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Originally Posted by LIGuy1202
What's a "sub-division"? LOL.
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A subdivision is a planned community. They're popular in the south and in the mid atlantic as well as the midwest, Texas and the west coast. They're also extremely common in Canada, particularly Toronto. They do seem to be completely absent from the northeast and you should consider yourselves lucky for that.
A private developer will buy up a parcel of land, sometimes as small as those city lots yall have up there in the northeast, put in roads and utilities and usually (but not always) build houses. These developments often have common areas and amenities that are shared amongst all members of the community's association. The association is like a co-op. All the members chip in for maintenance. Membership is almost always mandatory. At least in the beginning.
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Originally Posted by LIGuy1202
Really, who'd want to live in a Levittown-like maze?
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I don't know who (aside from hueyeats) would want to live in the maze-like ones (nor the ones that are plain jane grid patterns for that matter), but at least down here in the south the reason people end up in subds, is because there really is no choice. Developers had come in and bought up every small and medium acreage parcel they could so whatever is left is extremely expensive and in high demand as people retire down south and want to have those large properties. So it's a matter of money and availablity and there is almost always a constant supply of new subd homes in inventory.
Sometimes people like them also for the amenities and for the children that seem to take over entire cul de sacs.
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Originally Posted by LIGuy1202
You know, they make the streets curvy to help distract one from the Monopoly-ness of the houses.
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Well I don't know if that's the reason or not but it doesn't work.
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Originally Posted by hueyeats
Lol!!! Repping you!!! ITA!
I like maze-like BUT NOoooooo subds pleaze!
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Thanks I really appreciate it and will return the favor provided I don't need to "spread the love around some" first.
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Originally Posted by hueyeats
I like it "intricate" so when SHTF... our neighbourhood can just down a few trees & big rocks & basically make our homes & roads inaccessible to city / subds folks.
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That may help in a SHTF scenario however in every other scenario it does make it difficult for ambulances and fire trucks to get to your house.
It's possible to have access limited to one entry without it being a maze. My subd is one example of that.
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Originally Posted by hueyeats
& best o' all... hell no HOA government for what "SHTF" survival plants we chose to plants, what animals we have to keep etc...
Yah.. we prepped.
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A common misconception is that HOAs are some outside entity that's goal is to make your life hell. HOAs are a co-op. All the residents are members of the co-op. Volunteers in the community run for board positions but all residents have a say as it's run as a democracy and residents can attend meetings and get an opportunity to vote on some of the larger decisions affecting the community. Therefore the HOA is YOU and your neighbors.
Most if not all the covenants and bylaws are some boilerplate document the builder ordered online or has been using for decades. The association didn't draw this up although sometimes there are amendments or changes made. Amending and making changes requires a vote to pass a certain majority of the membership.
There are some advantages to having a HOA and only one or two disadvantages that I can think of.
Since this is a little off topic, I'll just give it to you in a nutshell. Common property has to be managed and maintained. That's what the association is for. In communities where homes are relatively close together and lumped into one demographic based on what the homes look like upon first impression, having rules and restrictions that are enforced is a benefit. The rules and restrictions are in many cases no more strict than the city ordinances and may actually be less strict. One example being regarding basketball hoops. Some county DOTs made headlines for going around and scooping those all out of the R.O.W. and hauling them off to the dump. A community with privately maintained roads may not have a problem with them.
The disavantages mainly deal with the extra costs of maintaining an association. Usually it involves property managers, book keepers and lawyers. The communities with private roads to maintain are extremely expensive especially when winter plowing is required. If you live in the city, the roads are maintained by tax dollars then again you're still paying property tax so HOA dues are in addition to that. The other main disadvantage other than the perceived restrictions is when associations are poorly maintained and poorly managed, it can negatively impact the entire neighborhood. That's a risk that is generally greater with the entry level price ranges and communities with lots of rental homes. Because these homes are generally not the best maintained and don't do things to add value to the properties (like add landscaping for example) because they're only planning on being there temporarily.
That said, I honestly wish we didn't have HOAs or Subs but I didn't design the housing system.
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