The Team
NWI Development Group
NWI Development Group ("NWI") is a Northwest Indiana based development company founded in 2020. The partners of NWI and its affiliates, which include UpperCross Development Group (www.ucdgrp.com), have been developing in Northwest Indiana and Southwest Michigan since 2012, focused on value-add acquisitions of properties and new development for highly acclaimed resort communities in and around Harbor Country. We are a multi-disciplined development company and have extensive experience in many of the top residential and resort-home markets in the world, including those of the Hawaiian Islands, the Yellowstone Club and the resorts of Big Sky Montana, Monaco, the UK, the US Virgin Islands and specific to Avanterra, the greater Harbor Country area, including both Michigan and Northwest Indiana. Our team is currently one of the most active developers in the region, having re-envisioned and energized a number of acclaimed area master planned resort communities including White Pine New Buffalo, The Peninsula at New Buffalo, the Beachwalk Resort in Michigan City and the regional vacation management company Beachwalk Vacation Rentals. The team’s approach is design-driven and management intensive, resulting in the creation of truly distinctive properties.
Cornerstone Builders & Associates
With over two decades of experience, Cornerstone Builders & Associates is a Michiana leading design/build firm specializing in a unique residential approach to custom homes. Cornerstone's reputation for custom tailored design, excellent communication, high customer satisfaction, and timely construction completion, has earned them high referral rates and repeated admiration by local professionals, financial institutions, and developers. Cornerstone's suppliers and trade partners have experienced Cornerstone's determination for consistent, successful and a fair partnership throughout the past two decades. Cornerstone's leadership team members hold post graduate degrees, are Green Professional certified and won the Michiana Region Forty under 40 award for active participation in the local community and leadership skills. In addition, Cornerstone's homes have been featured numerous times in local publications and have earned 8 "Best of Awards" from local Home Builders Associations. For more information visit https://cbabuild.com/.
Studio 1 Architects
Studio 1 is an architectural design firm based in Western Springs, Illinois with decades of experience creating new homes, additions and interior/exterior renovations. Their work speaks to multiple styles by combining today's modern lifestyle with traditional and modern forms. Studio 1's work spans from the suburbs of Chicago to the Northern Shores of the Great Lakes and beyond. For more information, visit https://studio1architects.com.
Teska & Associates
Mr. Patera’s professional career as a landscape architect covers projects across the country and overseas. His specialties include land and site planning, urban design, streetscape plaza design, park and recreation planning, and residential and commercial development. As Senior Vice President in charge of landscape architecture for Teska Associates, Inc. (https://www.teskaassociates.com/) Mr. Patera is responsible for a wide range of diverse site planning and design projects. His scope of experience ranges from land planning for a new planned community of 35,000 residents to downtown and streetscape design, site planning and testimony for traditional neighborhood developments and a wide range of residential, commercial, regional shopping centers, resort and industrial land planning and landscape architectural designs.
Farr Associates
Farr Associates is an award-winning sustainable architecture and planning firm located in the heart of Chicago. Our planners and architects work in integrated design teams to create award-winning designs that provide the most client benefit for the least cost. Our best work results from close collaboration with clients on projects that aspire to attain social, economic and environmental goals, often at the crossroads of urbanism and architecture. As a Benefit Corporation, Farr Associates strives for a positive and measurable impact on society, employees, and the environment. We maintain a reputation of actively working on behalf of those with diverse needs and identities, while belonging and contributing to a larger and just context. We align our business with a public good through full transparency– from our employee policies to our design intentions and community engagement. For more information visit farrside.com.
@properties | Christie’s International Real Estate
@properties commitment to The Region has made it one of the largest and fastest growing residential brokerage firms in Southwest Michigan and Northwest Indiana. The firm is also Chicago’s #1 real estate brokerage and with over 2,000 agents, the largest independent real estate company in Illinois. For more information, visit atproperties.com.
Preferred Partners
DESIGN & BUILD
Cornerstone Builders & Assoc. LLC
Nada Djordjevic, Executive Vice President
Berrien Springs, MI
(269) 471-3921 | info@cbabuild.com
cba-build.com
ARCHITECTS
Studio 1 Architects
Steven Poteracki, Principal Architect
Western Springs, IL
(708) 783-1124 | info@studio1architects.com
studio1architects.com
Farr Associates
Doug Farr, Founder / Principal
Chicago, IL
(312) 408-1661 | marketingfarrside.com
farrside.com
Teska Associates
Nick Patera, Senior Vice President
Plainfield, IL (815) 436-9485
Evanston, IL (847) 869-2015
npatera@teskaassociates.com | teskaassociates.com
LENDERS
Origin Point
Mike Nielsen, SVP of Mortgage Lending | Mike Nielsen Group
(773) 620-2870 | michael@originpoint.com
originpoint.com/mikenielsen
Independent Bank
Josh Hinch, Senior Mortgage Loan Officer
(269) 369-4122 | jhinch@ibcp.com
www.independentbank.com/mortgage/jhinch
Midwest Lending
Eileen M. Quigley, VP of Mortgage Lending
(312) 213-7712 | equigley@midwest-lending.com
midwest-lending.com
Construction Loan Specialist
William Grant
(847) 922-9322 | bgrant@acbandt.com
financingstrategist.com
Rural 1st - Land Lender
Randi Webber, Loan Officer
(219) 246-1672 | Randi.Webber@rural1st.com
rural1st.com
Liz Roch Collection
@properties | Christie’s International Real Estate
Your Co-Listing Collective TeamBuild Your Sphere · As Custom As Your Home
As a trusted leader in Harbor Country and Northwest Indiana luxury real estate, Liz brings strategic insight, deep market fluency, and a refined design sensibility that elevates every conversation around land, lifestyle, and long-term value. Her advisory-first approach ensures clients move through the Avanterra experience with confidence and clarity.
Lead Listing Broker · Luxury Real Estate AdvisorDirect: 312.636.8751 Email: lizroch@atproperties.com
Elisha Taylor
Elisha blends real estate expertise with an artist’s intuitive sense for spatial potential and aesthetic possibility. She helps clients see how a homesite, future home build, or vacation rental, can evolve to reflect their lifestyle. Offering creative guidance, her perspective brings imagination and practicality together in a way that resonates with the Avanterra landscape. Having grown up just off Fail Road in the La Porte suburbs, Elisha offers buyers a genuine connection to the region surrounding Avanterra. Her roots here provide an authentic appreciation for the quiet beauty of winding back roads, rolling fields, and the peaceful cadence of inland lake living that have long made this area a natural extension of Harbor Country.
Real Estate Advisor · Listing Agent · Buyer SpecialistDirect: 574.514.6759 Email: elishataylor@atproperties.com
Kristen Sheldon
Kristen offers a polished, detail-forward advisory approach rooted in organization, market intelligence, and concierge-level communication. She ensures each client experiences a smooth and supported process—from early exploration to connecting with lenders and choosing the right builder. Her understanding of both Michigan and Indiana markets adds depth to every stage of the journey.
Real Estate Advisor · Listing Agent · Buyer SpecialistDirect: 269.326.0139 Email: kristensheldon@atproperties.comYour entire experience at Avanterra matters to us. From choosing a site, to envisioning the home, selecting a builder, and navigating financing to closing. Our team streamlines the process, so our clients can focus on one thing: Creating their dream home!
Choose A One-Stop, Supported Experience