5-minute read

In June, Hillpointe opened Pointe Grand Lakeland, a 288-unit apartment community, at 901 Patriot Drive. Billed as “attainable luxury,” the development has amenities like a resort-style pool, 24-hour fitness center, a dog park, and a pet wash station.

This opening came as Lakeland is experiencing a shortage of homes for middle-income earners who make around $75,000 a year, according to Realtor.com. In 2024, the FLHealthCharts showed only 5.1% of vacant housing units available for rent in Polk County, below the statewide rental vacancy rate of 7.6%.

Rents at Pointe Grand start at $1,540 plus $199 per month fee for internet, renters insurance, pest control, valet trash, doorbell cameras, and other amenities. On average, residents pay $1939 per month, according to Ashley Peace, community manager at Pointe Grand. 

Each unit at Pointe Grand is exactly the same: an open floor plan with a dining space, two bedrooms, two full bathrooms, quartz countertops, in-unit washer and dryer, and lots of closet space. The apartments are “1,170 sq. ft. of thoughtfully designed space with modern finishes, smart technology, and pet-friendly community amenities,” according to the community’s website.

  • | Anna Toms, LkldNow
  • | Anna Toms, LkldNow
  • | Anna Toms, LkldNow
  • | Anna Toms, LkldNow

According to Apartments.com, the average 1,088 square-foot, two-bedroom apartment in Lakeland rents for $1,578 per month, and in the past year, rent has decreased by 0.6% or around $8 a month.

Meeting housing needs in Lakeland

For decades, governments and individuals have operated with the assumption households should spend around 30% of their income on housing and utilities. Those who pay more are considered housing burdened.

The median household income in Polk County is $63,644, so following the 30% rule, that allocates a little over $19,000 or around $1,591 per month for housing.

Over half of all renters in Polk County, 53.8%, are housing burdened, according to the United Community Indicators. Overall, 31.8% of households, including 24.2% of homeowners, are housing burdened.

The Pointe Grand project was discussed on October 17, 2022, at the Lakeland City Commission meeting, where Chuck Barmby, city transportation and development review manager, told commissioners, “During the public hearing process, there were a number of concerns raised regarding traffic and compatibility/buffering.” 

Mark Wilson of Kimley-Horn and Associates told commissioners that the engineering firm and the developer held a neighborhood meeting and met with the Florida Department of Transportation during the design process. He said they revised the plan multiple times. 

At the time, Commissioner Phillip Walker noted that more housing was needed and said he appreciated the way the developer was working with neighbors and the city to accommodate their concerns.

Barmby said that city staff was satisfied that changes to the site plan addressed possible issues and described specific stipulations regarding layout, landscaping, and traffic. During the meeting, residents again raised concerns about traffic and adequate parking

Ultimately, commissioners voted 6-to-1 to approve an ordinance that adopted the revised site plan, increased the number of units allowed at the location from 152 to 288, and raised allowable building heights from two to three stories.

Part of a larger strategy

Kelly Mahoney and Steven Campisi founded Hillpointe in 2018 after realizing they could fill a need in areas with a shortage of housing for middle-income earners, according to Ardavon Moayer, Hillpointe regional vice president of property management.

Pointe Grand Lakeland is one of 45 properties — 12,075 total apartment units — owned and operated by Hillpointe, a real estate development and investment management firm based in Winter Park, Fl.

According to Moayer, the Lakeland community is part of a larger strategy that guides many of the company’s decisions. 

“All of our locations are strategically placed in not necessarily rural, but not urban areas. We are not in downtown Orlando. We are not in downtown Tampa,” Peace said.

Big cities like Tampa and Orlando receive a lot of attention from housing developers, but they’re also expensive, Moayer explained. He calls Lakeland a bridge: “You can live in Lakeland and also access Orlando and Tampa,” but he said Lakeland’s housing supply has not kept up with population growth. 

“We are in Plant City. We are in Lakeland. We are in Champions Gate,” Peace said. “We are more for the working class in those suburban communities, and we try to make luxury as attainable as possible for those communities.”

Affordable luxury for the workforce

Peace explained that the company’s marketing and pricing team regularly reviews market surveys to try to keep rents at the development lower than comparable units in the area.

Pointe Grand Lakeland opened to residents in June 2026. | Anna Toms, LkldNow

Hillpointe is able to keep rent costs lower because the company is vertically integrated — they control everything aspect of the process required to build and operate a housing development, including land acquisition, design and engineering, building supply sourcing and manufacturing, construction, operations, technology and internet, maintenance, and leasing.

Peace said the property has been pre-leasing since January 2026, and she offered hard-hat tours in March.

According to Peace, residents have been attracted to Pointe Grand because of its location. “We are the newest community on the south side, but not too far south that it’s not close to what Lakeland still has to offer,” she said. Pointe Grand has no pet breed or weight restrictions, which has also been a selling point. And Peace said the staff works hard to build relationships with residents and create a sense of community.

“Our first month open, we had 24 move-ins. July we had 45. Last month, we had 44,” Peace said. “We’re about to break the record in the company for fastest lease-up in one quarter.” By mid-September, Pointe Grand was 42% full, with 119 units occupied.

Insight Polk examines community conditions and solutions in six target areas from UCIndicators.org: economic & employment opportunity, education, housing, food security, transportation & infrastructure, and quality of life.

LkldNow’s Insight Polk independent reporting is made possible by the United Community Indicators Project with funding by GiveWell Community Foundation & United Way of Central Florida. All editorial decisions are made by LkldNow.

SEND CORRECTIONS, questions, feedback or news tips: newstips@lkldnow.com

Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again.

Anna Toms was born and raised in Kansas City, Mo., where she cultivated a love for writing and eventually earned her Ph.D. in literature and the humanities. She is an experienced educator who has taught students from middle school to college to think critically and express themselves clearly. Anna moved to Lakeland in June of 2020.

Leave a comment

Your thoughts on this? (Comments are moderated; first and last name are required.)