Areas of Sarasota without HOA's (Sarasota Springs, Lake Sarasota: HOA fees, condo, big house)

[Irishperson]

Hey all..still researching the Sarastoa area for possible relocation from Boston down the road. What I'd like to know is are there any decent middle class areas that don't have HOA's. To be honest I'm not for or against them but comming from Mass they're not very common even in affluent area's unless one lives in a condo complex or something similar..and if we decided to buy a house I don't want any issues when it comes to leaving my car in my driveway or putting up a fence so our dog won't get loose..etc..etc

[SoFLGal]

There are several communities. If you can give a size, age and price range I can narrow it down even more. Almost all of the newer gated communities are going to have some sort of HOA attached. Here are a few where there is either no HOA fees or it is optional:

Aqualane Estates, Avondale, Badger Heights, Bay view Acres, Cherokee Park, Harbor Acres, Hyde Park, McClellan Park, Oyster Bay Estates by downtown Sarasota.

Indian Beach, Sapphire Shores and Whitfield Estates by the Sarasota airport.

Coral Cove & Southpointe Shores in southern Sarasota

Desoto Lakes, Desoto Acres in northern Sarasota

Granada before the north Siesta bridge

Gulf Gate, probably one of the largest subdivisions in the area. Most areas have an optional annual HOA of $50.

Kensington Park

Lake Sarasota

Phillippi Gardens

Ridgewood Estates

Sarasota Springs

Many areas on Siesta and Lido keys

South Gate, this another larger community with homes built in the 1960's and 70's and an optional HOA

[BucFan]

Originally Posted by Irishperson

.and if we decided to buy a house I don't want any issues when it comes to leaving my car in my driveway or putting up a fence so our dog won't get loose..etc..etc

How about when one neighbor puts his pickup truck on cinder blocks in his front yard for a year, and the other neighbor paints his house this color....?

[saralvr]

And that's what happened to me! I live in a very nice area and the neighbor across the street decided to renovate. That was 12-13 years ago. He had his home moved almost onto the street! Yes, he had it moved to put in a basement. Now, it is at least finally sided on 3 sides with 3 different types and colors of siding. You don't want to know how awful it looks. So, I would never buy in an area again that didn't have some type of HOA. But, some are not crazy strict. I don't want to know I can put a small shrub down or something like that.

[SoFLGal]

Originally Posted by saralvr

And that's what happened to me! I live in a very nice area and the neighbor across the street decided to renovate. That was 12-13 years ago. He had his home moved almost onto the street! Yes, he had it moved to put in a basement. Now, it is at least finally sided on 3 sides with 3 different types and colors of siding. You don't want to know how awful it looks. So, I would never buy in an area again that didn't have some type of HOA. But, some are not crazy strict. I don't want to know I can put a small shrub down or something like that.

I tend to agree with this. I'm, personally, not in favor of some of the super strict subs with HOA's but then on the other hand you have people who do things like mentioned above.

I think there are several areas where there is a happy medium. I mentioned some of them above.

[Big House]

Originally Posted by SoFLGal

I tend to agree with this. I'm, personally, not in favor of some of the super strict subs with HOA's but then on the other hand you have people who do things like mentioned above.

I think there are several areas where there is a happy medium. I mentioned some of them above.

So long as people don't leave their kayaks in their front yard!!

[SoFLGal]

Originally Posted by Big House

So long as people don't leave their kayaks in their front yard!!

Nope mine are in the garage until I can figure out how to get my car and two huge kayaks in the garage. At least neither are up on jacks

[Irishperson]

Thanks for the replies..I'm thinking like what SoFLGal said that somewhere with a happy medium is gonna work best..no I wouldn't want to spend 200k and live next to a S-Hole painted in funky colors or have to look at cars on blocks, however I also don't want to be told I can leave a car out over night or have a fence..grill..garden..etc...I'm sure will be reaching out when the time draws closer with more questions..thanks again

[SoFLGal]

Gulf Gate and South Gate are pretty reasonable communities. Then the Phillippi area is nice as well. Many of the other areas are more pricey then the $200k range.

[BucFan]

Originally Posted by Irishperson

Thanks for the replies..I'm thinking like what SoFLGal said that somewhere with a happy medium is gonna work best..no I wouldn't want to spend 200k and live next to a S-Hole painted in funky colors or have to look at cars on blocks, however I also don't want to be told I can leave a car out over night or have a fence..grill..garden..etc...I'm sure will be reaching out when the time draws closer with more questions..thanks again

You never know until you read the HOA's policy documents....my HOA doesn't allow fences, but you can park on your drive way. You can't let your dog run around off a leash, nor can you own a pitbull or other breeds that have been found to be dangerous. Every HOA is different - and to limit your search to HOA-less communities might be something you regret in the long run.