Lennar vs Meritage Homes in Florida: What the MLS Record Actually Shows
Searching Lennar vs Meritage Homes mostly surfaces complaint threads and stock analysis. Neither helps you pick a house. Below is what the recorded MLS data shows for both builders across Florida — closings, active inventory, price points, and the communities where each actually builds — with the methodology stated and no quality scoring pretended.
Head to head at a glance
The statewide record, side by side
| Recorded MLS activity | Lennar | Meritage Homes |
|---|---|---|
| Recorded new-construction closings (2024+) | 1,036 | 308 |
| Builder homes active on the market now | 1,599 | 587 |
| Florida counties with recorded activity | 29 | 16 |
| Tracked communities | 121 | 24 |
| County median sale prices run | $279,980–$950,740 | $298,490–$531,995 |
| Approximate $/sqft across counties | $152–$477 | $162–$255 |
In 8 of the 13 shared counties where both record a median, Meritage Homes’s recorded median sale price is the lower of the two. That is a price-point difference, not a value judgment: the two build different products, at different sizes, in different communities, and the honest comparison is per community, not per brand.
County by county, where both build
| County | Lennar closings | Lennar median | Meritage Homes closings | Meritage Homes median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Johns | 369 | $356,485 | 2 | $361,445 |
| Duval | 63 | $321,294 | 135 | $319,990 |
| Lake | 143 | $439,990 | 42 | $355,000 |
| Osceola | 149 | $395,756 | 29 | $394,990 |
| Clay | 66 | $359,999 | 21 | $298,490 |
| Orange | 35 | $394,995 | 26 | $531,995 |
| St. Lucie | 33 | $442,895 | 23 | $337,460 |
| Pasco | 23 | $332,000 | 3 | $415,030 |
| Hillsborough | 22 | $375,655 | 4 | $351,430 |
| Polk | 1 | $289,490 | 0 | $319,990 |
| Volusia | 0 | $314,090 | 0 | $304,740 |
| Sarasota | 0 | $299,997 | 0 | $435,640 |
| Manatee | 0 | $611,144 | 0 | $378,470 |
Methodology: closings and actives are counted from listings recorded by builder-affiliated sales offices in contributing MLS feeds, build year 2024 or newer, as of August 27, 2026. Builders selling primarily outside the MLS are undercounted. County medians reflect each builder’s recorded sales mix in that county — different products and sizes, not like-for-like homes. Deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
What this page will not tell you
Closing volume is a capacity signal — supply chains, trades and permitting working at scale. It is not a build-quality rating, and we do not publish one: warranty service, change-order handling, and what a pre-drywall inspection finds vary house by house and division by division. What actually protects you is the same with either builder: read the builder contract (it is written by the builder’s attorneys, not the standard Florida resale form), hire your own inspector for pre-drywall and final walks, ask each sales office for addresses delivered 12+ months ago, and get the CDD assessment and remaining bond term in writing before you sign.
Where each builds
Lennar: Shearwater, Shearwater Townhomes (Ryan Homes), Silver Falls (SilverLeaf), Silver Meadows (SilverLeaf), St. Augustine Lakes, Stillwater, TrailMark, Bridgewalk 60S St Cloud.
Meritage Homes: Azalea Creek, Cypress Meadows, Kings Preserve, Cagan Crossings West, Cyrene at Minneola Clermont, Cyrene At Minneola - Villas, The Reserve At Hammock Oaks, The Meadow At Crossprairie St Cloud.
Full community lists by county — Lennar: St. Johns County, Osceola County, Lake County, Clay County. Meritage Homes: Duval County, Lake County, Osceola County, Orange County.
Compare the deals, not just the builders
Builders negotiate with incentives, not price cuts — and a $20,000 rate buydown is not the same deal as $20,000 off. Model any two offers with the builder incentive calculator, estimate the year-two tax reset with the property tax after purchase calculator, and check the community’s CDD before falling for a base price — our CDD fee database shows what those assessments really run. An agent costs you nothing on a new build; the builder pays the commission.
Common questions
Who is bigger in Florida, Lennar or Meritage Homes?
Which is cheaper, Lennar or Meritage Homes?
Which builder has better quality, Lennar or Meritage Homes?
Why do these numbers differ from the builders' own reported sales?
More Florida builder head-to-heads
Lennar vs D.R. Horton · Lennar vs Pulte Homes · D.R. Horton vs Pulte Homes · Lennar vs Taylor Morrison · D.R. Horton vs LGI Homes · Taylor Morrison vs Toll Brothers · David Weekley Homes vs Toll Brothers
Builder figures are aggregates from contributing MLS feeds as of August 27, 2026, deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Figures reflect recorded volume and price only; nothing on this page is an endorsement or quality rating of any builder. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners; Momentum Realty is an independent brokerage unaffiliated with either builder. Equal Housing Opportunity.