Possibly moving to the area - have some questions

[Michael Koester]

Originally Posted by Mish1103

Michael...You've got to be one of the most helpful folks on this forum!! I didn't think about not looking left or right...lol. I just can't believe how close the houses are!! Would you mind telling me what neighborhood you parents just purchased their house?

Can you suggest a few neighborhoods that are worth looking into in either Sarasota or Bradenton? Budget $350,000 - $450,000 would love 4 bedrooms, low HOA, some land, overlooking pond, or some kind of water. Newer home so home owners ins is cheaper. 20 - 30 mins from the great beaches. Would like to (plan to) work at USF or a similar, close, college or university. Good high school...if i can convince my daughters to move soon, they'll both be in high school.

Thanks!!!

My parents bought in "The Hamptons" off Honore & Clark in Sarasota. However, a Realtor will be better at honing in on the best communities that would fit your specs. There's lots of non-golf, lower HOA fee communities. I can tell you though that if you find a house that was permitted after March 1st, 2002, there will be certain building characteristics that will save you on insurance due to adherence to the 2001 Florida Building Code. I pay $3k in insurance for my 1963 ranch house. My parents pay $1200 and they have a newer, bigger house. Not fair.

[Cardiff by the Sea]

^^^

There are several new developments going in around Honore and Clark that would be in your price range.

And FYI Riverview and Suncoast are excellent high schools. Riverview has that international curriculum. Suncoast (may have just changed name) is more technically oriented and allows students to graduate with college credits (it is kind of high school--college combined). Both are on Proctor Road.

[SoFLGal]

Originally Posted by Mish1103

SoFLGal...wow...you are WONDERFUL! Can't wait to check these out tonight!! Question for you..is Lakewood Ranch a neighborhood or a town?

Seriously, love this list...so excited...hope to make the move sooooon!!!

I'm glad I could help. Lakewood Ranch is an unincorporated master planned community in Southeastern Manatee County. Lakewood Ranch was started in 1995 and is an 8,500 acre master planned community with many little "villages" within the community. The Main St has shopping, dining, an event center, a theater and they have many festivals on Main St.

I've heard pretty decent feedback on LWR High School as well.

When I was a kid it was just a big cow pasture

[Sunshine Rules]

Some other communities with larger lots, although not all may have active listings at this moment:

Panther Ridge - north of Lakewood Ranch in south Manatee county (zip code 34211). Many of the lots are 1/2 - 1 acre, homes built in the early 2000s, HOA only $190/quarter.

River Club North & South -- thisclose to Lakewood Ranch (34202), homes were built in the 1990s are they are contemporary styles, HOA fees run about $700-$800/year.

Braden Pines -- near Lakewood Ranch off of SR70, 1 acre lots, mostly 90's homes, HOA is optiona.

Mill Creek north of Lakewood Ranch (34212) -- it's really 2 sections, the older part is mainly 1990's, some 2 story. The newer section is off of Rye Rd to the south and are more contemporary 2000s built homes. HOA runs about $320/year and they do enforce the deed restrictions.

Rye Wilderness -- off of Rye Rd north of SR64 (34212), new and newer construction, HOA $180/quarter.

Racimo Ranches -- Sarasota, east of I75 off of Fruitville Rd/Tatum Ridge. (34240) It's deed restricted but no HOA fees.

Shadow Oaks -- Sarasota, east of I75 (34240), mostly 1 acre lots, no HOA.

Hidden Oaks -- Sarasota (34232) off of Bahia Vista, love this community of 70's built homes, HOA runs about $450/year.

Sherwood Forrest -- Sarasota, off McIntosh (34232), 80's built homes, some are in flood zones.

Bent Tree Village -- east of I75 off of Bee Ridge (34241), very nice older golf & country club community (country club membership not mandatory), 1/2 acre lots, HOA runs just under $1000/yr in this section.


One thing to keep in mind is that many of the neighborhoods with larger lots will be east of I75, whether Manatee or Sarasota counties, some are on central water & septic tanks, some are on central water/sewer, some are on well water and septic tanks. Some people are ok with well water here, others are not. The water does have a lot of minerals so filtering is required. Septic systems require routine maintenance.

The other thing is that those neighborhoods with the larger lots will tend to be further distance from the beaches, so 20-30 minutes might be more like 30-45 minutes drive.

Lakewood Ranch lots, until you get up into the higher price ranges (above $500k) are probably going to disappoint you, they are rather narrow, often 55 - 65 feet wide. LWR is a beautiful master planned community but lots do come at a premium there. On the positive side, the newer communities such as Central Park have large and amenity community areas with green spaces and playgrounds. LWR also has several community parks and miles and miles of walking trails and nature preserves.

Are you a member of AAA? If you are I would suggest dropping by the LWR or Bee Ridge AAA office and pick up free local maps. They are very detailed and would help you figure out the logistics of the various neighborhood locations.

[I'mmovingnorth]

we invite you folks to take a look at our house just east of Sarasota. It may meet your requirements!

[Concert D Major]

Originally Posted by I'mmovingnorth

we invite you folks to take a look at our house just east of Sarasota. It may meet your requirements!

Too bad you couldn't wait a few more days to post this. A little more patience, and you would have revived a thread that would have been exactly 2 1/2 years old!

[SouthSota14]

Originally Posted by concert d major

too bad you couldn't wait a few more days to post this. A little more patience, and you would have revived a thread that would have been exactly 2 1/2 years old!

lol

[Daniel_Larson]

Some gated communities are geared towards families and some are more geared to older residence. In Venice, FL which is in Sarasota County we have two communities that are really geared towards families, one is Stoneybrook & the other is Grand Palm.

Stoneybrook - is a fairly large gated community in Venice and their amenities include fitness center, Tennis Courts, Walking/Biking trails, roller hockey rink, large resort style pool, splash zone with fountains, beach volleyball courts, softball field & soccer field, horseshoe pits, two community barbecues by the pool with a pavilion. They also hold a back to school backpack day for the kids in the community where they fill their backpacks with school supplies. You can purchase either an resale home or a new home in the community ranging from $220k-$400k, depending on the size . They do have a brand new spec home available which is listed for 317K from the builder, but all the home are 2005 or newer and that's when the last hurricane code was updated.

Grand Palm - It's a newer community and the builder started building homes in the community in 2013, they have resort style pool with a water slide,2 dog parks, kayaking, canoeing, fitness center, basketball, tennis, bocce ball and volleyball courts, plus a large, grass field is perfect for playing baseball or kickball, splash park & playground for kids, four square courts, walking/biking trails. Their home price in that community range from $220k-$500K. They are a "maintenance free" community as well.

Both communities do have a annual CDD Fee which is a Community District Development Fee which is a fee that's added to your property taxes each year, because the builder took out a bond to build the infrastructure of the community, Grand Palms CDD Fee ranges from about $500-$1000 per year and Stoneybrooks ranges from $450-$750.00 per year.

If you have any other questions regarding homes in the area or would like more information on either community, then please don't hesitate to reach out to me.

[MattMN]

Originally Posted by Daniel_Larson

If you have any other questions regarding homes in the area or would like more information on either community, then please don't hesitate to reach out to me.

Dude - again, look at the dates. You're posting info to a 2-1/2 year old request for information.

[Nancy in Nokomis]

The biggest surprise that I had while moving here is the price of insurance - you must get homeowners AND wind insurance and if you live in a flood zone flood insurance but you might want to get that just in case - we have a lot of equity in our homes so most of the monthly payment goes to insurance.

Also - roof age and condition is very important in Florida - replacing a tile roof costs around 30 to 50k -

Homes are cheap here - its the other stuff that will kill you

Be very wary of all realtors - do not use the inspector they recommend - get your own and get a ball buster