Superstition Springs buy was difficult transaction. (real estate transactions in Sun Valley, Arizona) (Focus on Dozen Done Deals)

Clearly the most high-profile of all acquisitions during 1991 was the purchase of the 1,200 remaining acres of the Superstition Springs master-planned community by a partnership including DMB and Laurel Haven Development Corp. for $19.6 million.

A study by Coopers & Lybrand, assisted by COMPS Inc. and The Sykes Report, identified Superstition Springs as the largest land transaction, based on dollar value, in the Valley last year.

The deal, also the largest buy made from the Resolution Trust Corp. during the year, came with its share of difficulties. In fact, broker Jim Buckley, president of Visioncorp Inc., says the deal was the toughest he's negotiated in seven years of practice.

Buying a master-planned community, Buckley notes, isn't exactly easy. The acreage spanned the boundaries of both Mesa and Gilbert, and development agreements exist with both jurisdictions. The deal also required extensive feasibility studies to determine whether the current infrastructure could support future development activities. Other issues arose regarding utilities …