[wrrr]

Yesterday I telephoned Heritage Village (Southbury) directly and politely asked for them to send down the Association “Rules” to me as soon as possible. I was going to ask about what the rules are concerning me doing my own auto repair but actually stopped asking any more questions when the girl told me that our second vehicle must be parked in a “visitor’s spot” and that is IF I could find one………

Not a very comforting thought, and then she says the visitor’s parking is some distance away from the units, another comforting answer………..

So I wish to know FIRST HAND from residents (or Realtors) that really, really can give me a true and honest answer……….. in Heritage Village, if we bought a unit with one car garage, and I wanted to “neatly” (takes about 30 minutes) CHANGE OIL or I wanted to ROTATE TIRES in MY garage, can I do it without any “fear” or “reprimands” from the Association and what about WASHING my vehicles in front of my unit ??

Please give honest answers, I can take it !! Remember I am a “gearhead” from the 60’s and change my own oil in both my vehicles…….. and I will do ‘till the day I die !!

[CTlibrarian]

I work with someone who lives in Heritage village...

She says "no" to changing oil in the garage. Apparently, the garages are not attached to the individual units. The garages are separate buildings, each housing a group (in her case 5) of cars.

She is not sure about car washing. She has never seen anyone do it...

[JayCT]

While Heritage Village is very nice, it is from a different era in time. 55+ housing has come a long way since then. Have you considered one of the newer 55+ complexes in the area? Many have 1 or 2 car garages attached to the units and small driveways that would be good for washing a car. They will be pricier than Heritage. Not sure what you are able to afford but I saw one at $325k that has an attached garage with a small driveway that looked very nice. I can't imagine that any Association would limit what you can do in that garage to your own vehicle and not allow washing your own car in that driveway.

I will say I was surprised to see how affordable Heritage Village was (under $200k) for a western Connecticut condominium in a town as nice as Southbury. Made me start to think that we may want to live there when we retire and maintain a second home in a warmer climate for the winter. That though is many many years away. Jay

[wrrr]

Originally Posted by CTlibrarian

I work with someone who lives in Heritage village...

She says "no" to changing oil in the garage. Apparently, the garages are not attached to the individual units. The garages are separate buildings, each housing a group (in her case 5) of cars.

She is not sure about car washing. She has never seen anyone do it...

THANKS for the reply...... not exactly what I wanted to hear, but at least HONEST and that is what I was asking about !!

Like I wrote before, my Wife and I lived in an "Active Adult" (55+) Community in Leesburg, Florida about 25 miles south of the famous "The Villages", and we owned our house and the land it sat on. Sure there were Association Rules, but I was one of many that had nice workshops in our oversized 2 1/2 car garages, and I am talking about a $200K, two year old house !! Many men there enjoyed woodworking in their workshops and a few, as myself, enjoyed changing oil in our vehicles (cars) as well as our sit-down lawn mowers, etc., even to the point of performing automobile brake jobs, changing spark plugs, rotating tires, and I mean all in a clean, neat fashion !!
It was our HOME to do in as we pleased, NOT a Gestapo Camp as I used the phrase many times before on these forum threads, referring to overly-strick Condo's !!

Now you SHOCK me when you say your friend has never seen anyone washing their vehicles..... sure, it is true that lots of people, north, south, east, west, take their vehicles to the drive-thru car washes, but I am just an old fashioned guy that likes to put on my shorts and sandals, get a little wet, while my vehicle gets clean and NO scratches or broken antennas !!
As much as I dislike waxing the vehicle, it needs it at least twice a year and that is when I drive it into MY garage after the washing, put on some tunes (NOT loud), and make the most of rubbing on the wax and rubbing off to a great shine.

Sounds like a Condo, while for MANY, is just NOT for ME !! The irony of it all is that my Wife and I are sick, sick, sick of crazy ASSOCIATION RULES down here in Florida that dictates the color of your house, the color of your blinds, will not let one put a screen door on, forces one to have to keep their garage door closed, even if working in it, and the crazy fact that Florida houses in OUR Community, all with NO basements, small garages and teeny, tiny attics are NOT allowed to have even a 3 foot x 6 foot "lean-to" type SHED attached to their house, even if painted the exact color of the house.....
Rules, rules, rules......... good for who, the "slobs" ?? certainly NOT for decent folk that want to save a few dollars and time being a "do-it-yourselfer" !!

Why would we want to leave this Florida "rules galore" situation only to have that same deja vu of problems appear with a similar type set of rules and regulations in "old" Condos of Connecticut ??

[wrrr]

Originally Posted by JayCT

While Heritage Village is very nice, it is from a different era in time. 55+ housing has come a long way since then. Have you considered one of the newer 55+ complexes in the area? Many have 1 or 2 car garages attached to the units and small driveways that would be good for washing a car. They will be pricier than Heritage. Not sure what you are able to afford but I saw one at $325k that has an attached garage with a small driveway that looked very nice. I can't imagine that any Association would limit what you can do in that garage to your own vehicle and not allow washing your own car in that driveway.

I will say I was surprised to see how affordable Heritage Village was (under $200k) for a western Connecticut condominium in a town as nice as Southbury. Made me start to think that we may want to live there when we retire and maintain a second home in a warmer climate for the winter. That though is many many years away. Jay

YOU have given me "food-for-thought"............ I will definitely look into this, THANKS SO MUCH JayCT !!

[JayCT]

I know what you mean about HOA rules. If you read the Boards of southern states where there are a lot of HOA's you see thread after thread complaining about the rules and how they are run. I would not like it either. The reason that I think the Heritage Village person has not seen anyone washing their car is that there probably isn't any where that it is easy to do it in. There might not be a hose available to use to wash a car. Remember Condo living is suppose to be leisure living (or at least it use to be marketed that way when I was a kid) and washing a car was work that people who moved to these places wanted to get away from.

If you are really interested in Heritage Village, maybe you should consider renting for a year there to see if you like it before buying. Just a suggestion, Jay

[wrrr]

Originally Posted by JayCT

I know what you mean about HOA rules. If you read the Boards of southern states where there are a lot of HOA's you see thread after thread complaining about the rules and how they are run. I would not like it either. The reason that I think the Heritage Village person has not seen anyone washing their car is that there probably isn't any where that it is easy to do it in. There might not be a hose available to use to wash a car. Remember Condo living is suppose to be leisure living (or at least it use to be marketed that way when I was a kid) and washing a car was work that people who moved to these places wanted to get away from.

If you are really interested in Heritage Village, maybe you should consider renting for a year there to see if you like it before buying. Just a suggestion, Jay

Hi Jay, THANKS for the nice reply.....
I come to the conclusion that Condo living is for a certain "type" of person..... there are MANY different types of people that fit comfortably into Condo life. Think about that Airline stewardess that is away from home for days and when she does come home wants a nice few days of sleep and relaxation..... she would be a great fit for a Condo. Think about the 70+ year old couple who DON'T want to cut grass, weed or garden anymore and love to play bridge, chess, knitt, and other social activities the Condo has to offer. Same thing goes for that 55 year old salesman who is on the road 50% of the time and just needs a simple, quiet, place to come home to and NOT have to worry about cutting grass or cleaning gutters....... the list goes on and on..... and lets us NOT forget the SnowBirds that live 6 months a year in Connecticut and when the New England winter season starts, fly down to their place in Florida or Georgia.

I guess I am just NOT ready for the "Condo life" yet !!

Perhaps in a decade or so Condo life might be for me (and my Wife) but unless RIGHT NOW it is remotely "close" to what we actually owned in Leesburg, Florida (Royal Highlands), that is the real separate HOUSE with oversized garage for $200K and social events with 1500 other residents, we shall "pass" on Heritage Village and put our efforts (and money) toward a nice, solid, good condition house in Southbury, Oxford or Southington, CT.

[TisMe1020]

Does anyone know what the monthly association fees are at Heritage Village? From what I read online they seem kinda high!

[jdhall1]

Originally Posted by TisMe1020

Does anyone know what the monthly association fees are at Heritage Village? From what I read online they seem kinda high!

According to a quick reseach on the MLS, they seem to vary from about $300 to about $500 a month, depending on unit size.

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by jdhall1

According to a quick reseach on the MLS, they seem to vary from about $300 to about $500 a month, depending on unit size.

$300 to $500 per month??? WOW!!! That is very high, even for Connecticut. What do you get for that? Heat? Hot water? Golfing? I pay $175 for a condo in Middletown that has a clubhouse, pool, tennis court, weight room, racquet ball court and hot tub. Jay