SARASOTA, Fla. -- Lakewood Ranch's Lake Club has attracted a new builder to the Manatee/Sarasota area.

London Bay Homes has been building luxury homes in the Naples area for 15 years. Lakewood Ranch and the builder celebrated with a VIP launch party at the Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club on Thursday.

London Bay Homes is one of four builders new to Lakewood Ranch that will be involved in the Lake Club project.

Upon completion, Lake Club will include 768 single-family homes and 322 coach homes and condos.

The first single-family home lots sold late last month. Lot prices range from $200,000 to $800,000.

• A free course on Florida condominium association operations will be held on Monday, Nov. 14, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Robb & Stucky Community Room, 7557 South Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. The course will include information on self-management, maintenance issues, how to conduct board meetings and more. Registration for the Division of Florida Land Sales, Condominiums and Mobile Homes class is recommended. To reserve a space, call Laura Hagan at (727) 525-0962 or e-mail FLeducation@caionline.org.

• Another familiar face is returning to the helm at Holiday Builders. In July, Richard Hawkes was terminated by the company's board of directors and past president Larry Sietsma stepped in, according to a company press release. The board later reconsidered its decision and reinstated Hawkes, the press release said. The company builds homes throughout Florida, including Sarasota and Charlotte counties.

• Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate opened a property management office at 400 St. Armands Circle. The office marks an expansion of the company's involvement in managing and leasing rental properties in Sarasota and Manatee counties. The company manages both seasonal and annual rentals.

• Re/Max Gulfstream Realty announced the arrival of new sales associate Jane Harris. A former middle school science teacher at Sarasota School of Arts and Sciences, Harris has lived in the Bradenton-Sarasota area for two years.

• Michael Saunders, owner of Michael Saunders & Company, is the newly elected chairwoman of the board for Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. The organization is a network of 650 independent real estate companies that aids in referring clients who are relocating to qualified real estate companies in the new area. According to a press release, the firms involved in Leading Real Estate Companies of the World collectively sell approximately $380 billion of real estate annually. Last year, Michael Saunders & Company grossed more than $2.5 billion in local real estate transactions.

• Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate welcomed two new faces this month. Hugo Mazzoli joined the company as director of facilities and corporate properties. His responsibilities include managing facility and leasing for 167 branch offices throughout Florida. In a press release, Mazzoli said he looks forward to the challenge. Ana Maria Wissing joined the downtown Sarasota office. Wissing speaks English, Portuguese and Spanish. She has been in the real estate business for 10 years.