Subdivision Info - Help Appreciated! (Franklin, Hendersonville: real estate, to rent, HOA)

[Kristin85]

Hi everyone,

My DH and I are looking into moving to the Nashville area. We visited the area last month and everyone was incredibly nice. We loved Franklin and Hendersonville so we have started looking at job openings. However, I looked at homes under $250K and saw that most of the properties listed were in subdivisions.

Do all subdivisions have rules and regulations even without HOAs? Do most if not all of the subdivisions in/around Nashville have HOAs? I live in an area that does not have any subdivisions or HOAs so I am not familiar with how they are set up. I have heard the smaller communities are good for families but my husband and I do not have kids yet so this is not a concern for us. We would be interested in hearing more about land/noise/usage restrictions.

Thank you!

[CountryGirl2b=]

Hi! You're leaving CT? That's exactly what I did a year ago, and moved to Franklin. We moved from Simsbury. I see you are considering two cold places and TN. We thought about Cincinnati OR Nashville and Nashville 'won'.

As for subdivisions, I know, it's weird! I didn't get it when the RE agent started showing me around. I just wanted a plain old house that didn't BELONG to anybody but ME!

I did see maybe one in Franklin and it was PROBABLY not within city limits. Inside the city everything seems kinda planned out. There are good and bad things about them. The bad thing is that they can ask you to paint your garage door or put your garbage bin out of site.

The good thing is that the houses are fairly neat and tidy. No one has junk cars in the back yard or too many pink flamingos on the front lawn. ALTHOUGH I am kinda partial to pink flamingos . .

There's usually a HOA monthly fee and it depends on the development and I guess what they offer. I have a book that the Tennesseean published called the Neighborhood Fact book (more like a pamphlet) and it lists the subdivisions and the dues so I can look them up for you. The houses on RealTracs.com usually list the subdivison. In Franklin it might say Fieldstone Farms or Franklin Green or Westhaven.

To consider NH and ME . . . . . or TN. Two pretty different choices. You either LOVE New England or you don't. You either enjoy the winters or not. The snow didn't get to me as much as the cost to heat - we had an electric heat pump and it was very expensive. Property taxes here about 1/4 of what they were in CT. Food is about the same price. People seem friendlier and more laid back here for what that's worth.

Usage restrictions . . . you mean can you raise chickens? I'd say probably not. We had to get permission to build a deck. Noise ordinances are pretty much a city law but you can go through the property management company and file a complaint I would suspect.

Have you been here? It's a lot different than New England. But it IS pretty here, too, and we DO have 4 seasons. Summer lasts longer and Winter is shorter.

Good luck!

[DonCorleone]

CountryGirl pretty well summed it all up. HOAs have their fans and their detractors. I'd say "most" new subdivisions will have HOAs simply because of the amenity upkeep (pools/playgrounds/common areas) and HOAs are reputed to increase resale value of homes...so that is good for the builder. But just be aware of the monthly fees before you buy and consider what (if any) amenities you're getting for that price. I'd also recommend that you look at a copy of the HOA Covenant (the binding document you sign when you buy in a HOA subdivision). This will outline all the rules/regulations/use restrictions. Most people don't read them ahead of time and then are suprised to find out that they can't leave their never-been-seaworthy boat in their driveway or park an RV on the side of the road...etc.

That said, even if you don't buy in an HOA community, local codes will prohibit a lot of trashiness in an area...but that is very subjective and local codes enforcement is often very lax unless you (as a neighbor) really press the issue.

I live in Hendersonville, so let me know if I can help you with any questions you have about that area of town.

[CountryGirl2b=]

Don, Are HOAs EVERYWHERE in Middle TN? Honestly, this is the first time I've ever come in contact with them (except for condo complexes in CT). Even older houses outside the city limits seem to have banded together?

YES, do read the paperwork. I found out AFTER the fact that I am not allowed to RENT out our house. Not to say people don't do it but that was a bit of a shock to me. A change in the original covenant so read ALL of it! And ask for updated pages!

[Kristin85]

Thank you CountryGirl. You have been very helpful. My husband and I are itching to get out of Greenwich. I love New England autumn and summers on the Maine coast but my husband would be happy if he never saw a flake of snow again so we are compromising and looking at NH, TN, and ME. We did visit Nashville recently and we both loved it. My only hesitancy in moving to TN is the drive to water (but living in Hendersonville could fix that problem) and subdivision restrictions.

I will try to find the Neighborhood Fact Book. I am fixated on restrictions because I don't want to be surprised after moving that certain plans I'd made can't be carried out. I am a very outdoorsy person and would like to own hens (no loud roosters) and possibly 2-3 farm animals. I also love gardening and would like to plant shrubs, trees, and flowers wherever I please without interference from a neighborhood association. My husband and brother (who may be moving with us) are also guitar players and it would be a shame if noise ordinances prevented them from playing acoustic on a back porch. Living rurally in ME or NH would mean we wouldn't have any complaints about animals, gardening, and music but I am not sure if this is true even in subdivisions with large lots in TN. If there will be restrictions against these activities in most subdivisions, I will speak with a realtor about non-subdivision properties. If we can't find anything that suits our needs, we may need to exclude TN from our search. It's too bad there are so few large lots under $300k around Nashville.

[nashvols]

Originally Posted by CountryGirl2b=

Don, Are HOAs EVERYWHERE in Middle TN? Honestly, this is the first time I've ever come in contact with them (except for condo complexes in CT). Even older houses outside the city limits seem to have banded together?

YES, do read the paperwork. I found out AFTER the fact that I am not allowed to RENT out our house. Not to say people don't do it but that was a bit of a shock to me. A change in the original covenant so read ALL of it! And ask for updated pages!

HOAs aren't everywhere, though it seems like it. I live in an older area (well, mid 1970s development), and there is a "voluntary HOA" if you want to call it that. Dues are $5/month, and strictly go towards upkeep of the neighborhood entrance. No one tells people what to do with their houses, yards, etc. But there are a few organized neighborhood parties and even a neighborhood yard sale.

I think a lot of it depends on whether or not the development is a subdivision or if they were individually built houses.

[septimus]

Most newer subdivisions (less than 25 years old) have HOAs.

They have there benefits. My old 'hood of $800k houses we had one neighbor who left his station wagon from the 70s on cinderblocks for weeks at a time.

Most aren't all that restrictive (as long as you don't want to paint your house flamingo pink). I've made changes to my yard and house with merely a rubber stamp so far.

[CountryGirl2b=]

Sounds really nice - the hens and the guitars! But suspect that might be a City ordinance rather than an HOA issue. I am dealing with a constantly barking Beagle and at the end of the day, the HOA is telling me to contact Animal Control.

I don't know about Hendersonville. I don't know of too many places in Franklin in your price range that would 'fit' your wants. There ARE some 'spreads' in Fairview! Don't know much about Fairview. It's still in Williamson County and have been told it's 'rural' but I wouldn't mind a house in the woods either!

This one has 9 acres:
RealTracs Mid-South Real Estate Property Finder Listing Details

This one has 5!
RealTracs Mid-South Real Estate Property Finder Listing Details

I think for water, like the ocean, people south about 8 hours to Pensacola, FL or Gulfport, LA.

PS. Just checked the Neighborhood Fact Book and it only covers Williamson County. MAYBE there is one that covers Sumner? The phone number for the paper is 615 771 5400. And this one is called The Williamson County Neighborhood Fact Book 2010. Although ont he front it says Williamson A.M.???

[septimus]

Look out towards Leipers Fork. It is a beautiful area (reminds me a bit of Litchfield County). Lots of larger lots, yet still very close to all the conveniences of Franklin

[Kristin85]

CountryGirl, thank you again! I hadn't heard of Fairview before (I may not have paid close enough attention to road signs when I visited) but the properties you pulled out are great. The home on 9 acres would need some updating, but nothing substantial. I'll keep that town on the "short list" if the commute into Nashville isn't too dreadful.

Also, Septimus, I have looked at properties in Leipers Fork online before; most are very nice and just what I'm looking for! If I can figure out what the regulations are for that town (and they aren't bad) that may be one of the top 3 areas where I'd try to relocate. I picked out 4 jobs to apply for in Nashville today-with any luck I'll get a callback!