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Hi Caliboy--glad you liked the New Bern area. We bought a lot in a non-amenity section (Gondolier Peninsula) so only have the POA fee, which, yes, we have to pay each year. Also just got a bill for sewer and water availability, about $25.00 for 6 monthes and the property taxes were miniscule. The prices WERE not uniform---we liked the trees and the smaller home requirement (1500 sf) in the area we chose. We will have to add to our lot to elevate it some with dirt--it's in between 2 other homes that are built a tad higher.
I am concerned about the lawsuits going on there. Apparently the POA has decided to make it's own building code, and some builders are suing about it.
In my area, the state and town dictate building codes, not a neighborhood group. Why I don't like POA's.
Location: Ellicott City, MD soon to be New Bern, NC
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My husband and I are moving to Carolina Colours (or as the locals call it, "the Colours) next week. As a military brat who married into the Air Force,I have had many moves. Some homes I have loved, some not. I have found only one part of the country that I found to be unfriendly to outsiders, and it was not NC. During our many trips to New Bern (from Baltimore)while the house was being built and have found these folks to be warm and friendly, and a very large percentage of them are in New Bern from somewhere else. I am originally from Va Beach, so I don't really consider myself a Yankee, but I will be an out-of-towner. I think the most important word to remember is "assimilate". Don't try to bring New England to New Bern, and if you find "your way" superior to the "southern way", keep it to yourself. These folks will welcome you with open arms if they feel you're not treating them like a bunch of county bumpkins. I think a previous poster was right, the malcontents come out of the woodwork online. The kind of people who would ridicule you for being a Yankee to your face are not the kind of folk whose opinion should matter to you. As someone who has lived in many places, my gut feeling from spending time with the people in New Bern is that once you have a New Bern address, you'll be from New Bern.
....I think the most important word to remember is "assimilate". Don't try to bring New England to New Bern, and if you find "your way" superior to the "southern way", keep it to yourself. These folks will welcome you with open arms if they feel you're not treating them like a bunch of county bumpkins...
I would even say that by keeping it to yourself, that can be problematic too. The best way is to brush all preconceived 'ways' used in the previous place of residence and keep oneself open to the new ways of the place you have chosen to live. This way, you are indeed open to the local ways of life and, then, interject only the positive ways of your past that work for you (never assume that they will work for others). Certainly, no one likes having another person force superiority upon them.
Btw, where is Carolina Colours? Is that the area further inland just SE of New Bern where they are building Craftsman style homes?
Quote:
Originally Posted by poodlecamper
Hi Caliboy--glad you liked the New Bern area. We bought a lot in a non-amenity section (Gondolier Peninsula) so only have the POA fee, which, yes, we have to pay each year. Also just got a bill for sewer and water availability, about $25.00 for 6 monthes and the property taxes were miniscule. The prices WERE not uniform---we liked the trees and the smaller home requirement (1500 sf) in the area we chose. We will have to add to our lot to elevate it some with dirt--it's in between 2 other homes that are built a tad higher. I am concerned about the lawsuits going on there. Apparently the POA has decided to make it's own building code, and some builders are suing about it. In my area, the state and town dictate building codes, not a neighborhood group. Why I don't like POA's.
Keep me informed of your progress. And PM me your lot number so I can, now, look at the map we received and compare it to our notes. The agent told us about some geographical changes through the years that required the necessity to get approval from the Army Corp of Engineers and build homes on stilts. But like I had mentioned, I think, surprisingly for us, that some of the nicer homes were, indeed, built on stilts.
Once we complete the details of our home sale on the West Coast, we'll probably divert some of that cash to property there at Fairfield Harbour (of course, pending further due diligence).
Hi,
I just bought a lot in the montego section, Bucco Reef Rd. I love the Outer Banks area but had never been much further South. It'll probably be 2 or 3 yrs before we could build. Hoping we'll be able to build a small open style house. Only 1 BR cause we don't want to make it easy for too many visitors! lol
I had not seen the lot first. I bought it on ebay and think I've probably gotten a really great bargain. I plan to drive down and see it maybe early June. Right now I'm still extremely busy at work. I'm a seamstress and this is prom time.
I'll be bringing all my machines with me and hope to still work part time sub contracting work..or maybe even on my own.
I am seriously considering contracting my own home. Many yrs ago my first husband and I did that and saved more than 50% on cost. I mostly remembered the process...and heck... I've sold my own home myself before (twice!) I'm sure I could do it again!
I'm hoping this is a friendly area. ;o)
I'm quite anxious to see the lot and walk around it... ;o)
betty
Good luck with the lot and house. I think a group is trying to get one of the golf courses back in operation, and that should be good for property values.
You may have made a great investment.
For all you fellow yankees, don't overlook Oriental. 900 people and 2000 sailboats! Only about 20% of the town is actually from here, the rest are mostly yankee transplants. It's more convenient then Fairfield Harbor as it has it's own grocery store 5 churches 6 restaurants (5 with bars) several marine stores and clothing stores and a Dollar General. A very active community if you want lots of different things to do. More info about Oriental at TownDock.net | Oriental NC News.
Fairfield Harbour, New Bern, NC -- a community to love!
Hi All, I've just joined this forum and, I suppose, many of the questions posted about Fairfield Harbour have been answered, or folks have chosen other places to live. But, for those who remain, and are curious about FH, I'll try to fill you in.
We've lived in Fairfield Harbour for eleven years now, and continue to love this wonderful community. FH has about 1224 property owners, but only about half of that number live here now. The market, and general economy slump have affected us as well, I'm afraid! The people here are primarily Northeasterners, with folks from New York (LI), New Jersey and Pennsylvania predominating (areas targeted by Fairfield Communities, Inc. in their early development here) , but we have folks from all over the US. No one cares where you're from, what salary you made, or how important you once were. If you're open to new friends, and friendly, you'll find friends galore, and a wonderful life here.
It's a very active community, with folks volunteering in New Bern, or here, and participating in all sorts of activities. We have a lot of boaters, and a lot of golfers, tennis players, RVers, bridge clubs, fishing clubs, you name it. One thing this Long Islander loves is "the Fairfield wave" -- folks here have a friendly wave for everyone. No one intrudes on one's personal space, or time, but, have a problem and the community overwhelms you with cards, meals, offers for rides, and just plain caring.
We do have a major problem here, however -- one that we're working hard to resolve. MidSouth, LLC, bought our amenities ten years ago, and while they collected $500 for the first five of those years and $600+ in amenities fees for the second five years, they did little or nothing to improve or maintain them. The community has voted to investigate purchasing the amenities, and gradually restoring them via a long term loan, but, so far, MidSouth has not agreed to sell. A group called Hands Across Fairfield Harbour is suing MidSouth, claiming MS cannot legally charge amenities fees, and there's precedent to support this. If MS loses this April's judgment, they may be more willing to sell.
In the meantime, if you believe, as we do, in our future, now is a great time to buy. With only one of our two golf courses in operation, and our clubhouse and pool needing repairs, home prices and property prices are depressed. It's a buyer's market here, now. (Most of the golfers have temporarily joined neighboring courses while we resolve the situation here.)
As for builders, Stuart Hardy no longer builds here. Gilbert Stroud, who once worked with Stuart Hardy, is a good builder -- if you are firm about what you want, and how much you want to spend. He likes 4 inch moldings, and 9 foot ceilings, for example, both of which add to the price.
If I can be of any further help, I'll be checking back to answer questions.
Don't let a few bad apples spoil the whole bunch. There are a lot of Northerners in this area. No matter where you live N, S, E & W, there will always be a few people that know you are not a native and show a surprising lack of eloquence when commenting on it. Good luck!
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New to New Bern
