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Clearly Fairfield Harbour is a very popular, CARING community in which to live and/or retire or more than 3,000 residents would not have chosen to live here. In every barrel there are always a few bad apples, but Fairfield Harbour has far fewer per capita than any other place I've ever lived. If you need ANYTHING in Fairfield Harbour, just post that need on one of our Community Electronic Bulletin Boards, and within minutes you will be inundated with offers to help out. Fairfield Harbour offers attractive affordable housing, three public marinas and a fourth private sailing club/marina, an expansive recreation center with indoor/outdoor pools, a sauna, miniature golf, and more. There is also a Billy Casper 18 hole golf course here, tennis courts, a Community Center, a theater group, a very large fishing club, huge yacht club, bridge clubs, Mahjong groups, a garden club AND numerous other groups, ... you name it, we have it, including a firehouse inside the welcoming gates to Fairfield Harbour. Don't be dissuaded from investigating a move here by members of a VERY small group of malcontents. See Fairfield Harbour for yourself... speak to the vast MAJORITY of residents here... THEN decide if Fairfield Harbour is the place for you. My wife and I love it, and wouldn't dream of living anywhere else....
When the economy picks up, and people can sell their homes in the Northeast, things will pick up again here. It is a buyer's market, indeed. I'm glad you're taking second look, and hope you'll decide to stay.
Thanks for the responses .We want to live in an area where we can make great friends and have it be our last move.My girlfriend will be taking a job with Craven County DSS and i have the luxury of being retired at an early age.Just want to get away from the hutle and bustle and live in peace.
Gjjb1953, seems you are close to being assaulted by the cheerleaders with their hard sell routine for FFH. Not sure why the cheerleaders have chosen you, but good luck. I have a suggestion for you, if you do get serious about a possible purchase in FFH; go into the downtown of New Bern, the tourist area just off the waterfront and stop a few people as you walk along the street. Ask if they are locals, and if so inquire as to their knowledge and opinion of FFH. Many long term New Bern residents frequent this area.
My postings are simply to encourage people to do due diligence on FFH, to avoid any after purchase buyers remorse. Speaking of remorse, the biggest subject I hear from new residents is a failure to understand the storm water flooding in this area, including FFH. It is a subject that must be addressed on an individual property basis. Water has risen over 8 feet in this area during past hurricanes.
are the properties in flood zones? That is not being reported by realtor's.I did meet a bunch of folk's in Fairfield Harbour as i drove through.They liked the area .
Relying upon residents of New Bern for an opinion of life in Fairfield Harbour seems misguided since the former are not likely to know much beyond rumors and hearsay, and, of course, the County Compass -- a free publication which relies heavily upon sensationalism to sustain its distribution. Every careful researcher knows the value of primary sources over secondary, tertiary or worse. Obviously, the best source of information about any community is the residents themselves. Fairfield Harbour welcomes visitors and those visitors are welcome to speak with property owners throughout the community. We'd love to chat with you and answer any questions you have! So, as they say, "C'mon down!"
Please arrange for an appointment with Mystre' VanHorn, our Community Manager before you visit. She, or her office, will answer any questions you may have, and make it possible for you to drive through both the Shoreline and the Harbour Pointe sides, see the areas for yourself, and speak with anyone you wish. That's a solid start for any research.
We have looked at a few homes in the area.Your property values have declined but real estate is cyclical.Rolling the dice i would say if your planning to retire to Fairfield and have a bit longer then the national real estate market to rebound it most likely will.We saw a home that we will bid on if she gets the job in craven county.
are the properties in flood zones? That is not being reported by realtor's.I did meet a bunch of folk's in Fairfield Harbour as i drove through.They liked the area .
Yes, almost all of Fairfield Harbour is at or below the 100 year flood plain level. You definitely want to know the elevation of the "first finished floor" for any house.
Of course all prospective buyers of any property anywhere should do their due diligence before committing and find a knowledgeable and reputable real estate agent - and an equally knowledgeable and reputable insurance agent who is familiar with local weather phenomena.
The issue of storm water or river/creek flooding is something all of us along the Atlantic coast must be aware of. It's the price we pay to be nearly surrounded by beautiful navigable waters and an easy drive to the ocean. As in most of Craven County, areas of Fairfield Harbour are subject to rising water during nor'easters and hurricanes, but the areas most affected are lower elevation lots and those along the creeks. There are locations within the Harbour that are out of the flood zone. But many, many houses are built on lots that have a small portion of the land that is below the minimum elevation. If one has a mortgage, the lender will require flood insurance. Newer construction and FEMA codes require houses to be built high enough to exceed these updated codes thereby greatly reducing insurance premiums. So just because a property is located in a designated flood zone (there are several categories) doesn't mean the lot or house is likely to flood.
We were informed that NC flood maps are due to be redrawn in 2015, and our insurance agent believes many locations in Craven County will be moved into the flood zone. FEMA is operating in the red, and the remapping is a way to try and recoup some of the major expenses of storms like Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy... the agent's opinion of course. But remapping doesn't change the land's elevation - it only changes a lender's requirement for flood insurance.
One last point... when we conducted our due diligence before moving to Fairfield Harbour it seemed logical to us to ask residents living in FH how they liked living here. Everyone we spoke with liked it very much, and it didn't even occur to us to ask pedestrians in downtown New Bern how they liked Fairfield Harbour. Not sure how much value that would have provided us which I guess is why we didn't consider it.... JMHO....
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On the issue of flooding....
