retirement communities

[BajaBound]

geez what to do what to do If you do not move to a del webb, but to a town of 60,000 what is a 60 ish couple suppose to do to meet people.

[Honeycrisp]

There are definite perks to living in a 55+ community, meeting people is the obvious one as many have a variety of interesting clubs (golf, book etc) - I guess volunteering w/b another way to go, maybe joining a church, going to a meetup group or getting a dog would also help.

[RWH]

I have found the comments on this forum interesting and some of them food for thought which anyone thinking about this life style would do well to consider. I am interested in learning more about 55+ communities in Tennessee. Does anyone have info on any. At this point I have decided on a specific location within the state. That will come after visiting the commuinities. The only one I know of is Lake Providence in Mt. Juliet. I am planning a trip there the first of July. Is anyone familier with this community?

[staywarm2]

Originally Posted by Avalon08

This thread (and the Leisureville book) bring up so many good things to consider. I think if I were making the decision, I'd want to know how long the community has been in existence, what the turnover rate is, average number of units for sale by year, average age of residents by year, etc. I do know that some of the original 55+'s in AZ have fallen into disrepair, yet the Laguna Woods (CA) community that I visited has been around since (1970?) and seems to still be a viable community. Yet, the average age is 78. Which means to me, that most of the owners moved in when the community opened and have stayed, and there hasn't been enough younger retirees moving in to bring down the average age. We know that there's still lots of interest in The Villages -- but is it because they're still building? I would really have to get out the Excel spreadsheet and do some analysis.

A spreadsheet would be a wonderful idea. However, I think obtaining the pertinent info would be extremely hard. I feel like the sales people at those 55+ communities leave out pertinent information or even prevaricate. At The Villages when we visited 2 weeks ago, the rep said that 80% of the inhabitants were full time (not snowbirds). However, the place was dead when we were there (mid May) and a friend who is moving there told me it was more like 70% permanent residents. I wonder if permanent residents aren't an even lower number. When the rep took us around, he NEVER MENTIONED the CDD bond, which is a considerable investment.

So, I wish you well in trying to get data on these places. I'd sure like to know average age, etc. in all the 55+ communities in which I'm interested, as well as % of snowbirds and the other data you mentioned.

I've heard Andrew Blechman is writing a follow-up book to "Leisureville." I hope that's true. We could all use more help in making a decision.

[MN2CO]

Staywarm2 - Care to share your perception of the Villages? Is it an atractive area? I visited an area in Fl (Bonita Springs?) that felt like a ghost town - it was Nov. and I expected to see people out walking around and there wasn't a person to be seen. Makes one wonder......

[PeggyB]

We are retired, age 70. Now live in a rural area 15 miles from city, 5 miles for a small town where we shop. Very isolated in terms of socialization. Neighbors either work or have their own separate lives.
So... we are going to sell and relocate closer to the city (L.A.) where we have family. We are thinking about Lake Arrowhead although it has its negatives; i.e., snow and a mtn. road to go down to the city. Finding a neighborhood where you have people of similar values, similar income, etc. is very hard to do. I didn't use to think the similar income mattered but now find that the more alike we are the more we get together and share.

[brightdoglover]

I have been interested in the Erickson communities because of the services available and the fact that you aren't actually buying the unit- the entry fee, which is steep, is 100% refundable to you if you leave, or your estate, if you... leave.
I don't see a lot of point of buying a house in a community that is 55+ when the only service might be lawn mowing, except for the lack of children or teenagers or young people noise and difficulties.
For the record, I'd be fine with restrictive covenants about flagpoles and colors and all, as long as I understood them upfront. I've never lived in a place like that, but don't feel much need to personally express myself through shutters, etc.
I have seen some communities advertised with strict covenants and absurdly high "minimum square footage" for new building- like 2300sq.ft. MINIMUM, and a max of 6500 sq.ft. Maybe it's a Western thing? Assuming people coming from California or Texas with big bucks? Oh, and there was a minimum of three garage bays, max. four. No cars to be seen.
'sigh' and every lot had a mountain view. I could get behind all the restrictions about colors and materials and all.

[staywarm2]

Originally Posted by MN2CO

Staywarm2 - Care to share your perception of the Villages? Is it an atractive area?

MN2CO,
My two first impressions of The Villages were 1) that it was a large, pretty, clean, planned community and 2) that it was almost dead at 1 pm on a Saturday. How quiet it was all over the community truly surprised me. Of course this was mid May from 1pm to 4pm and I'm sure all the snowbirds had gone back north and probably lots of people were indoors keeping cool.

I had a negative impression before I went, mainly because of the "Leisureville" book, so they would have had to impress me! My husband really liked it. He especially liked that the homes didn't seem as close together as in the Sun City complexes. He also liked all the activities. He's a very laid back person though, and easy to please. I thought it was pretty and well laid out. We lived in a planned community in SE FL and we like that look.

The most interesting thing was that the place was DEAD! Hardly anyone anywhere! We got there at 1 pm and had lunch at the Ruby Tuesday restaurant. It was maybe 1/2 full. Most of the people were older--70's & up. There were a couple of young families with kids. We walked over the the sales center and met the greeters, who were friendly and helpful. They called a sales rep, who took us around and showed us the community. He was very pleasant and answered all our questions. I didn't mention to him that I had read the book or knew anything in advance. I wanted to hear what he had to say. He showed us one of everything--hospital, family pool, country club, golf course, etc. We met a couple of ladies on the pickleball court and they were around our age and very friendly. They were the only actual residents we spoke with. At Spanish Springs they were gearing up for a classic car show and blocking streets off, etc. We went through 3 of the Designer Model homes. They were very nice and had medium priced amenities--nice cabinets and vanities but not top-of-the-line, nor were they cheap. I thought the quality was better than in the Sun City homes. They were spacious. We didn't look at the Ranch, Villa or Premier homes.

The rep gave us a $135 figure for the amenities fee (for everyone) but NEVER mentioned the CDD Bond. We finished up with him at 4 pm and I stopped back in Ruby Tuesday to use the restroom. It was packed full--mostly OLD people, some with canes and walkers. I don't know if they were there for the early bird special or to eat before all the activities started at the "downtown" Spanish Springs at 5pm. I wish we had stayed for the evening entertainment and line-dancing, etc. to get a better feel for what happens at night.

The rep told us that 80% of the residents there were full time. I really find that hard to believe. My friend here in ATL who is moving there this month said she heard there were 30% snowbirds. She also mentioned how very crowded the restaurants and golf courses are during the winter, with all the snow birds.

There is a tremendous amount of things to do there: from bowling, golf, pickleball and softball to all sorts of crafts and games and book clubs. I think my husband and I could both keep busy and content with the activities.

I did ask the rep about planting trees and bushes, as I thought landscaping on some of the homes seemed rather stark. He said you could plant bushes (small) and trees with Architectural Control approval. My friend told me that bushes were allowed to be only 5' from your lanai. So I guess you can't plant a hedge around your yard, etc. I did notice that there were lots of vinyl sided homes with no brick or stone or shingle decoration--just plain vinyl. They mix each style of home into each village--not on the same streets, but within the same village. This seems to be a method of keeping things egalitarian.

I already knew many of the difficult issues, such as politics, etc. but mostly I was shocked because of the advanced age of the people themselves. I don't want to live with a bunch of oldsters. We aren't kids, but we are very active and don't want to eat dinner at 4pm! But perhaps the younger group--55 to 69 were out of town, etc.

I saw the cart path "bridge" over US 27 that spans from the old side of The Villages to the new side. It was rather amazing! From US 27, The Villages is like a bright star after seeing all the ramshackle businesses and other junk along that route. I'm sure I would have had a better impression of the general area if we had come in off I-75.

PM me if you have other questions. However, keep in mind that we were there only for 3 hours and these were only first impressions.

[staywarm2]

Originally Posted by BajaBound

geez what to do what to do If you do not move to a del webb, but to a town of 60,000 what is a 60 ish couple suppose to do to meet people.

With all the boomers coming along, I can't believe that someone won't start a series of social clubs that have activities like the 55+ communities but for people who want to live in their own individual neighborhoods. Wouldn't that be nice? It's so hard to meet people after your kids are grown.

[MN2CO]

Staywarm2 - Thanks for the info - I've been curious and like to hear an unbiased view.