published; it appears in that association’s budget and resale estoppel certificate. What is published: there is no CDD, no county MSTU, a $348.75 Lee County solid waste assessment (Service Area 2, FY2026, per the county’s adopted rates) and a 2.3590-mill San Carlos Park fire levy on the tax bill, per the district’s FY2025/26 budget.

Is there a CDD in The Forest?

No. The Forest has no community development district and sits in no county municipal service taxing or benefit unit: it does not appear on Lee County’s official roster of special districts, and the county’s MSTBU map returns no unit at four points spread across the community.

How many homes are in The Forest?

The master association counts 789 residences in The Forest: 302 single-family homes and 487 condominiums and villas, a figure it published in 2022 and again in 2026 (2022 plan; portal). Lee County’s community record reaches the same 789 total but classes 350 as single-family and 439 as condominium, because it codes three fee-simple villa neighborhoods (Pheasant Court Villas, Eagle’s Landing and Falcon Crest One, 48 homes in all) as single-family.

How many acres is The Forest?

There is no single correct figure, because each published figure measures something different. The club describes its two courses as standing on 620 acres on its golf page; the master association’s website gives 650 acres in its description and 420 acres in its statistics panel; Lee County parcel records sum to about 629 acres for the original development, about 654 with the Heron Coach Houses and about 722 with The Oaks; and the county’s mapped boundary measures about 588 acres. The club-owned golf parcel alone is about 280 acres.

What flood zone is The Forest in, and how do I check a specific address?

Every home and the club property in The Forest are in FEMA flood Zone AE with a base flood elevation of 11 feet (NAVD88), on FIRM panels 12071C0438H and 12071C0576H, effective November 17, 2022, per FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer. To check any address, search it on FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center or Lee County’s flood information pages; for a specific building, the elevation certificate shows its lowest floor. Flood insurance cost depends on each building’s elevation certificate, which is specific to the home.

Is Fort Myers in a flood zone?

Parts of Fort Myers and Lee County are in FEMA Special Flood Hazard Areas and parts are not; zones are set parcel by parcel on FEMA’s maps. The Forest is entirely in Zone AE, and the whole community is also in Lee County Evacuation Zone A, Storm Surge Zone 1, per the county’s evacuation zones layer. You can look up any address’s evacuation zone through the state’s Know Your Zone tool.

Is flood zone X good or bad, and is it considered a flood zone?

FEMA’s Zone X is outside the Special Flood Hazard Area, so the federal mandatory-purchase rule for flood insurance does not apply there, though flooding can still occur; shaded X marks the 0.2 percent annual-chance area. No home in The Forest is in Zone X: the nearest shaded X ground lies outside the gates toward US 41, per FEMA’s flood hazard layer.

Is flood zone A a flood zone, and can you build in it?

Yes. A zones, including AE, are Special Flood Hazard Areas, where a federally backed mortgage requires flood insurance. You can build or rebuild in Zone AE, but in unincorporated Lee County new or substantially improved buildings must be elevated one foot above FEMA’s base flood elevation, per the county’s substantial improvement page. By our arithmetic, at The Forest, where the base flood elevation is 11 feet, that puts a new lowest floor at 12 feet NAVD88. The same 50 percent rule governs major renovations.

Can you build in flood zone X?

Yes; Zone X carries no FEMA elevation requirement, though local codes still apply. At The Forest the question does not arise, because every parcel is in Zone AE, per FEMA’s flood hazard layer and Lee County’s FIRM layer.

Do you need flood insurance to buy in The Forest?

If you finance with a federally backed mortgage, yes, because every Forest home is in a Special Flood Hazard Area, per FEMA’s Risk Rating 2.0 page. Citizens Property Insurance also requires flood coverage on its homeowner policies in that area, although a condominium unit-owner policy is exempt, under section 627.351. Unincorporated Lee County’s Community Rating System Class 5 cuts NFIP premiums 25 percent inside the flood zone, Class 5 as of FEMA’s April 2025 list, per Lee County’s CRS discount page.

Did Fort Myers flood in Hurricane Ian, and did The Forest flood?

Ian’s surge reached into The Forest. U.S. Geological Survey crews surveyed Hurricane Ian high-water marks of about 2.9 feet above ground at a Waters Edge condominium building inside The Forest (and at a garage in adjacent Forest Villas, outside the gates), per the USGS high-water mark record. On the golf property, the club’s superintendent later described 5 feet of seawater crossing the courses (Golf Course Management, 2022). The marks measure water at the outside of a building; they do not say whether water entered any home.

Has Fort Myers rebuilt, and when will it be fully rebuilt?

Inside The Forest, the visible rebuilding is recorded: four storm-damaged pergolas were replaced under a county development order that names Ian, finaled February 17, 2025, per Lee County’s development orders layer, and reopened the fully renovated Bear course on December 1, 2025, per the club’s membership page. Countywide recovery continues; Lee County’s $37 million Ten Mile Canal South flood-relief project, about a mile from The Forest, is in design through 2027, per the county’s capital projects layer.

Is Fort Myers, and The Forest, a good place to live?

That depends on what you need, so here is the record for The Forest: a staffed, gated community with optional club membership and no CDD; an elementary school 1.4 miles away that earned an A three years running; Lee County’s state-designated trauma center 4.5 miles away; the airport about 16 minutes away; and, on the other side of the ledger, every home in a FEMA flood zone and most buildings from the 1980s. The honest pros and cons section above lists every item with its source.

How much are condos in Fort Myers and in The Forest?

In The Forest, 30 condominiums and villas closed in the 12 months to September 23, 2026 at a median of $286,500, ranging from $145,000 to $570,000, at a median $148.88 per square foot of living area, per the Southwest Florida MLS, pulled September 23, 2026. The spread follows the neighborhood: Partridge Place’s two sales were $170,000 and $145,000, while Waters Edge’s three sold at a median $425,000. On September 23, 2026 the 18 condominium and villa listings asked $174,000 to $339,000.

How much is a house in Fort Myers and in The Forest?

In The Forest, 15 single-family homes closed in the 12 months to September 23, 2026 at a median of $685,000, ranging from $375,000 to $1,250,000, at a median $232.39 per square foot of living area, per the Southwest Florida MLS. It is a small sample: Unit One’s five sales ran a median $525,000 and Unit Three’s five a median $900,000. On September 23, 2026 the 11 single-family listings asked $500,000 to $1,620,000.

Why are condos so cheap in Florida right now?

We do not describe any market as cheap. In The Forest the condominium and villa calendar-year median peaked at $330,000 in 2024 (35 sales) and stood at $286,500 for 2026 to September 23 (26 sales), per the Southwest Florida MLS. What is documented is the cost side buyers now weigh: Florida’s condominium safety laws require milestone inspections and structural integrity reserve studies for buildings three stories and taller (s. 553.899; s. 718.112). At The Forest only Sparrowood’s buildings are three stories; every other condominium building is one or two stories and outside those requirements.

Why are houses in Fort Myers so cheap?

We would not call The Forest’s houses cheap; we would call them steady. The single-family median price per square foot of living area was $232.39 over 48 months and $232.39 again in the last 12, per the Southwest Florida MLS, pulled September 23, 2026. Price differences inside The Forest follow the land: the 48-month median ran from $535,000 in Unit One to $902,500 in The Oaks, where homes are larger (a median 3,286 heated square feet on the county roll) and newer (1987 to 2022).

Which schools serve The Forest?

Every neighborhood in The Forest falls in the same Lee County school choice zones: Elementary Zone O, Middle School Zone MM and High School South Zone 2, per the district-linked zone map. Lee County assigns students through a zone of school choices, not a single school per address (district enrollment page). Rayma C. Page Elementary, the nearest Zone O choice at 1.4 miles, earned an A in 2024, 2025 and 2026, and Cypress Lake Middle earned an A in all three years, per the state’s 2026 school grades file.

Is Dunbar High an option from The Forest?

Dunbar High School is among the South Zone 2 high school choices, but the district’s 2026-27 transportation plan does not provide Dunbar bus service to The Forest’s subzone (S2), per the district’s transportation optimization page. The other five South Zone 2 high schools do bus to S2.

How far is The Forest from the airport and downtown Fort Myers?

About 8.6 miles and 16 minutes to Southwest Florida International Airport’s terminal (RSW), and about 10.3 miles and 21 minutes to the downtown River District. Drive times are typical free-flow times measured from The Forest Country Club’s address at 6100 Club Boulevard, near the center of the community; in-season traffic is longer.

How far is The Forest from the beach?

The nearest Gulf beach by road is Bunche Beach Preserve, about 10.0 miles and 19 minutes away; Fort Myers Beach is about 10.7 miles and 21 minutes, and the Sanibel Causeway’s mainland end about 12.2 miles. The Forest has no beach access of its own. Drive times are typical free-flow times measured from The Forest Country Club’s address at 6100 Club Boulevard; in-season traffic is longer.

What is the nearest hospital to The Forest?

Gulf Coast Medical Center, about 4.5 miles and 9 minutes away. Gulf Coast Medical Center is Lee County’s state-designated Level II trauma center, per the Florida Department of Health and Lee Health. HealthPark Medical Center and Golisano Children’s Hospital share a campus about 5.8 miles away, per Lee Health’s HealthPark page.

Does The Forest have a community pool?

The club does not list a pool among its amenities on its lifestyle page; pools at The Forest belong to individual neighborhood associations, such as the recreation parcel shared by Fairway Woods II and III on the Lee County parcel roll. Confirm with the specific neighborhood association whether it has one.

Does The Forest have tennis and pickleball?

Yes, through the club: six Har-Tru Hydro clay tennis courts, three of them lighted, plus pickleball and two lighted bocce courts, per the club’s lifestyle page. The club offers pickleball but does not publish a court count. A Racquets membership covers tennis and pickleball without golf, per the club’s membership page.

Who provides water and sewer in The Forest?

Lee County’s utility franchise maps place The Forest in Lee County Utilities’ water service area, per the county’s water franchise layer. Sewer service is provided by Forest Utilities, Inc., a private utility; The Forest lies outside the county’s wastewater service area, per the wastewater franchise layer. Its sewer rates are not published online.

What internet service does The Forest have?

The community has a Hotwire fiber arrangement; whether it is billed through the association is not published. The association’s website confirms the arrangement, and Hotwire communication easements were recorded across several Forest neighborhoods in 2022 and 2024, per Lee County’s easements layer.

Is The Forest in the City of Fort Myers?

No. The Forest lies in unincorporated Lee County; a Fort Myers mailing address is not city limits. Every parcel carries a county, not city, jurisdiction code on the Lee County parcel roll, and fire service comes from the San Carlos Park Fire Protection and Rescue Service District, per the county’s fire districts layer.

Which buildings in The Forest need milestone inspections and structural integrity reserve studies?

Sparrowood’s three buildings are the only three-story residential buildings in The Forest, according to Lee County property records, which places Sparrowood alone under Florida’s milestone-inspection (s. 553.899) and structural integrity reserve study (s. 718.112) requirements for condominiums of three or more stories. Buyers there should ask the association for its milestone inspection report and reserve study. Whether Sparrowood’s milestone inspection and reserve study have been completed is not in public records we could reach; buyers should request both from the association.

Is The Oaks part of The Forest?

Yes. The Oaks is one of The Forest’s single-family neighborhoods: the master association seats its lot owners as Phase IV on its board roster, although The Oaks was approved by Lee County as a separate planned development in 1982, per the association’s 2022 plan and the county’s planned developments layer.

Are Timberwood Village and Forest Villas part of The Forest?

No. Forest Villas and Timberwood Village sit outside The Forest’s gates, across Island Park Road, with their own associations. The master association’s own map in its 2022 plan draws Forest Villas outside the Back Gate and does not show Timberwood Village, and Lee County keeps each as a separate community record. None of the figures on this page include them.

Is a cell tower being built at The Forest?

Not yet. A special exception and variance for a 149-foot wireless monopole on the golf course property (Lee County cases SEZ2026-00001 and VAR2026-00001) were In Review as of September 23, 2026. No hearing has been scheduled and no decision has been made. The county’s Accela record carries the case filings.

Can I rent out my home in The Forest, and are pets allowed?

Leasing, pet and architectural rules are set by the master and neighborhood associations and are not published publicly; they are in each association’s governing documents, provided at resale, per the association’s website and portal. Read them for the specific neighborhood before you buy; for a condominium, the neighborhood association is usually where the leasing minimum and the pet rule live.

How does the Florida homestead exemption work, and how much is it?

If a Forest home is your permanent residence on January 1, Florida’s homestead exemption removes up to $50,000 of assessed value: the first $25,000 from all property taxes and a second $25,000, on assessed value between $50,000 and $75,000, from non-school taxes, under section 196.031. It lowers your tax bill (and so an escrowed mortgage payment), not the loan itself. It also triggers the Save Our Homes cap, which limits annual increases in the home’s assessed value to 3 percent or the change in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is lower, per the Florida Department of Revenue.

When is the Florida homestead exemption due, and is it retroactive?

Apply with the Lee County Property Appraiser by March 1 of the tax year; the exemption is based on your status on January 1 and is not applied to earlier years. Florida law allows late filing only in limited circumstances, under section 196.011.

Does the Florida homestead exemption expire?

It continues while you own the home and it remains your permanent residence; it ends when you sell, move or rent the home out in a way that ends permanent residency, per the Florida Department of Revenue. Buying a new Florida home means a new application with that county’s property appraiser.

Is the Florida homestead exemption transferable?

The exemption itself stays with the property and your residency; what can move is your Save Our Homes benefit, under portability, if you establish a new Florida homestead in time (see the next question), under section 193.155.

How does Florida homestead portability work, and how is it calculated?

Portability lets you carry your Save Our Homes difference (just value minus assessed value) from a prior Florida homestead to a new one, up to $500,000, if you establish the new homestead by January 1 of any of the three years after you abandoned the prior one. If the new home costs more, the full difference, up to $500,000, is subtracted from its just value; if it costs less, the benefit is scaled down proportionally, under section 193.155. Apply with the new county’s property appraiser; in Lee County that is the Property Appraiser’s homestead page.

How many homes are for sale in The Forest right now?

On September 23, 2026 The Forest had 29 active listings, 11 single-family and 18 condominium or villa, plus 2 pending, per the Southwest Florida MLS. Asking prices ran from $174,000 at Partridge Place to $1,620,000 in Unit One, at a median of $325,000, and the median active listing had been on the market 110 days. That is about 7.7 months of supply, and 3.7% of the 789 residences.

How long do homes take to sell in The Forest?

A median of 76 days on market in the 12 months to September 23, 2026: 71 days for single-family homes and 81 for condominiums and villas, per the Southwest Florida MLS. The range is wide, from 0 days (a Waters Edge condominium that closed at full price in May 2026) to 633 days (a Sparrowood condominium). Both segments were faster than in the prior 12 months, when the medians were 89 and 130 days.

How much below asking do homes sell for in The Forest?

The median sold-to-list ratio was 94.59% in the 12 months to September 23, 2026, per the Southwest Florida MLS, nearly identical for single-family homes (94.59%) and condominiums and villas (94.61%). Only 4 of the 45 sales closed at or above asking. The longest-listed homes tended to close furthest below list, which is why a buyer should read a listing’s days on market before writing an offer.

What is the price per square foot in The Forest?

The median sold price per square foot of living area was $175.63 across all 45 closings in the 12 months to September 23, 2026: $232.39 for single-family homes and $148.88 for condominiums and villas, per the Southwest Florida MLS. These are medians of each sale’s own ratio on MLS living area. Never set them against a square footage from a tax bill or the county roll, which measures heated or total area, a different denominator.

Who manages The Forest’s master association?

The Forest Property Owners’ Association, Inc., filed December 7, 1979, is professionally managed by FirstService Residential, per the association’s website and its Division of Corporations record. Its office is at 5990 Forest Boulevard. Resale and estoppel documents are ordered through the manager’s resale and lender documents page.

Why does a Heron home have three associations?

The Heron is the one place in The Forest with three association layers. The Heron Master Association, Inc., filed March 21, 1990 per its Division of Corporations record, sits between the two Heron unit associations (the Heron Coach Houses condominium and the Heron Coach House Villas land condominium) and The Forest’s master association. A buyer there needs estoppel certificates from each assessing layer.

Which neighborhoods in The Forest sit on the highest and lowest ground?

Fairway Woods sits highest, a median ground elevation of 8.5 to 9.1 feet NAVD88 by section, and Pheasant Court Villas lowest, a median of 5.9 feet, per the nearest 2018 LiDAR ground point to each parcel in Lee County’s spot elevations layer. Every neighborhood’s median ground is below the 11-foot base flood elevation. Ground is not a finished floor; the elevation certificate is what an insurer prices.

Does the first digit of a unit number tell you the floor in The Forest?

No. At The Forest the first digit of a unit number identifies the building, not the floor: Heron Coach Houses units 701 to 708 sit in buildings the county records at one and two stories, and the same is true of units 401 to 406 at 16540 Heron Coach Way and Fairway Woods I units 301 to 306. The county’s recorded story count on the parcel roll is the only reliable source.

Does The Forest have a marina or a boat ramp?

No. Neither the club’s lifestyle page nor the master association’s portal lists a marina, boat slips or dry storage, and the land beyond the south and west edges is state-owned mangrove along Hendry Creek. The nearest county boat ramp now under improvement is Mullock Creek, per Lee County’s parks projects layer.

How old are the homes in The Forest?

About three quarters of the homes inside The Forest’s county boundary were finished in the 1980s and about 95 percent by 1999, per the Lee County parcel roll. The first statewide Florida Building Code took effect March 1, 2002, per the Florida Building Commission. Ask any seller for the roof permit date, a wind-mitigation report and, for a condominium, the association’s insurance and reserve documents.

Where can you eat at The Forest?

Dining at The Forest Country Club centers on one clubhouse restaurant the club describes as casual and elegant, known for brick-oven pizza, plus the Gumbo Limbo outdoor tiki bar overlooking the Bear’s 18th hole, per the club’s dining page. Dining is a membership privilege, and the Racquets membership limits it to before 5 pm. There is no public restaurant inside the gates.

What does a resident get without joining the club?

A resident who never joins still gets the staffed gates, the private streets and sidewalks, the association’s playground, Ruthie’s Park, and any pool or recreation parcel that belongs to their own neighborhood association. The master association’s portal puts it in its own words: “The Forest includes a children’s playground, known as Ruthie’s Park, and miles of sidewalks for the avid morning walker.”

Is flood zone C good or bad?

Zone C is the older FEMA map label for areas of minimal flood hazard: outside the Special Flood Hazard Area and above the 0.2 percent annual-chance flood. Current maps label the same kind of ground unshaded Zone X, per FEMA’s flood zone definitions. It is the lowest-hazard label on a flood map, though flooding can still happen there. No home in The Forest is in Zone C or Zone X: every parcel inside the gates is Zone AE with an 11-foot base flood elevation (NAVD88), on panels effective November 17, 2022, per FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer.

What’s the worst flood zone to be in?

By FEMA’s definitions, the V zones (V, VE and V1-30) carry the highest mapped hazard: coastal areas with at least a 1 percent annual chance of flooding plus the added hazard of storm waves, which FEMA puts at a 26 percent chance of flooding over a 30-year mortgage, per its Zone VE definition. Zone AE is also inside the 1 percent annual-chance floodplain (FEMA flood zones), but it is not mapped with the storm-wave hazard that defines a V zone. The Forest is Zone AE, base flood elevation 11 feet NAVD88, and no Forest parcel is in a VE zone, per FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer.

What are Florida flood zones?

Florida uses FEMA’s national flood zones. The Special Flood Hazard Area, the 1 percent annual-chance or “100-year” floodplain, is labeled with A zones (A, AE, AH, AO and related labels) and coastal V zones (V and VE). Zone B or shaded Zone X marks moderate hazard, between the 1 percent and 0.2 percent annual-chance floods, and Zone C or unshaded Zone X marks minimal hazard, per FEMA’s flood zone definitions. The Forest is Zone AE, with a base flood elevation of 11 feet NAVD88 in every neighborhood inside the gates, on panels effective November 17, 2022, per Lee County’s FIRM layer.

Can you show me a map of the flood zone in Lee County?

Yes. FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center shows the official flood map for any Lee County address, and Lee County’s Floodplain Resource Portal gives each property’s flood zone, base flood elevation and any elevation certificate on file. The Forest sits on two map panels, 12071C0438H and 12071C0576H, both effective November 17, 2022. On both, every neighborhood inside the gates is Zone AE with an 11-foot base flood elevation (NAVD88). The flood zone section above adds each neighborhood’s median ground elevation.

How much is flood insurance in Fort Myers, FL?

There is no single figure, and we do not publish one. Under Risk Rating 2.0, the NFIP prices each building individually, from flood frequency, flood types, distance to water, elevation and the cost to rebuild, and most rates may rise no more than 18 percent a year, per FEMA. The Forest is in unincorporated Lee County, a Community Rating System Class 5 community, worth a 25 percent NFIP discount inside the flood zone, per FEMA’s CRS list. Citizens Property Insurance requires flood coverage there, except on condominium unit-owner policies, under section 627.351. Get a quote for the specific address, with its elevation certificate.

What are the best gated golf communities in Fort Myers?

We do not rank communities; “best” depends on what you want from a club. This page offers a benchmark instead: eight Fort Myers golf clubs compared on one yardstick, each club’s own published record for its courses and for whether membership is bundled or optional, with Southwest Florida MLS medians for closings from September 24, 2025 to September 23, 2026. On it, The Forest is the only club whose own site and master association both state that membership is optional (club membership page), with 36 holes and the lowest median price per square foot of living area in the set, $175.63 on 45 closings. Call Marc at (239) 287-5873.

Frequently Asked Questions, Seller Edition

These are the questions sellers ask about selling in The Forest and in Fort Myers: pricing, costs, disclosures, taxes, timing and the club. Each answer is grounded in Florida law, county records or Southwest Florida MLS data pulled September 23, 2026, with the source named, and every pricing answer routes to a free valuation.

Data updated: September 2026

Who is the best listing agent for The Forest?

McGreevy and Comisar: Top 1% Real Estate Agents Nationally Since 2008, the #1 Team in Southwest Florida since 2012, and McGreevy and Comisar alone have over $900 million in sales. In the last 12 months we tracked 45 The Forest closings in the Southwest Florida MLS. For a Forest listing we lead with what buyers ask first here, whether they must join the club (they do not) and what the flood maps say, and we answer both from the record. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072, or start with a free home valuation for your home in The Forest.

What is my The Forest home worth?

Your home’s value comes from recent comparable sales in your own neighborhood, not from a community average: a Partridge Place walk-up and an Oaks home sit in different markets inside the same gates. In the last 12 months single-family homes sold at a median $685,000 (15 sales) and condominiums and villas at $286,500 (30 sales), per the Southwest Florida MLS, pulled September 23, 2026. Lee County’s 2026 just value on the parcel roll is a mass-appraisal figure, not a price. Get a free home valuation for your home in The Forest or call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

How much does it cost to sell a home in The Forest?

A Florida seller’s typical costs are the brokerage commission (negotiated, not set by law), documentary stamp tax on the deed at 70 cents per $100 of price under section 201.02, the seller’s share of prorated property taxes and assessments, any association estoppel charges (capped by s. 720.30851 and s. 718.116), and whatever title costs the contract assigns to the seller. At The Forest, add the resale documents each association layer produces and, if you are a club member, any club transfer terms, which the club does not publish. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072 for a net sheet.

Do sellers pay closing costs in Florida?

Yes, some, and the contract decides the rest. The seller customarily pays the documentary stamp tax on the deed under section 201.02 and prorated taxes through the closing date; other costs, including any seller credit toward a buyer’s closing costs, are negotiated line by line. We show you each line before you list.

How much do realtors charge in Florida?

No law sets real estate commissions in Florida; every fee is negotiated between you and your brokerage and written into the listing agreement. Licensing and conduct are regulated by the Florida Real Estate Commission. We explain exactly what our fee covers for a Forest listing (photography, drone and video, buyer outreach, gate and showing coordination, and the association document file) before you sign. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

Who pays realtor fees in Florida?

Whoever the written agreements say pays them. The listing agreement sets the seller’s brokerage fee; a buyer’s agent is paid under the buyer’s own agreement with that agent, and any contribution a seller makes toward it is a negotiated term of the sale. Florida’s brokerage-relationship rules are in section 475.278.

Who pays for title insurance in Lee County and in Florida?

There are two policies. The lender’s policy protects the buyer’s lender and is a buyer’s loan cost. Who pays for the owner’s policy, and who chooses the title agent, is written into the purchase contract, and the standard Florida contract forms let the parties decide. Ask us how it is usually handled on Forest sales; we will show you the contract term.

How much is a home appraisal in Florida, and how long does it take?

The appraisal on a financed sale is ordered by the buyer’s lender and is usually a buyer’s loan cost; its fee and timing are set by the lender’s appraisal process, not by the seller. What a seller controls is the file the appraiser sees: we give the appraiser the neighborhood-level comparables, the association facts and the elevation certificate, because a Forest appraisal built on the wrong neighborhood’s sales misprices the home.

How do you market a The Forest home to qualified buyers?

We market the facts buyers cannot find elsewhere: membership is optional, so your home reaches buyers who want golf and buyers who do not; your neighborhood’s flood panel and ground elevation; and whether your building is inside or outside the milestone and structural integrity reserve study rules (at The Forest, only Sparrowood is inside them). Premium marketing for every listing: cinematic video, drone, professional photography and our qualified-buyer database, with discretion when you need it. Start with a free home valuation.

Can we list off-market in The Forest?

Yes. We can offer a Forest home privately to qualified buyers in our database before, or instead of, a public listing, and we will walk you through the trade-off between privacy and full market exposure. With 29 homes listed publicly on September 23, 2026, a private offering can reach a buyer before they compare you with the rest. Confidential conversations welcome: (239) 898-6072.

How long does it take to sell a home in The Forest?

A median of 76 days on market in the 12 months to September 23, 2026: 71 days for single-family homes and 81 for condominiums and villas, per the Southwest Florida MLS. Timing also follows the season: the master association estimates The Forest’s population at about 1,000 year-round and about 2,000 in peak season, per its 2022 plan. Add the time for estoppel certificates from each association layer. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

What is the current market for sellers in The Forest?

Forty-five homes closed in the 12 months to September 23, 2026 (15 single-family at a median $685,000, 30 condominiums and villas at $286,500), at a median 94.6% of list after a median 76 days, with $20.1 million in volume, per the Southwest Florida MLS. On September 23, 2026, 29 homes were listed, about 7.7 months of supply. We publish these numbers with the date they were pulled and update them quarterly. Get a free home valuation for your home in The Forest.

Are Fort Myers home prices dropping?

For The Forest, the answer from the last 12 months is “flat overall, softer for condominiums.” The community median was $375,000 in both the 12 months to September 23, 2026 and the 12 before, per the Southwest Florida MLS. Single-family price per square foot of living area was flat ($231.86 to $232.39), while the condominium and villa figure fell from $167.96 to $148.88, partly because larger units sold. No forecast is published. We answer this for your neighborhood with its own closed sales: call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

Is Fort Myers a buyer’s or seller’s market?

In The Forest, it leans toward buyers: 29 active listings against 45 closings in the prior 12 months is about 7.7 months of supply on September 23, 2026 (8.8 single-family, 7.2 condominium and villa), per the Southwest Florida MLS. By the usual rule of thumb, more than six months favors buyers and fewer than about six favors sellers. We do not publish a Fort Myers-wide figure on this page; the neighborhood read is what prices your home.

Are condo sales down, and will the condo market recover?

In The Forest, condominium and villa closings rose from 25 to 30 year over year, while the median eased from $299,000 to $286,500, per the Southwest Florida MLS; the calendar-year median peaked at $330,000 in 2024. No recovery forecast is published. One structural fact already helps Forest condominium sellers: only Sparrowood’s buildings are three stories, so every other condominium building here is outside Florida’s milestone-inspection and structural integrity reserve study requirements (s. 553.899; s. 718.112).

Will my house sell in this market, or right now?

A well-priced Forest home sells when the price matches its neighborhood’s comparables: 45 did in the last 12 months, including a Waters Edge condominium that closed at full price with 0 days on market in May 2026, per the Southwest Florida MLS. The longest waits, up to 633 days, ended well below list. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072 for a confidential pricing read, or get a free home valuation.

Should I sell my house in Florida now, and when is the best time?

That is a personal decision about your plans, your taxes and the market. What we can show you: the last twelve months of Forest sales (45 closings, 13 of them in February 2026 alone), the seasonal population swing (about 1,000 year-round residents to about 2,000 in season, per the master association’s 2022 plan), and your capital-gains position (see below). Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

Are seller disclosures required in Florida?

Yes. Florida law requires a seller of residential property to give the buyer a written flood disclosure at or before signing the contract, covering flood damage during the seller’s ownership, flood insurance claims and federal flood assistance, under section 689.302. At The Forest, where every home is in Zone AE per FEMA’s flood hazard layer, the flood disclosure matters on every sale. Known defects that materially affect value should also be disclosed; ask your attorney about your specific situation.

Can I sell my house as-is in Florida?

Yes. An as-is contract lets the buyer inspect and walk away within the inspection period but does not require you to make repairs; it does not remove the required flood disclosure under section 689.302 or your duty to disclose known material defects. On a 1980s Forest home, an as-is sale priced with the roof, wind and four-point reports in hand usually holds together better than one without them.

Can I sell my own house in Florida without an agent?

Yes, but at The Forest you would handle alone the gate pre-registration for every showing, the association estoppel and resale documents for each layer (s. 720.401; s. 718.503), the flood disclosure (s. 689.302), and a buyer’s questions about club membership. We do those every week. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

Can I sell my house below market value?

Yes, you may sell at any price you choose. In a financed sale the buyer’s appraisal and lender still set the loan, and a sale between related parties can carry tax consequences; ask your tax adviser. We will show you the market value first, from your neighborhood’s closed sales, so the choice is informed: start with a free home valuation.

Is “sell my house fast” legit?

Cash-offer companies are legal, but their offers are typically below open-market value because they price in a resale margin. Compare any cash offer with a market valuation of your Forest home before you sign: free home valuation for your home in The Forest, or call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

What should a realtor do for a seller?

Price from the right comparables, prepare and market the home, qualify buyers, manage showings, negotiate, and carry the file to closing, including disclosures and association documents. At The Forest that also means pre-registering every showing at the gate, explaining non-bundled membership in the club’s and the association’s own words, and presenting your neighborhood’s flood panel and elevation. Florida’s duties for a seller’s agent are in section 475.278.

Does a good realtor make a difference?

Yes, on price, time and certainty. In The Forest the difference shows in the spread: over the last 12 months some homes closed at full price within days while others waited more than a year and closed at 84% to 89% of list, per the Southwest Florida MLS, which is a pricing story more than a neighborhood story. McGreevy and Comisar and their Domain Realty Group team have sold over $2.5 billion in real estate. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

How long do I have to own my home to avoid capital gains tax?

Under federal law you can exclude up to $250,000 of gain ($500,000 for a married couple filing jointly) on the sale of your main home if you owned it and lived in it for at least two of the five years before the sale, per IRS Topic 701. Gain above the exclusion, or on a second home, is taxable. Florida has no state income tax. Confirm your position with a tax adviser.

If I sell my Forest home, can I take my homestead tax savings with me?

Yes, within limits: Florida portability lets you carry your Save Our Homes difference, up to $500,000, to a new Florida homestead established within the following three years, under section 193.155 and per the Florida Department of Revenue. Apply with the new county’s property appraiser.

Do you handle club-membership transfer in the sale negotiation?

Yes, as part of the negotiation, starting from the record: the club sells memberships separately from homes, and because membership is separate from home ownership, a club membership should not be assumed to transfer with a home. The club does not publish its transfer terms; if you are a member, we get them from the club in writing before we list, per the club’s membership page.

Does my club membership transfer to the buyer?

Not automatically. The club does not publish its dues or initiation schedule; figures are provided to prospective members on inquiry. Because membership is separate from home ownership, a club membership should not be assumed to transfer with a home. Your buyer’s membership, if they want one, is their own transaction with the club.

Do the club’s special assessments affect my sale?

They are club obligations of club members: the club’s filings show a recurring capital assessment, a golf-course renovation assessment and a hurricane capital assessment on members between 2022 and 2024. A non-member seller has no club membership to settle; a member seller should get a written statement from the club. Whether any club cost reaches non-members through the master assessment is shown only in the association’s budget, which is not published.

What documents will my buyer need from the associations?

Every layer produces its own: the master association and your neighborhood association each issue an estoppel certificate showing what is owed; a condominium seller provides the governing documents and financial information Florida’s condominium law requires (s. 718.503); a homeowners’ association sale carries the statutory disclosure summary (s. 720.401). At the Heron there is a third layer, The Heron Master Association. Florida statute caps estoppel certificate fees (s. 720.30851; s. 718.116), and master-association documents are ordered through the manager’s resale page.

Does my building’s milestone inspection or reserve study affect my sale?

Only if you are selling at Sparrowood. Sparrowood’s three buildings are the only three-story residential buildings in The Forest, according to Lee County property records, which places Sparrowood alone under Florida’s milestone-inspection and structural integrity reserve study requirements for condominiums of three or more stories. Buyers there should ask the association for its milestone inspection report and reserve study. Every other condominium building here is one or two stories, per the Lee County parcel roll.

What will a buyer learn about flood risk when I sell?

That every home in The Forest is in FEMA Zone AE with an 11-foot base flood elevation, on panels effective November 17, 2022, per FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer; your flood disclosure under section 689.302; and, if you have one, your elevation certificate, which is the single most useful document for a buyer’s flood quote. Flood insurance cost depends on each building’s elevation certificate, which is specific to the home. Order it before listing.

Will my buyer be able to insure my home?

Insurers may not refuse a homeowner policy solely because a roof is under 15 years old, and an older roof with an inspection showing at least five years of life remaining is protected the same way, under section 627.7011; a current wind-mitigation report earns the statutory discounts under section 627.0629. Citizens requires flood coverage on its homeowner policies in The Forest’s flood zone (s. 627.351). Having the roof permit date, a four-point inspection and a wind-mitigation report ready speeds the sale.

Should I replace my roof before selling?

Not necessarily. Know your roof’s age and condition first: Florida’s roof-age rule turns on 15 years and on an inspection showing five years of remaining life, under section 627.7011. Most Forest buildings date from the 1980s, per the Lee County parcel roll, so buyers and insurers will ask for the most recent re-roof permit. In a condominium, the roof is usually the association’s responsibility, so the question becomes what the association’s records show.

Which neighborhoods in The Forest sell for the most?

Over the last 48 months The Oaks had the highest neighborhood median, $902,500 on 10 sales, followed by Unit Two at $750,000 (13) and Unit Three at $740,000 (25); the highest single sale of the last 12 months was an Oaks home at $1,250,000 in October 2025, per the Southwest Florida MLS. On the attached side, Waters Edge led at $425,000 over 48 months (11 sales) and sold closest to asking in the last 12 months, a median 99.05% of list on three sales. Get a free home valuation to see where your home sits.

How do you price a condo versus a single-family home in The Forest?

From its own neighborhood’s comparables, never a community average. In the last 12 months condominiums and villas sold at a median $148.88 per square foot of living area and single-family homes at $232.39, per the Southwest Florida MLS, and units range from 1,161-square-foot two-story walk-ups at Partridge Place and Partridge Court to 2,962-square-foot Fairway Woods homes. And never read a floor from a unit number here: at Heron Coach Houses and Fairway Woods the first digit is the building. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

When is the best time of year to list a home in The Forest?

February 2026 alone carried 13 of the 45 closings of the 12 months to September 23, 2026, and there were none in November 2025 or July 2026, per the Southwest Florida MLS. The master association’s own estimate that The Forest’s population roughly doubles in peak season, from about 1,000 to about 2,000, per its 2022 plan, is why many sellers list before or early in season, with photography and documents done by early January.

How do buyers get through the gate for showings?

Visitors are pre-registered through the association’s DwellingLive visitor system, and the Main Gate is staffed around the clock, per the association’s 2022 plan and its website. We schedule and register every showing so buyers are expected at the gate.

Does the proposed cell tower affect selling my home?

We report the record, not a forecast: a special exception and variance for a 149-foot wireless monopole on the golf course property (Lee County cases SEZ2026-00001 and VAR2026-00001) were In Review as of September 23, 2026. No hearing has been scheduled and no decision has been made. Buyers may ask; we will show them the county record.

Can I sell my Forest home if I live out of state?

Yes. We handle showings, gate registration, association documents and closing coordination locally, and your closing can usually be arranged without travel through the title agent. Many Forest owners are seasonal, so selling from out of state is routine here. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072 to plan the timeline.

How many listings will my home compete with?

On September 23, 2026 The Forest had 29 active listings: 11 single-family homes asking a median $1,150,000 and 18 condominiums and villas asking a median $287,000, per the Southwest Florida MLS. The median active listing had been on the market 110 days. Your real competition is the listings in your own neighborhood and size range, and we show you exactly which ones they are with a free home valuation.

Should a Sparrowood owner price differently?

Sparrowood’s three closings in the last 12 months had a median of $245,000, a median 337 days on market and 88.63% of list, the slowest of any multi-sale neighborhood, per the Southwest Florida MLS. Buyers there ask for the milestone inspection report and the structural integrity reserve study, and whether those have been completed is not in public records we could reach. A Sparrowood seller who has both documents from the association before listing removes the buyer’s biggest question. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

Is my county just value what my home will sell for?

No. Lee County’s 2026 just value on the parcel roll is a mass-appraisal figure set for taxation, not a price, and it lags the market. The Oaks’ median just value is $715,746, for example, while its 48-month median sale was $902,500. Use the roll to compare neighborhoods and the closed sales to price a home: free home valuation for your home in The Forest.

Will my buyer’s property taxes be higher than mine?

Very likely, if you have owned for a while. Florida’s Save Our Homes cap resets to just value on a change of ownership, under section 193.155, so your capped assessment does not transfer to the buyer. Your buyer will also see the 2.3590-mill San Carlos Park fire levy (FY2025/26 budget) and the $348.75 solid waste assessment (Lee County rates) on the bill. We explain that to buyers up front, so it does not surface late in a contract.

Do I need an elevation certificate to sell my Forest home?

It is the single most useful flood document you can have. Florida’s flood disclosure under section 689.302 asks about flood damage, claims and federal assistance, but a buyer’s insurer prices the home from its elevation certificate, and every Forest home is in Zone AE. Ask Lee County’s flood information office whether a certificate is already on file for your address; if not, order one before listing.

Is Fort Myers a buyer’s or seller’s market right now?

Right now, in The Forest, the numbers lean toward buyers. On September 23, 2026 there were 29 active listings against 45 closings in the 12 months from September 24, 2025 to September 23, 2026, about 7.7 months of supply, per the Southwest Florida MLS. Sellers closed at a median 94.6% of list, and 4 of the 45 sold at or above asking. The pace has quickened: median days on market fell from 89 to 71 for single-family homes and from 130 to 81 for condominiums and villas against the prior 12 months. We do not forecast. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072 for your neighborhood’s read.

Will home prices drop in Florida in 2026?

We do not publish price forecasts, for Florida or for The Forest. What The Forest’s own closings show: the median sale was $375,000 in the 12 months to September 23, 2026 (45 sales) and $375,000 in the 12 months before (42 sales), per the Southwest Florida MLS. Single-family price per square foot of living area was flat, $231.86 to $232.39, while the condominium and villa figure fell from $167.96 to $148.88, partly because larger units sold. For your own home’s number, get a free home valuation or call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

What is the hardest month to sell a house in The Forest?

By closings, October: over the four years to September 23, 2026, The Forest recorded 10 October closings, the fewest of any month, followed by August (11) and September (12), while May (27), February (26) and April (24) were busiest. That is our count of 221 Southwest Florida MLS closed sales by sale date, each calendar month covered four times. The counts are small and swing by year (February 2026 alone had 13), so read it as a season: August to October carried 33 closings, February to May 96. A closing lags its contract by weeks. Call Jesse direct at (239) 898-6072.

Why are houses not selling in Florida right now?

We answer only for The Forest, where homes are selling, at a measured pace: 45 closed in the 12 months to September 23, 2026 after a median 76 days on market, at a median 94.6% of list, per the Southwest Florida MLS. The friction is on the single-family side. The 11 single-family listings on September 23 asked a median $1,150,000, against a $685,000 median single-family sale, partly because the listings skew to larger homes, and single-family supply ran about 8.8 months. Priced from the neighborhood’s own comparables, Forest homes sell. Get a free home valuation.

Sources and Authoritative References

Every fact about The Forest on this page traces to a named public record: the club’s and the master association’s own publications, the club’s federal tax filings, Lee County’s parcel, zoning, flood, utility and project records, Florida statutes and corporate records, FEMA, the U.S. Geological Survey, state agencies and each benchmark club’s own site.

Market figures are cited in the text as “Southwest Florida MLS, pulled September 23, 2026,” a member-only system with no public link. No realtor site, listing portal or brokerage page is used as a source anywhere on this page.

The Forest: Club and Master Association

1. The Forest Country Club, official home page, accessed September 2026.
2. The Forest Country Club, membership categories and non-bundled statement, accessed September 23, 2026.
3. The Forest Country Club, membership inquiry form, accessed September 2026.
4. The Forest Country Club, golf page, accessed September 2026.
5. The Forest Country Club, lifestyle page: tennis, pickleball, bocce, fitness, accessed September 2026.
6. The Forest Country Club, dining page, accessed September 2026.
7. The Forest Country Club scorecard, printed December 2025, accessed September 2026.
8. Amended and Restated By-Laws of The Forest Country Club, Inc., accessed September 23, 2026.
9. The Forest Country Club news archive, 2019 to 2026, accessed September 2026.
10. The Forest Country Club, Bear Course renovation announcement, December 30, 2024, accessed September 2026.
11. The Forest Country Club, May 2025 course update, accessed September 2026.
12. The Forest Country Club, April 2025 Best of the Gulfshore announcement, accessed September 2026.
13. The Forest Country Club, March 2025 pickleball article, accessed September 2026.
14. The Forest Country Club, December 2019 clubhouse remodel article, accessed September 2026.
15. The Forest Property Owners’ Association resident portal, re-checked September 23, 2026.
16. The Forest Property Owners’ Association website, accessed September 2026.
17. The Forest Property Owners’ Association vehicle barcode request form, accessed September 2026.
18. The Forest Property Owners’ Association Emergency Preparedness Plan, updated May 2022, accessed September 2026.
19. FirstService Residential, Florida resale and lender documents, accessed September 2026.

Federal Tax Filings of The Forest Country Club

20. ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, Forest Country Club Membership Association Inc (name on the tax filing), filing index, accessed September 2026.
21. Form 990, tax year 2022, accessed September 2026.
22. Form 990, tax year 2023, accessed September 2026.
23. Form 990, tax year 2024, accessed September 2026.

Lee County Geographic Records

24. Lee County Parcels layer, queried September 2026.
25. Lee County SubdivisionsGeneral (community boundaries) layer, queried September 2026.
26. Lee County recorded Subdivisions and Condominiums layer, queried September 2026.
27. Lee County MSTBUs layer, queried September 2026.
28. Lee County Fire Districts layer, queried September 2026.
29. Lee County Solid Waste Districts layer, queried September 2026.
30. Lee County Easements layer, queried September 2026.
31. Lee County Planned Developments layer, queried September 2026.
32. Lee County Zoning Notes layer, queried September 2026.
33. Lee County Zoning Cases layer, queried September 2026.
34. Lee County Development Orders layer, queried September 2026.
35. Lee County Development Activity Projects layer, queried September 2026.
36. Lee County residential building permits extract, unincorporated Lee, March 2025, queried September 2026.
37. Lee County capital improvement projects layer, queried September 2026.
38. Lee County parks projects layer, queried September 2026.
39. Lee County FIRM (flood zone) layer, queried September 2026.
40. Lee County pre-coastal-study FIRM layer, retained November 16, 2022, queried September 2026.
41. Lee County Evacuation Zones layer, queried September 2026.
42. Lee County 2018 LiDAR Spot Elevations layer, queried September 2026.
43. Lee County Building Footprints for Damage Assessment layer, queried September 2026.
44. Lee County Water Franchise layer, queried September 2026.
45. Lee County Wastewater Franchise layer, queried September 2026.
46. Lee County Wastewater Service Area layer, queried September 2026.
47. Lee County Future Land Use layer, queried September 2026.
48. Lee County Planning Communities layer, queried September 2026.
49. Lee County Watersheds layer, queried September 2026.
50. Lee County Preserve Locations layer, queried September 2026.
51. Lee County Golf Course Locations layer, queried September 2026.
52. Lee County facility damage inventory layer, queried September 2026.
53. Lee County initial damage assessments layer, queried September 2026.

Lee County Government, Property Appraiser and Clerk

54. Lee County Board of County Commissioners, special districts roster, as of September 1, 2026.
55. Lee County Budget Services, MSTBU program, accessed September 2026.
56. Lee County Solid Waste, adopted solid waste rates, FY2026, accessed September 2026.
57. Lee County flood information pages, accessed September 2026.
58. Lee County substantial improvement and substantial damage rule, accessed September 2026.
59. Lee County Community Rating System flood insurance discounts, accessed September 2026.
60. Lee County Evacuation Zone A map, accessed September 2026.
61. Lee County Summary of Major Road Projects, FY 2026 to 2030, accessed September 2026.
62. Lee County Parks, Estero Marsh Preserve, accessed September 2026.
63. Lee County Parks, Mullock Creek Preserve, accessed September 2026.
64. Lee County Parks, Lakes Regional Park frequently asked questions, accessed September 2026.
65. Lee County case file SEZ2026-00001, proposed 149-foot monopole, status as of September 23, 2026.
66. Lee County case file VAR2026-00001, companion variance, status as of September 23, 2026.
67. Lee County Accela record, SEZ2026-00001, accessed September 23, 2026.
68. Lee County Accela record, VAR2026-00001, accessed September 23, 2026.
69. Lee County case file VAR2012-00007, Island Park Road perimeter wall, accessed September 2026.
70. Lee County Property Appraiser, golf course parcel record, accessed September 2026.
71. Lee County Property Appraiser, homestead exemption, accessed September 2026.
72. Lee County Clerk of Court, official records services, accessed September 2026.
73. San Carlos Park Fire Protection and Rescue Service District, FY2025/2026 final budget, adopted September 15, 2025.

Florida Division of Corporations and DBPR

74. The Forest Property Owners’ Association, Inc., corporate record, accessed September 2026.
75. The Forest Property Owners’ Association, Amended and Restated Articles, filed March 24, 2010, accessed September 2026.
76. The Forest Country Club, Inc., corporate record, accessed September 2026.
77. Forest Utilities, Inc., corporate record, accessed September 2026.
78. The Heron Master Association, Inc., corporate record, accessed September 2026.
79. Fairway Woods at The Forest III condominium association, corporate record (merged 1991), accessed September 2026.
80. Dove Hollow condominium association, corporate record, accessed September 2026.
81. Falcon Crest homeowners’ association, corporate record, accessed September 2026.
82. Pheasant Court Villas homeowners’ association, corporate record, accessed September 2026.
83. Timberlakes, corporate name search, accessed September 2026.
84. Florida DBPR condominium and license search, accessed September 2026.
85. Florida DBPR, condominium SIRS reporting, accessed September 2026.
86. Florida Real Estate Commission, accessed September 2026.
87. Florida DBPR public licensee search, accessed September 2026.

Florida Statutes and State Agencies

88. Florida Statutes s. 553.899, milestone inspections, 2026.
89. Florida Statutes s. 718.112, condominium bylaws and structural integrity reserve studies, 2026.
90. Florida Statutes s. 718.111, condominium association insurance, 2026.
91. Florida Statutes s. 718.116, condominium assessments and estoppel certificates, 2026.
92. Florida Statutes s. 718.503, condominium resale disclosure, 2026.
93. Florida Statutes s. 720.30851, homeowners’ association estoppel certificates, 2026.
94. Florida Statutes s. 720.401, homeowners’ association disclosure summary, 2026.
95. Florida Statutes s. 689.302, residential flood disclosure, 2026.
96. Florida Statutes s. 627.351, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, 2026.
97. Florida Statutes s. 627.7011, homeowner policies and roof age, 2026.
98. Florida Statutes s. 627.0629, wind-mitigation discounts, 2026.
99. Florida Statutes s. 215.5586, My Safe Florida Home program, 2026.
100. Florida Statutes s. 201.02, documentary stamp tax on deeds, 2026.
101. Florida Statutes s. 475.278, brokerage relationships, 2026.
102. Florida Statutes s. 196.031, homestead exemption, 2026.
103. Florida Statutes s. 196.011, exemption applications, 2026.
104. Florida Statutes s. 193.155, Save Our Homes and portability, 2026.
105. Florida Department of Revenue, property tax exemptions, accessed September 2026.
106. Florida Building Commission, building code effective dates, accessed September 2026.
107. Florida Department of Health, trauma centers list, updated July 23, 2026, accessed September 2026.
108. Florida Division of Emergency Management, Know Your Zone, accessed September 2026.
109. My Safe Florida Home program, accessed September 2026.

Federal Sources

110. FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer map service, queried September 2026.
111. FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer, flood hazard zones, queried September 2026.
112. FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer, FIRM panel index, queried September 2026.
113. FEMA Letters of Map Amendment index, queried September 2026.
114. FEMA Letters of Map Revision index, queried September 2026.
115. FEMA Flood Map Service Center, accessed September 2026.
116. FEMA Risk Rating 2.0, accessed September 2026.
117. FEMA Community Rating System eligible communities, April 1, 2025, accessed September 2026.
118. FEMA FIRM panel 12071C0438H, effective November 17, 2022, Lee County copy, accessed September 2026.
119. FEMA FIRM panel 12071C0576H, effective November 17, 2022, Lee County copy, accessed September 2026.
120. U.S. Geological Survey Short-Term Network, Hurricane Ian high-water marks, Lee County, accessed September 2026.
121. U.S. Geological Survey Short-Term Network, Hurricane Helene high-water marks, accessed September 2026.
122. U.S. Geological Survey Short-Term Network, Hurricane Milton high-water marks, accessed September 2026.
123. IRS Topic 701, sale of your home, accessed September 2026.

Schools, Healthcare and Transportation

124. Lee County School District zone map, 2026-27, accessed September 2026.
125. Lee County School District, student enrollment, accessed September 2026.
126. Lee County School District, school zones, accessed September 2026.
127. Lee County School District, transportation optimization plan, accessed September 2026.
128. Lee County School District, 2025-2026 school grades report, July 2026.
129. Florida Department of Education, 2026 school grades file, accessed September 2026.
130. Lee Health, Gulf Coast Medical Center, accessed September 2026.
131. Lee Health, HealthPark Medical Center, accessed September 2026.
132. Lee Health, Lee Memorial Hospital, accessed September 2026.
133. Lee Health, urgent care locations, accessed September 2026.
134. Lee County Port Authority, Southwest Florida International Airport, accessed September 2026.
135. FDOT District One, US 41 at Six Mile Cypress Parkway study, accessed September 2026.

Golf Publications and News

136. Golf Digest course database, The Forest Country Club, the Bear, accessed September 2026.
137. Golf Digest course database, The Forest Country Club, the Bobcat, accessed September 2026.
138. Golf Course Management, “Storm warning,” 2022, accessed September 2026.
139. WGCU, unincorporated Lee County keeps flood program discount, November 21, 2024, accessed September 2026.

Benchmark Clubs (Each Club’s Own Record)

140. Fiddlesticks Country Club, home page, accessed September 23, 2026.
141. Fiddlesticks Country Club, membership page, accessed September 23, 2026.
142. Fiddlesticks Country Club, amenities page, accessed September 23, 2026.
143. Fiddlesticks Country Club, governing rules and regulations, accessed September 23, 2026.
144. Heritage Palms Golf and Country Club, home page, accessed September 23, 2026.
145. Heritage Palms Golf and Country Club, golf page, accessed September 23, 2026.
146. Gulf Harbour Yacht and Country Club, membership page, accessed September 23, 2026.
147. Gulf Harbour Yacht and Country Club, golf page, accessed September 23, 2026.
148. The Landings Yacht, Golf and Tennis Club, home page, accessed September 23, 2026.
149. The Landings Yacht, Golf and Tennis Club, social memberships, accessed September 23, 2026.
150. Golf Digest course database, The Landings, accessed September 2026.
151. Cross Creek Country Club, visit page, accessed September 23, 2026.
152. Cross Creek Country Club, golf course page, accessed September 23, 2026.
153. Cross Creek Country Club, golf rates, accessed September 23, 2026.
154. Eagle Ridge, golf course page, accessed September 23, 2026.
155. Eagle Ridge, membership page, accessed September 23, 2026.
156. Golf Digest course database, Eagle Ridge, accessed September 2026.
157. Pelican Preserve Golf Club, golf page, accessed September 23, 2026.
158. Pelican Preserve Golf Club, membership page, accessed September 23, 2026.

Downloadable Documents

The public records that govern and describe The Forest are linked below at the authority that issued or holds each one; we do not re-host any of them, and some government hosts refuse automated requests but open normally in a browser.

A few Forest records are not posted anywhere public, and we say so rather than link a copy: the master association’s recorded declaration (not available in the county’s online records), every association budget and reserve study (member records, provided at resale), and the association’s login-gated homeowner documents. The founding plats, The Forest Unit One at Plat Book 33, Pages 85 to 88, and The Oaks Unit One at Plat Book 37, Pages 51 to 55, are held in the Lee County Clerk’s official records and can be retrieved there by book and page.

Market data from Southwest Florida MLS, pulled September 23, 2026. Brokered by Domain Realty.