[Nancy Lynne]

Yes, I liked the perceived extra security, and even perhaps, what I would hope would make it easier for someone like myself and my son, who will be moving without knowing a soul to more easily meet people The community amenities I also hope would make it easier to meet friends in the neighborhood- primarily for my 10 year old son.

On the other hand, I am definitely not a comformist and don't like seeing all mailboxes the same, etc. I am afraid I would always been receiving complaints that I didn't follow some rule to the "t", and might begin to feel like I am living in a "stepford like town". And yes, I need the extra money for the mortage, the HOA would just be another burden in overall expenses.

A personal concern is not we would not be accepted because I am a single parent...perhaps an "unspoken, non acceptable" situation in such high fluting communities. In NJ, I have never seen a gated community. Here, we have such multi-million dollars homes - certainly not in my community - that simply gate their very home in from the rest of the world.


What do ya'll think. You all did post some great opinions on this topic. I just wanted to share my personal situation so that any of you might be able to share some light.

Thanks everyone,

Nancy'

[julz]

I live in a gated community and it is not so bad.In 5 yrs. I've never had a problem with HOA.The gate seems to be broken quite a bit as people will sometimes try and rush through but I've never had anyone tell me what I should/should not do.There are many young families with children here and everybody gets along wonderful.My children are grown so I don't communicate much with all the young moms but they're outside every day watching the kids play.We are in S.Fla. and moving a little further North (a non-gated community).In all honesty ,the last few nights I've gone out for a walk I've wondered if I'll feel as safe as I do in a gated,tight-knit community.Best of luck to you!

[Turtle]

We live in a gated community in S. Florida, and though it works for us, and we like being a bit "secluded" from the near by hustle and bustle, you better be prepared to follow some rules. We were given a copy of the rules before we moved in and read over them and found nothing that we felt would have any kind of effect on our happiness, and it works for us, but, that being said, if we don't follow the rules, there is a process that generally starts with some type of warning and may lead up to some big fines (the biggest is for putting hurricane shutters up and then leaving for the summer and leaving them up. We have a time frame for how long before/after a hurricane warning that the shutters can be up, and if you exceed that, you will be fined). We like alot of the rules because it keeps us from having to look at heaps of stuff in someones yard, or the boarded up look of the shutters being left up for months on end. It is most certainly true that gated communities are not for everyone, but for me, it's what keeps S. Florida bearable while we try to sell our house so we can get out of here. I would go crazy if I lived somewhere where the traffic and congestion was practically in my front yard. So, I think a wise choice would be to get a copy of the rules for a community that you are considering and see if it works for you. There will very likely be some restrictions as far as mailboxes and getting approval to change the external colors of your home, but you need to weigh the pros and cons and decide what's right for you. There are certainly plenty of nice, quiet areas around us that aren't gated, so there are options.

Best of luck.

[bnepler]

I've lived in a gated community in pasco county for the last 5 yrs. and it's like living in the middle of the country. We have a large pond behind our house and it's so quiet. There are several thousand homes in the sub-divsision and you would think so. We have a cdd but not an HOA, most do.
We have tons of wildlife behind us. I-75 to Tampa is 15 mins. away and Tampa 30 mins. away.

[ntfeldman]

Nancy,

Most studies show that resale for homes in gated communities is higher. Don't worry about being a single mom, I think people in general want to help more than stigmatize those in your role. Frankly I'm proud of you! It takes an additional level of sacrifice and courage to raise a child without the assistance of another adult. I hope your new neighbors offer you their assistance on days when you need someone to take your child to school or watch him for a few hours some night when you have to work late or have an emergency. You will find there to be a mix of neighbors in your community. If you can get to meet the people next door to your "new home" before you close that could go a long way towards knowing if it's going to be warm and fuzzy or difficult (our new neighbors threatened to sue us 4 weeks after we moved in in July over our swing set... they don't have kids). But don't be shy, knock on the door (AFTER you put it under contract but can still get out of the deal). Introduce yourself and let them know you're thinking about moving in. Ask them about the neighborhood, ask when the next HOA meeting is and where. Attend the meeting, find out what they are discussing. You also have the right to a copy of the financial statment of the community before you close - to see if they have deferred maintenance issues (gates frequently make the street repair costs private - so the county/city requires the residents to pay for repair and upkeep). Your realtor should be assisting you with these issues.

Gates however don't generally offer much in the way of security unless they are also "guarded" but they do slow down traffic and keep out some trouble makers who are intemidated enough to go somewhere else.

As for sameness, that will depend on the builder of the community and the variety of floor plans sold in the neighborhood. The good news is that if they are mostly the same then the homes in the community will rise consistantly in value. The bad news is that since most are perceived as similar, the over improved homes will have a harder time getting their expenditures dollars back out. The best strategy for living in a community where most of the homes look similar is not to buy expensive finishes and additions and stay pretty consistant with the rest of the homes. The least embellished home in the group will make the highest margin at the time of sale, all things being equal. Also, when you go to buy a resale home in a community like that, find the one with the most amenitites that you can still afford. Your Realtor will be able to help you "step down" the improvements in the home to negotiate the best deal and you'll find you get some nice features - in some cases for less than it would cost you to put them in yourself.

Your son is 10 so he's probably in 4th or 5th grade. Elementary schools are generally pretty good in florida. It's middle and high schools that start to get over crowded and tough. If you're planning on public schools, make sure you understand school enrollment processes. Some counties have moved to a "School Choice" program that allows you to move your son to a school you would rather he attend but there are deadlines for applications and the better schools fill up quickly. Schools are managed by county in Florida and you can find information on the myflorida.com website under Visitors and Education. There's a link for each county district and they rate the schools based on their FCAT scores (an aptitude test given each year for math and english).

Good luck to you in your move!

[MrTudo]

I lived in a community in West Boca Raton that had a homeowners assoc and of course the head of the association was a lawyer who seemed to have the Napolean complex.

Had one confrontation over flying the flag and after he was legally trounced , I never hear from them again. There were rumors of several houses in the neighborhood that the association pursued to a point of foreclosure that the head of the association apparently "won" at auction. When I lived there the average house was in the 200-250K range ( 1996-2000) and I would imagine they are quite a bit more now, so we're talking in general a professional make up of the community. It was not gated.

I now live in a more traditional setting with no association and it's a toss up as to which is better. There are a few houses around here that would absolutely be put on notice if there was an association, yet for the most part it's a nice neighborhood. I would buy another house in an association but I'm not sure if I'd want to be in one that's gated.

Good luck!

[Nancy Lynne]

Thank you very much for your info! You are a very nice person.

[Need_affordable_home]

I want to buy in a neighboorhood without HOA because of the expense and unfair rules. My dad and mom pay too much HOA in their gated neighboorhood!

[FireFawn]

My hubby is a Jersey native and we were just having a conversation about this the other evening. We go for a walk every night along the lake in our gated community and he was commenting on how in Jersey you just don't see gates around entire neighborhoods...just single, upscale homes. But what we both love about it is the close knit sense of community we have here. Our HOA does a really good job of planning semi-annual BBQ pool parties, Pot Lucks and such that are great for meeting people. I think that attending the monthly meetings gets people talking about the same issues/topics that carry over when you then (for instance) run into that same neighbor when out walking your dog. There is a sense of "we're all in this together"...but in a good way LOL!

Being a single mom is nothing that would attract undue notice in Fl. With the cost of homes being so high nowadays there are even more unmarried couples living together than ever before. And with most people in Fl. being from other places originally, folks are a lot more accepting than you would think.

Good Luck with your decision!

[annabanana]

Hello. We moved into a gated community here in FL (from NY) and I love the idea of it beening gated! Our concern was with the kids.. I feel more comfortable knowing that they can play outside, in the street, etc and that the traffic is mainly people living within our community. Yes... a great big HOA expense ($1600 per year) for us... but worth it!

Good Luck