Venice Island vs. the Gated Communities (Tampa, Orlando: real estate, HOA fees, insurance)

[JJGittes65]

I'm looking for comments from people who looked at buying on the Island vs. one of the gated communities like Pelican Pointe, Grand Palm, Gran Paradiso, Stoneybrook, Island Walk etc.

Which did you choose and why? Are you happy with your decision? Regrets?

I'm not looking for a comparison of the gated communities.

Instead I'd like to hear opinions on living on the Island of Venice, versus being off the island in a community like the above, particularly from people who have made the decision....Thanks!

[duffer47]

I looked at Islandwalk, Grand Palm and Gran Paradiso. Of course, it all depends on what you want and how much you are willing to spend. For me, Gran Paradiso was the right choice. Great amenities, located on Rt. 41 and five minutes from Public, Walmart and other shopping and restaurants. About 15 minutes to the closest beach. Lennar does not offer a lot of options (many standard features) but I found that for what you got, the value for the buck was much greater. When I priced the standard features that Lennar offered compared to what they would cost to add at Islandwalk and Grand Palm, I saved many thousands of dollars. But again it depends on what you want in your residence and how much extra you want to spend.

[Nancy in Nokomis]

I think the OP is more interested in gated vs. Venice Island life

- well - I hate sterile gated communities with old folks complaining about dirty sidewalks - and the huge HOA fees -

I wish I could have bought "on the island" - I love the vintage, and historical charm, lovely mature trees and plantings, quaint restaurants and shops, mostly no HOA, and being able to walk to the beach - houses are pricier the closer you get to the gulf and I think flood insurance is much more because of "surge" or something like that - and parts of the island are beautiful but too close to the airport for my husbands liking - he hates hearing planes overhead.

[JJGittes65]

I didn't think of airplane noise.

From what it looks like on the flood maps, it appears that the northern part of the island is in a flood zone. However, the southern part, as you get in from the beach, is not. But maybe insurers consider the whole "island" a greater risk and inflate rates. The lifestyle on the island, assuming you are on the right street with good neighbors, seems like it could be pretty nice though.

[Nancy in Nokomis]

My husband is extra picky so there may not be that much airport noise - he is worried that the airport with expand but I don't think they would waste that prime real estate in that area for more airport room - I still think the island is preferable to a gated community - if you walk around Venice you see most of the homes are well kept - not a lot of riff raff -

I also think anything that is closer to the Gulf will hold its value better than anything farther East. I think I have convinced myself to buy on the island - LOL - we currently live 5 miles away in a community with a very low HOA and are pretty happy but it is a tough bike ride to the beach

[JJGittes65]

Thanks for the info and opinion. Is it correct that some of the island is not in a flood zone? Do insurers account for this, or are rates high no matter where you are on the island?

[Sunshine Rules]

Originally Posted by JJGittes65

Thanks for the info and opinion. Is it correct that some of the island is not in a flood zone? Do insurers account for this, or are rates high no matter where you are on the island?

The flood zone maps in Sarasota county are in the process of being updated (which includes Venice). You'll want to look up current flood zone status for properties AND the preliminary, proposed flood zone changes, which you can find here: https://www.scgov.net/FloodMaps/Pages/default.aspx

There's a link on that website where you can plug in an address and it will give you the proposed flood zone for a property.

There are a number of properties in our county that were not previously in a flood zone that will be in a flood zone under the proposed flood map changes. There are likewise others that will no longer be included in a flood zone if the proposed changes are adopted.

[upgrader]

Originally Posted by Nancy in Nokomis

My husband is extra picky so there may not be that much airport noise - he is worried that the airport with expand but I don't think they would waste that prime real estate in that area for more airport room - I still think the island is preferable to a gated community - if you walk around Venice you see most of the homes are well kept - not a lot of riff raff -

I also think anything that is closer to the Gulf will hold its value better than anything farther East. I think I have convinced myself to buy on the island - LOL - we currently live 5 miles away in a community with a very low HOA and are pretty happy but it is a tough bike ride to the beach

Research the airport's noise abatement laws.

Sarasota seems to have good noise abatement (restricted hours of operation). Tampa Airport is a cesspool of noise (no restricted hours).

Your husband is right. Prime Real Estate is no match for buckets of money. Longboat key gets buzzed by sarasota jets, but at least it's contained to reasonable hours.

[Tonyafd]

Originally Posted by JJGittes65

I'm looking for comments from people who looked at buying on the Island vs. one of the gated communities like Pelican Pointe, Grand Palm, Gran Paradiso, Stoneybrook, Island Walk etc.

Which did you choose and why? Are you happy with your decision? Regrets?

I'm not looking for a comparison of the gated communities.

Instead I'd like to hear opinions on living on the Island of Venice, versus being off the island in a community like the above, particularly from people who have made the decision....Thanks!

Disadvantages of the gated communities:
Some are 55+ - meaning that your 28 year old millennial might be homeless after their job goes to India.
I don't think that Grand Palm has a gate.
Some have absurd fees like The Venice Golf and Country Club.

Advantages
The Winter crowds are outside of your development.
There are still break ins, but fewer.

The Island is nice, especially closer to the water.
The crowds stay pretty much on or near the main drag, Venice Ave.

Don't look at the Villages (near Orlando) unless you are a Republican.

[macrodome2]

You've picked quite a diverse group of gated communities: Pelican Pointe, Grand Palm, Gran Paradiso, Stoneybrook, Island Walk.


Pelican Pointe is a golf community and most of the homes were built in the early 2000s if I recall. My opinion of golf communities is you pay a premium for the convenience of being in a golf community, so unless you golf or want to live on a golf course, I'd check out other communities. This would also apply to Sarasota National, Sawgrass, Waterford.


Grand Palm, Gran Paradiso, and IslandWalk are still building so there are many choices. But they also come with the issues of being in a community with on-going construction (and burning) as well as competing with new homes if you have to sell your house before the community is done. Grand Palm and Gran Paradiso are more family oriented than IslandWalk from what I've seen. When I went to IslandWalk we saw mostly retirees. Drive through Grand Palm and Gran Paradiso and you'll see kids.


Stoneybrook is mostly built out. KB Homes is building new homes on the last available lots. If you like the KB Homes, you'd get a new home in a mature community. There are lots of kids in SB, so if you want an older demographic, I'd look at Venetian Falls, which is a 55+ community.


We chose Stoneybrook because we wanted mixed age and liked the community pool. Grand Paradiso had not yet been purchased by Lennar, so that was not an option. We weren't fond of the IslandWalk models. We almost bought in Grand Palm, but the way Neal prices their homes and options, it would have cost us much more than the house we ended up in at Stoneybrook.


I'm glad we're not dealing with the burning issues in Grand Palm, Gran Paradiso, and IslandWalk. Once in a while we smell it if the wind is blowing just right, but the people in those communities are having a worse time of it while the land is being cleared.


We did not consider a non-HOA community, because I wanted the social events the community would provide (we're retired so no friends "at work") and we wanted a nice community pool. The other community we seriously considered was Venetia, near the intersection of 41 & Jacaranda. That has an older demographic (not many kids if any), the homes are larger than the other communities mentioned, and mostly built around 2000 give or take.