Even in a down market, an enclave for the super-rich is getting under way in Cape Coral.

Two Lee County developers are rolling out 42 custom estate homes with prices ranging from $5 million to $20 million. On top of that, a $500,000 nonrefundable deposit is required to purchase one of the homes.

Welcome to Tarpon Estates, the new community under construction in the Tarpon Point Marina development in Cape Coral.

Each house will have deepwater access to the Caloosahatchee and be a few minutes from the Gulf of Mexico.

Backyard docks suitable for 100-foot-long yachts and developers bent on harmonious architecture and top-quality construction in an exclusive, deed-restricted setting are also part of the package.

Tarpon Estates' developers believe the promise offered by this gated community within a gated community will ensure the development's success, despite the slumping residential market.

The upper end of the waterfront market is stronger than ever, according to Harry Albright Jr. of Fort Myers, who is developing Tarpon Estates along with Kim Wallace of Cape Coral.

"So there is no negative market condition in the upper-end waterfront communities," he said. "So it's a matter of going slowly and getting the right homeowners. People that want to have this lifestyle aren't concerned about glitches in sub-prime markets."

Albright, Wallace and Bob Hensley, chief executive officer of Tarpon Point's developer, Grosse Pointe Development, said Tarpon Estates possesses a trait that is highly valued by boating enthusiasts. They said the roughly 24-acre tract is the last stretch of direct-access, deep-water acreage between Marco Island and Sarasota that has yet to be developed.

Each home there will have a different design and be built before hitting the market, with sizes ranging from 4,200 square feet to 20,000 square feet of living area.

Just one house has been built so far, while construction has begun on two others. The finished house, the entry-level three-bedroom, 31/2-bathroom 4,224-square-foot La Torre model, is priced at $4.95 million, furnished.

Wallace said the next step up will be a home with just less than 6,000 square feet of living area, for about $7.4 million, and a roughly 6,500-square-foot home that will have have a list price of roughly $7.8 million.

The builder is Naples-based BCB homes, which specializes in waterfront construction from Marco Island to Sarasota, including in Naples' ultra-upscale Port Royal neighborhood.

J.B. Novelli, president of Century 21 J.B. Novelli Internationale, in Fort Myers, which specializes in luxury homes, predicted success for Tarpon Estates, especially given the strength of the Euro and the British Pound against the dollar.

"We do a lot of sales in Sanibel, Captiva and Naples and the high end is alive and well," she said. "When it starts to get down around $1 million, that's where the difficulty starts. Also, I think that waterfront in Southwest Florida is our most precious commodity and so if you can couple that with well-priced, luxury homes, you have a winner."

It is indeed possible that some residents may be assisted by a live-in staff who may cook, clean and provide butler services, Albright said.

He said the design work is under way on the $20 million home, which will feature a grand ballroom, docking for a yacht of 150 feet or more, 20,000 square feet under air, and captain's quarters and butler's quarter.

Albright said plans call for a slow and steady approach to building the homes and placing them on the market, to maximize demand. He said he envisions the project being completed within five or six years.

He said the marketing is being shared by Wallace, BCB and Marilyn Kistler of Prudential WCI Realty in Fort Myers and extends to Canada and Europe.

Hensley said he envisions the typical buyer being someone purchasing their second or third home. "These are affluent people who have a lot of disposable income and they tend to chase the weather," he said.