Product Profile: Lennar

 

INDUSTRY

housing

Category

single-family home development

product Profiled

housing built and communities developed by Lennar

 

H-Score

 

58

ranked 9th of 13 within the housing industry

ranked 23rd of 76 overall

 

product description

 

Lennar is a home development company based in Miami, Florida that specializes in single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, multigenerational homes, also known as “Next Gen,” and active adult communities. Lennar builds in popular cities in 26 states across the United States. Lennar sold over 66,000 homes in its 2022 fiscal year, with an average sale price of $480,000.(1)

 
 

who’s affected

 

Lennar sells to home buyers of all types. Its average sales price of $480,000 puts it slightly above the median new US home sales price of $436,000.(2)

 
 

influence on health-related behaviors

 

EATING

neutral to slight positive influence

 

Proximity to grocery stores with healthy food options can positively influence eating habits. One metric of a neighborhood’s food environment is whether it is characterized by the USDA as “low access to food stores.”(3) In a sample of new Lennar locations reviewed by Building H, 13% were in low-access neighborhoods.

 

opportunities:

  • Review the food environment – both access to fresh foods and prevalence of unhealthy food outlets – as part of the decision to build in a certain neighborhood. Use the potential of aggregated demand that a new development would create to encourage investment in local fresh food outlets like grocery stores.
  • Include raised beds for vegetable gardens as part of home landscaping design – or establish community gardens within the developments.
 
 

PHYSICAL ACTVITY

neutral to slight negative influence

 

The walkability of a geographic location has an influence on the physical activity of its residents. In a sample of Lennar locations reviewed by Building H, 3% were in neighborhoods rated as “Somewhat Walkable” and 3% were in neighborhoods rated as “very walkable” or better by Walk Score.(4) Ninety-five (95) percent of locations were in neighborhoods rated “car-dependent” by Walk Score and 23% scored 0 out of 100 on Walk Score’s scale. The median Walk Score was 4.0. A higher Walk Score rating for a given neighborhood has been associated with increased physical activity among neighborhood residents.(5) 

In addition to walkability, a neighborhood’s bikeability can also facilitate physical activity. In a sample of Lennar locations reviewed by Building H, 3% were in neighborhoods rated as “very bikeable” or better by Bike Score.(6) Ninety-eight (98) percent of locations were in neighborhoods rated “Somewhat Bikeable” by Bike Score. Mean Bike Score was 25; the median was 25.

Lennar provides a number of amenities that facilitate physical activity in their communities. They offer fitness centers at 22% of a sample of housing communities reviewed by Building H, swimming pools at 50%, playgrounds at 78%, sports courts at 32% and walking trails at 34% of their communities.

 

opportunities:

  • Review the walkability, bikeability and access to transit of a neighborhood as part of the decision to build in a certain neighborhood. Use the potential of aggregated demand that a new development would create to advocate for and encourage investment in sidewalks and bike lanes, if not available.
  • Publish data on the walkability, bikeability, and access to transit of new developments.
  • Provide bike sharing and scooter sharing services at properties.
  • Provide amenities such as fitness centers, playgrounds, swimming pools, parks and walking paths at more of its developments.
  • Build sidewalks and ensure adequate, safe space for bicycle traffic within developments.
 
 

Sleeping

neutral to slight positive influence

 

Lennar indicates that it uses low-VOC paint in almost all of their homes.(7) This measure could improve indoor air quality, which could have a positive influence on sleep as lower indoor air quality has been associated with poorer sleep.(8)

To the extent that Lennar’s locations and property designs influence physical activity and time spent outdoors, they could indirectly influence sleep as both of those behaviors are positively correlated with better sleep.

opportunities:

  • Promote healthy circadian rhythms by:
    • designing for exposure to natural light through larger windows, skylights and solar tubes where possible.
    • installing circadian LED lighting systems that adjust color temperature to mimic natural light throughout the day.
  • Build in air quality monitors, as poor indoor air quality has been shown to influence sleep.
  • Build in smart thermostats in order to optimize nighttime temperatures for better sleep.
  • Use soundproofing and other acoustic design techniques, such as sound-absorbing materials, to reduce noise that could interfere with sleep.
 
 

Engaging Socially

slight positive influence

 

In the sample of new Lennar homes reviewed by Building H, approximately 23% featured front porches. Neighborhoods with high prevalences of design characteristics such as front porches have been associated with more frequent talk among neighbors.(9)

Lennar offers amenities at many of its communities that can facilitate social interactions among its residents. These include clubhouses or other social gathering areas (in 38% of a sample of communities reviewed by Building H), outdoor grills (33%), playgrounds (78%), swimming pools (50%), sports courts (32%) and dog parks (22%).

 

opportunities:

  • Design new homes with front porches or other street-facing outdoor spaces that facilitate casual social interactions among neighbors.
  • Design new homes with open floor plans and gathering/entertaining interior and exterior spaces that facilitate socializing.
  • Offer indoor and outdoor common spaces – such as lounges, clubhouses, playgrounds, parks, swimming pools, sports fields/courts and outdoor cooking facilities – that facilitate both planned community events and casual social interactions among neighbors at more of its developments.
  • Engage with residents to understand social interests and develop social programming to foster social interaction and bonding over common interests.
  • Experiment with buddy programs, where longtime residents welcome new residents and help them get situated.
  • Developing in more walkable, bikeable neighborhoods would also facilitate social connection.
 
 

Getting Outdoors

slight positive influence

 

Neighborhood walkability is a key driver of spending time outdoors. The walkability of Lennar’s locations (discussed above in physical activity) has an influence on how much time its residents spend outdoors.

Access to public parks can also encourage people to go outdoors. In the sample of new Lennar homes reviewed by Building H, 35% were within a 10-minute walk from a public park.(10)

The natural environment around one’s home can influence how much time people spend outdoors. In the sample of Lennar locations reviewed by Building H, 93% were rated “Nature Rich” or “Nature Utopia” by NatureQuant, an organization that characterizes the natural environment around any location.(11) Only 3% of Lennar’s locations were rated “Nature Light” or “Nature Deficient.” Mean NatureScore was 83.7; the median score 88.5. A higher NatureScore for a given neighborhood has not been directly correlated with more time spent outdoors by its residents, but it has been correlated with many improvements in health outcomes that are consistent with more time spent in nature.(12)

Lennar offers a number of amenities that can facilitate outdoor activities. These include playgrounds (in 78% of a sample of communities reviewed by Building H), outdoor grills (33%), sports courts (32%), walking trails (34%) and dog parks (22%).

 

opportunities:

  • Pursue opportunities noted above related to neighborhood walkability, bikeability and access to transit.
  • Pursue opportunities noted above related to outdoor amenities such as playgrounds, community gardens and walking paths.
 
 
 

Notes

 

  1. Lennar Corporation. 2022 Annual Report, p. 1.

  2. US Census Bureau. Monthly New Residential Sales, July 2023.

  3. The “low-access to food” designation means that a significant portion of residents of the Census tract are more than one mile (if urban) or more than 10 miles (if rural) from the nearest supermarket or large grocery store. See U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. Food Access Research Atlas: Measuring Access to Food.

  4. Walk Score is a methodology for assessing the walkability of a location, using a proprietary algorithm that factors in walking proximity to amenities and pedestrian friendliness. Walk Score is based on a scale of 0-100. Locations scoring 49 or under are considered “car-dependent;” Locations scoring 70 or more are rated “very walkable.” Those scoring 90 and above are labeled “walker’s paradise.” See https://www.walkscore.com/methodology.shtml for more on the Walk Score methodology.

  5. Erica Twardzik et al. Walk Score and objectively measured physical activity within a national cohort. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. Volume 73, Issue 6 (June 2019), pp. 549-556.

  6. Bike Score is a methodology for assessing the bikeability of a location, using a proprietary algorithm that factors in: the presence of bike lanes, hills and destinations; road connectivity; and bike commuting mode share. Bike Score is based on a scale of 0-100. Locations scoring 90 and above are rated “Biker's Paradise,” meaning that daily errands can be accomplished on a bike; locations scoring 70-89 are considered “Very Bikeable,” meaning that biking is convenient for most trips; locations scoring 50-69 are rated “Bikeable,” indicating some bike infrastructure; and locations scoring 0–49 are considered “Somewhat Bikeable,” where there is only minimal bike infrastructure. See https://www.walkscore.com/bike-score-methodology.shtml for more on the Bike Score methodology.

  7. Lennar Corporation. Lennar 2022 Social Responsibility Report, p. 5.

  8. Jianhong Liu et al. Air pollution exposure and adverse sleep health across the life course: A systematic review. Environmental Pollution. Volume 262 (July 2020).

  9. Carrie LeVan. Neighborhoods That Matter: How Place and People Affect Political Participation. American Politics Research. Volume 48, Issue 2 (2020), pp. 286–294.

  10. Based on a geographical analysis using ParkServe, a tool provided by the Trust for Public Land.

  11. NatureScore is a methodology for measuring the amount and quality of natural elements of any location developed by NatureQuant. NatureScores are on a 0-100 scale and are translated to descriptive assessments using the following code: 0-19.9: “Nature Deficient”; 20-39.9: “Nature Light”; 40-59.9: “Nature Adequate”; 60-79.9: “Nature Rich”; 80-100: “Nature Utopia.” See  Delivering Technology to Assess and Promote Nature Exposure. NatureQuant White Paper. 2020.

  12. NatureQuant (2020).