Moving to Lakewood Ranch - CDD/HOA Restrictions?

[PixiStix]

Dear god people, there is life outside Lakewood Ranch.. IMO, much better than. Lots of neighborhoods out there without militant HOA's for you to google. Repeat after me... Sarasota has MUCH to offer outside LWR!

Frankly it took all of 5 minutes research for me when we moved here to realize living in LWR would make my eyes bleed. However, I have friends that live there that don't mind the rules or the restricted 3 pieces of lawn art or particular color of yellow they need on their house. Different strokes for different folks...

But I'm always amazed when people buy in LWR only to complain later about the HOA's tactics..

[bbronston]

Originally Posted by GBWaler

I bought in GB Walk recently and the association has been great and quite helpful with my move. Townhall (AKA Greenbrook Village Association) on the other hand pulled what I consider an extremely crappy move. The last owner owed back fees for less than $150, somehow less than 4 months after I closed I received my very first communication on the matter and a bill for over $2000 and threat to lien in 45 days (and yes I did have a title search done before closing). The association has high standards but the payoff is that neighborhoods are clean and neat and very attractive. Town hall on the other hand stinks up the whole place up for me. To my own property value's detriment I wouldn't recommend anything in Greenbrook Village for this reason. They allow sneaky attorney's to represent them and hide behind their own rules that they can not talk about anything once it's handed over to collections to keep from getting their hands dirty (or correcting an injustice). Association living means lots of rules. There are many single family homes a few miles away if you want to do things your own way.

I remembered this thread and decided to see what the new post was about. Sorry to hear about your trouble. I'm a little confused, though, about your problem. Are you saying that there was an outstanding balance on your seller's account that was not addressed at closing? If that is right, are you also saying that the fines and interest kept building up during the interim? If these are correct, I think you should call your title company immediately. It is their responsiblity to get an estoppel letter from the association which basically says this is the amount owed to us through the closing date. The account balance then starts anew with you following the closing. Chances are, you were charged the HOA fee for the balance of the year in which you purchased. So, if you are getting saddled with the association fees from the seller and the resulting fees on top of those, I think you need to talk to your title company about their errors and omissions insurance. Pull out your file and contact your closer.

If the money owed is due to your own violations, are you saying that you never received a notice of the violation? If so, I would attend the next meeting of the board and talk to them. Since I don't live in GB, I can't say for certain but I imagine they would not hold you accountable for a notification failure. Maybe you can contact the board members directly.

[bbronston]

Originally Posted by gardenpearl

Thank you for sharing your experiences. Did you mean there are single family homes close by outside of LWR altogether, or just outside of Greenbrook?

If you give us an idea of what you are looking for, we can probably make some suggestions.

[IC_deLight]

HOAs do not "preserve property values".
By the way here is a story on condos in Lakewood Ranch:

Excerpt:
"LAKEWOOD RANCH, Florida -- Dozens of homeowners in a Lakewood Ranch community met with State Senator Mike Bennett Wednesday night to talk about the issues they've had with the construction of their homes. Residents in the Willowbrook subdivision said they are dealing with shoddy construction and blame the builder, KB Home. According to homeowners, for years they've struggled with mold, gaping holes, and rotted wood. Some have not had any work done. Of those who have had work done, many say the problems still exist. Manatee County has posted "potential hazard" signs on a number of units in the subdivision."


Full story: State Senator Mike Bennett meets with frustrated Willowbrook homeowners | wtsp.com

[Sunshine Rules]

To be fair, the story is regarding just one builder, KB Home. I have been following this story since I came across one of the resident's web sites regarding the situation a couple of months ago. (Ah, the power of google... )


There have been numerous threads on this forum over the past couple of years on deed restricted vs non deed restricted communities. Having lived in both in the Sarasota area, I can relate to the pros and cons of both.


If you are considering purchasing a home in a deed restricted community, always get and read the deed restrictions BEFORE you write an offer, not after. If you find there are restrictions you take issue with, then don't buy in the community.

There are lots of other options out there ranging from no deed restrictions to subdivisions with a few pages of basic deed restrictions that still leave you the option of selecting the landscaping and house paint color of your choice.


If looking to purchase in a non deed restricted neighborhood, do not assume that the lovely street you now see is going to stay that way in the future. The owner of the cute house across the street could be behind on his mortgage payments and that home could end up selling as a short sale to an investor who turns it into a rental. You could potentially have neighbors who park several cars on the front lawn, put a couch on the carport as their extended living room and mow the lawn once a month whether it needs it or not.


Just as one size does not fit all, no one community fits everyone's tastes, personality or lifestyle.

[bbronston]

Originally Posted by IC_deLight

HOAs do not "preserve property values".
By the way here is a story on condos in Lakewood Ranch:

It's a minor point but those condos are not part of Lakewood Ranch and do not pay into any of the HOAs or CDDs.

[sarasotalaw52]

Too funny. Nostalgia.

When I came home today, 5 neighbors were pressure washing their sidewalks. I got out of the car and asked, "did you guys receive a letter?" They replied, "Of course we did, it's not community pressure wash our sidewalks day" Then I thought of this forum.

I have a collection of these letters. Over the years, my neighbors and I have become close simply because of these letters and how we met was because of the, "Hey did you report me?" conversation.

Finally, in May we move. I am so happy.

Look people, if you are considering moving to LWR please take the time to review their HOA. To me, a father of 4 kids now, this neighborhood is not kid friendly. It's just not. They would like you to have your children play at either Adventure park or Summerfield Park but not in your front yard. In fact, you can do nothing to your front yard without the approval of the HOA.

I have a collection of these letters you receive. I'd be willing to start a new thread and upload them so that people can see what type of notices you WILL receive. I assert WILL because you just will do something that is wrong, albeit unknowingly.

In 2011, in this thread I wrote: "It reminds me of the neighborhood in "A Wrinkle in Time" called Camazotz. In every way, LWR is Identical to Camazotz." Now that "A Wrinkle in Time" has come out in the theaters, you'll have something to compare LWR to.

[bbronston]

You are doing the right thing for you. HOAs, especially ones that actually enforce their rules, are not for everyone and getting letters, no matter how right they might be, can be annoying and make you feel like you are being attacked.

Where are you moving?

[sarasotalaw52]

Desoto Acres.

It is really hard to find properties in Sarasota without deed restrictions and without an HOA. There were a few houses in the singletary/verna area that we almost decided on however, it's far out and they're building many more subdivisions out there which is going to lead to a massive traffic problem.

[bbronston]

Good luck with your move and new place. I haven’t shown many listings there but I do like the area for location and for the slightly rural feel. Definitely not like LWR.