IT'S QUITE NORMAL to underestimate the value that exists right where we live. That's just what is happening on rural West Anthony Road, barely a 10-minute drive north of downtown Ocala, where home sites are going for $150,000 an acre - a figure that would have been unthinkable a couple of years ago.

As the sites sell out and the new community attracts international attention - as it did in Fortune magazine in mid-March - don't be surprised if the prices ratchet up.

There's good reason for it. What's taking shape is Jumbolair Aviation Estates, a 550-acre fly-in community with a $6 million runway. At 7,550 feet, it's the longest, private, lighted FAA-licensed runway in the U.S. and is capable of handling 747s. And it's wider than any at New York's JFK or Chicago's O'Hare!

What makes it unique, and truly Ocala, though, is this community comes with a 42-barn equestrian center, trail rides, a restaurant, clubhouse and an inn, once owned by Muriel Vanderbilt Adams, great-great-granddaughter of legendary tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt.

"We just raised the prices about 10 percent to $350,000 to $425,000 for the home sites that measure a bit more than two to 3.7 acres", says Terri Jones-Thayer, who owns Jumbolair with husband Jeremy Thayer.

In the first phase, 13 of the 19 home sites have already been sold, and that's in addition to the eight-acre aviation estate being built by Jumbolair's first customers - John Travolta and wife, actress Kelly Preston, whose $2.5 million, 6,400-square-foot mansion is fast nearing completion.

"You don't have to own or fly a plane to live here," says Jones-Thayer, "but this is an aviation estate and every home has to have a an attached or unattached hangar.

However, almost everyone signing up at Jumbolair - including Jones-Thayer - is a flyer. Travolta has a Boeing 707 and a Gulfstream. A retired German racecar driver owns a Russian MiG 17. A socialite from the Hamptons, in Long Island, has her crew fly her down in a Lear, an air traffic controller and NTSB inspector from Jacksonville. Others own an Albatross, T-28 fighters, a T-33?

If you want to get a sense of Jumbolair's popularity, drop by on the first Sunday of every month, when up to 180 planes from all over the Southeast partake in the "fly-in" for brunch.

WHY OCALA?

Jumbolair - named for elephants and the lion's den - has been around since 1980. Arthur Jones - inventor of Nautilus exercise equipment - invested $6 million to build the runway as he and wife Terri turned the Ocala estate into a refuge for wildlife they, along with John and Bo Derek, rescued from Africa.

Terri was 18 then, and accomplished in her own right. A model in her teens, she founded a modeling school and sold her school when she was 17, became the international spokeswoman for Nautilus, and was one of Revlon's "Charlie Girls." By age 23, she set a coast-to-coast flying record and became the youngest person licensed to fly a 707 and a 747.

The Jones' divorced in 1989, and years later Terri bought Jones' interest in Jumbolair. She and Thayer - who mined precious stones in Sri Lanka, developed properties around Telluride, Colo., and established exclusive gem boutiques in South Florida - are focused on making Jumbolair America's most unique aviation community.

"We've already had people buy in because of Ocala's open spaces and horse-farm ambience," says Jones-Thayer. "We're already boarding a lovely pony for a family from Orlando who bought here and fly in so their daughter can take lessons."

Meanwhile, the sprawling inn - which will also save as a club for residents - is staffed by personal chef and innkeeper Kirk Phillips, formerly of Ocean Reef Club in South Florida.

Construction on other homes is about to begin, now that the taxiways from the North-South runway, street lights and other infrastructure are in place.

Phase Two will mirror Phase One, which is near the Travolta homestead. When completed, Jumbolair Aviation Community will have 100 to 125 homes spread over the 550 acres, and developers and those buying in expect the prices to escalate rapidly.

The reason? Apart from the beauty of the land in Ocala, it will be luxurious by existing standards. And it's a steal.

For example, more than 1,800 sites are crammed around the 4,000-foot-runway at a fly-in community in Daytona Beach, and the going price there is between $1.3 and $1.5 million

Another reason: Jumbolair is taxiing for take-off, but it's already receiving international press attention. It was a major feature in Fortune magazine, which wrote that half a dozen "big-names" - including Lorenzo Lamas - will soon be residents of Jumbolair, which it dubbed as "the world's most over-the-top fly-in community."

Soft-spoken Thayer-Jones, well-known in the community (she was the cover model for OCALA magazine in February), says she can't divulge or confirm names. "One reason there's so much interest," she explains, "is because it's a large and spacious gated community with a lot of privacy. About half the people will live here or make it their second home, and for the other half it will be a third or vacation home and family retreat."

She adds: "Both Jeremy and I have worked on a lot of exciting projects. But this one's truly special. Aviation communities aren't new. But we've already being told that ours will be one of the most unique."