Weston Neighborhoods (Sunset: cul-de-sac, buying a home, buying)

[writealicia]

Hi, Our realtor showed us some homes this weekend and we are trying to decide between buying a home in the Lakes vs. the Islands... (but are open to other neighborhoods too).
We are looking for a street where it is super young family friendly (we have a toddler) and walkable. Where kids play outside with each other and do frequent play dates in parks in homes.
Please let me know if either of these fits the bill or should I be looking elsewhere.
THanks a ton.

PS How valuable are water views vs. pools in Weston? Our budget is approximately 500k.
Thank you.

[ruski]

A pool is soemething you can actually use... Since you have a toddler, make sure that the pool has baby fence. Or if you go with a water view, make sure there is a fence in the backyard.

Have you seen the pool complex in Savanna? (5 pools, including a water slide. The place looks like a resort) With a pool complex like that, you won't really need your own pool.
I lived in Savanna for 10 years and it was very young family oriented.

I think any Weston neighborhood is young family friendly. Even Weston Hills.

[ralanprod]

My rule of thumb is that a pool is wonderful to have.

As long as someone else has to deal with the cleaning and maintenance...

[ruski]

Also if you have a lake or a canal in the backyard, you will probably have mosquitoes.

Last 10 years or so, Weston has been pretty mosquito-free, the city did a great job eradicating them, but if you are on the water, you will get at least some mosquitoes.

Also you could get water moccasins from a lake. Not that you will definitely have them, but there is a chance.

[lookingfordreamhome]

most communities in weston are very young family oriented. there are kids everywhere. it will basically depend on you and your attempt to socialize/befriend other moms.

both the lakes and the islands are very nice. the lakes has a community swimming pool so you don't necessarily need one in the home. also, if you have a toddler, it may be better NOT to have a pool for a while in your backyard. a little less worrying to do.. esp if the community has a pool.

[CrystalBond]

I'm thinking that you may want to consider not getting something with a water view if you have a toddler, and make sure that if it has a pool - a nice sturdy toddler fence around it. As the others mentioned, Weston is a very family friendly community. Please let us know if we can help further.

[AlexRodriguez]

Do you mean Lakes vs. Hibiscus Island? I'm asking 'cause I haven't seen anything in the rest of the Islands for 500k or less in a long time. I agree with everyone that the whole city of Weston is family friendly, but I prefer smaller communities since you get know more your neighbors and you have little traffic as well.

Hibiscus Island is a small community with a nice feel, but the size of the houses there can be easily outgrown if you are planning to have more kids. Also there are not many houses with pool in this Island. The Lakes on the other hand is at least 5x larger than Hibiscus Island with more spacious houses with pool, but again it's too large in my opinion. Both communities have a pool, but pools don't come free, the cost of maintenance is added to your association fee.

I personally prefer the pool vs. lake view 'cause "a view" is all you get with the "lake view" that cost more than a pool. I also have a toddler and can tell you that nobody enjoys more a pool than a toddler.

I'd also recommend to look in "The Springs". All of the Springs' communities are small and nice. I live in Sunset Springs and I can tell you, it's a beautiful and peaceful place to live. I'd also recommend you to try to find a house in a cul-de-sac if you want your kid to ride a bike or play outside without having to worry about traffic.

Buying a house is not as easy as it seems and there are a lot of things Realtors won't tell you, so don't submit offers like crazy. learn all you can about the community, about the street, about the neighbors, etc, etc 'cause you want to avoid any type of buyer's remorse later on.

Alex