Thinking of Retiring to Jacksonville what is the best area for us. (Country Club: appointed, HOA fees)

[Thundarr457]

I am 66 and my wife is 55 and we are thinking of retiring to the Jacksonville area. I retired last July and we are getting things wrapped up here in Buffalo. We are tired of the cold winters and want to move south. We are looking for the following:

1. An active community with amenities
2. A community center with exercise equipment and classes, plus social events
3. Tennis courts even though we are only occasional players
4. A safe area with a gated community
5. Low HOA and little if any CCD fees
6. Our children are grown and we have no grandchildren yet, so a decent school system
7. Access to a marina and the beach


Budget 350 - 400K

[judeK]

I'd suggest Queens Harbor Yacht and Country Club located at 1129 Queens Harbor Blvd
Jacksonville, FL 32225 on Atlantic Blvd about 1/2 mile west of the Intracoastal Waterway.

Queen's Harbour Yacht & Country Club, Jacksonville Florida

1. It is an active community with amenities.
2. It has a community center with exercise equipment and classes, plus social events.
3. It also has plenty of tennis courts.
4. It is a safe area with a gated community
5. I have no idea what the HOA fees are but I don't believe there are any CDD fees.
6. Not positive but I believe the school district the serves Queens Harbor is above decent.
7. It has it's own Marina with a canal with a gated lock that leads to the Intracoastal Waterway,
and it is located less than 3 miles to Atlantic and Neptune beach and only about 5 miles to Jacksonville Beach.

And its mostly within your price range.

[02blackgt]

I am nowhere near retirement but i moved to Jax from Buffalo and i love it here. Our winters can get chilly on occasion (50's during day 30-35 at night) but for the most part its about 65-75 day and 45-50 at night. However after going through summer here in Florida it is great, perfect for outdoor things like golf and hiking. Personally i may more active during the winter than any other time down here. As a result of our fluctuating temps i think of Jax as perfect place to live year round. However if your someone who wants to go lay on the beach in January, Jax is most certainly not for you.

[ShakenStirred]

Originally Posted by Thundarr457

I am 66 and my wife is 55 and we are thinking of retiring to the Jacksonville area. I retired last July and we are getting things wrapped up here in Buffalo. We are tired of the cold winters and want to move south. We are looking for the following:

1. An active community with amenities
2. A community center with exercise equipment and classes, plus social events
3. Tennis courts even though we are only occasional players
4. A safe area with a gated community
5. Low HOA and little if any CCD fees
6. Our children are grown and we have no grandchildren yet, so a decent school system
7. Access to a marina and the beach


Budget 350 - 400K

Pulte/Del Webb has an over 55 community in Nocatee. Nice houses with all the above except for the marina and beach.....you're not going to find an "active community" with access to the beach, nor in that price range.

SS

[Thundarr457]

Originally Posted by ShakenStirred

Pulte/Del Webb has an over 55 community in Nocatee. Nice houses with all the above except for the marina and beach.....you're not going to find an "active community" with access to the beach, nor in that price range.

SS

I mean a 10 minute or so drive to a beach where we can park and enjoy the beach. The community does not have to be on a beach and if it is the prices are usually much higher.

[EricBoyd]

Sweetwater by Del Webb is in Jacksonville. Most of what is listed is in the low $300k range, but a couple are as much as $375k. All single-family detached. Monthly HOA dues are $180, in addition to a one-time capital contribution of around $950. There are also townhouses and condos there, going for less.

[Native ny]

We've just spent the week exploring the coast from New Smyrna to Ponte Vedre/ Nocatee. We covered a lot of ground and talked to people that we know all along the way. Originally from Western NY, currently in a perfect walkable little town in Central coast California. Retiring in 2016 and desire to be closer to family, but will not move back to the cold. Our itinerary was heavy St Aug, Palm Coast. Saw many homes we loved, with pools and affordable. Spent a nite in Deland, looked at homes there too. We spent an over nite with friends at Del Webb Pointe Vedre and toured Nocatee area and into Jax beach. We are shocked but we loved it there. People are active, the area is beautiful, close to every thing we want including Costco LOL. Jax airport, ocean... It has everything but our beloved Cali wine country. Bottom line is we crossed off an awful lot of places. We personally were very disappointed in St Aug. Had high hopes for WGV- but it didn't take long to see that we did not fit, and St Aug, nice place to visit, but not to live FOR US. It has been many months of research and a busy week of driving, all necessary to narrow down our choices. Now to crunch the numbers and reflect! Good luck in your search and know thyself!

[Thundarr457]

Originally Posted by Native ny

We've just spent the week exploring the coast from New Smyrna to Ponte Vedre/ Nocatee. We covered a lot of ground and talked to people that we know all along the way. Originally from Western NY, currently in a perfect walkable little town in Central coast California. Retiring in 2016 and desire to be closer to family, but will not move back to the cold. Our itinerary was heavy St Aug, Palm Coast. Saw many homes we loved, with pools and affordable. Spent a nite in Deland, looked at homes there too. We spent an over nite with friends at Del Webb Pointe Vedre and toured Nocatee area and into Jax beach. We are shocked but we loved it there. People are active, the area is beautiful, close to every thing we want including Costco LOL. Jax airport, ocean... It has everything but our beloved Cali wine country. Bottom line is we crossed off an awful lot of places. We personally were very disappointed in St Aug. Had high hopes for WGV- but it didn't take long to see that we did not fit, and St Aug, nice place to visit, but not to live FOR US. It has been many months of research and a busy week of driving, all necessary to narrow down our choices. Now to crunch the numbers and reflect! Good luck in your search and know thyself!

Which areas would you recommend? Nocatee and Jacksonville Beach?

[Native ny]

I highly recommend checking out Nocatee/ Pointe Vedre (the Del Webb 55+). Yes, it is a planned community but nice to have close by amenities, including health care, bike paths, areas you can walk, decent shopping. Alot of green space is preserved. In St Aug tracts it appeared they cleared the land, so no mature trees left in young tracts makes for a hot looking, suburbia. I liked the traffic control in Nocatee as well. However, I'm keeping in mind there is still a lot of building to be going on- so that may change. We liked the idea that we would have places to take visitors, including grand children -- nearby nice restaurants, easy drives. We are still discussing, but feel we can comfortably live our next 15 years there. We like taking continuing ed classes, or at least socializing a bit so we need that to be available. Another thing I noticed is that it looks rich, but everyone we met and talked to were nice and we did not feel as though it is an elite community. We feared that it would be Stepford, but it wasn't even close. We are pretty excited.

[Heather72754]

No, for Stepford you need The Villages - but once they put the chip in your neck you don't mind

Seriously, sounds nice. My husband and I have grandchildren in Jacksonville and will be looking to move in that direction in the next few years. We'll have to check out Ponte Vedra.