[Gondola boy]

I want to purchase a single family home. I like the Lakes and Summerlin. Is there any big reason to choose one of these locations over the other as in property appreciation is better or school districts, etc...??
Thank you!!!

[FrostyToasty]

Originally Posted by Gondola boy

I want to purchase a single family home. I like the Lakes and Summerlin. Is there any big reason to choose one of these locations over the other as in property appreciation is better or school districts, etc...??
Thank you!!!

The one issue I would have with the Lakes is that it's directly under the right turn departure path for McCarran airport. If you're considering the Lakes, I'd recommend spending a little time there and wait for the planes to come by (won't take long) and decide if that noise level is acceptable to you or not.

[vtvette]

We live in The Lakes and absolutely love it. A house on the bluff off Crystal Water Way will give you a nice view out the back and you'll never have a backyard neighbor. The HOA does a very good job of keeping the common areas looking good. For instance, the exercise equipment on the walking path on Crystal Water Way was replaced over the past few weeks with all new equipment. The mature trees and green common areas make for a very nice neighborhood. I look out my window and all I see is green trees. The HOA dues are only about $75/quarter. I can't believe anywhere in Summerlin is that cheap. During the recession there were a number of rentals in our area but, that trend is quickly reversing as houses in the area appreciate.

The houses in The Lakes tend to be older stock, built in the mid-80's through early 90's. Ours was built in 1985 and the construction quality is very good but most houses I see for sale in the area seem to be relatively original (and a surprising number of our neighbors are older people who have been in their houses 20+ years) so, you may want/need to upgrade a house purchased here. We, along with all our neighbors who have purchased in the past few years, are or have been working on remodel projects.

From all I've heard The Lakes was fairly high end when it was new back in the 80's. That's certainly not the case now but, it seems to have aged much better than some other neighborhoods in Vegas. You don't have the "exclusivity" of saying you live in Summerlin (if that's important to you) and the floor plans in The Lakes will likely seem dated compared to any of the houses in Summerlin. A plus is houses in The Lakes should be less expensive than Summerlin, and you will generally get more yard for the money. That's another big plus for The Lakes - the yards are very generous by today's standards.

Sorry we don't have children so, I cannot opine on the topic of schools.

So far as appreciation over the long term any opinion is pure speculation. No one knows what any neighborhood will really be like in 10, 15, 20 years time. We can all guess but it's pure speculation.

[vtvette]

Originally Posted by FrostyToasty

The one issue I would have with the Lakes is that it's directly under the right turn departure path for McCarran airport. If you're considering the Lakes, I'd recommend spending a little time there and wait for the planes to come by (won't take long) and decide if that noise level is acceptable to you or not.

Good point Frosty. I actually forgot about that as it's not an issue for my wife and I. We spend the majority of our time in our back yard and have completely acclimated to the sound (and they're really not loud at all to begin with, they're pretty far up when they pass over our house) but yes this is a legitimate issue as what we consider a non-issue could well drive someone else crazy.

[Prosze]

The lakes community is nice but it's old and the homes look dated. Some areas are a lot nicer than others. Summerlin has newer and older homes. Have you actually looked at homes yet?

[lvoc]

Originally Posted by Gondola boy

I want to purchase a single family home. I like the Lakes and Summerlin. Is there any big reason to choose one of these locations over the other as in property appreciation is better or school districts, etc...??
Thank you!!!

Watch the schools if you are kidded though generally they are OK in both areas. Include Pecole Ranch which is in the same class as the Lakes. If you don't fret about home age the buy is much better in Pecole or the Lakes than in Summerlin.

IF schools are an issue use the CCSD achievement reports to compare schools.

Summerlin HOA is about $45 a month. Not enough to really effect the deal.

[LasVegasPlayer]

If you buy on the far west side of the Lakes you will get Ober, which is a Summerlin school that is on the lower end for Summerlin but far above average for CCSD and what you'll otherwise get in the Lakes. Ober's district includes everything west of Grand Canyon outside the Lake West circle. Double check this, but the middle school should be Fertitta and high school Palo Verde if the elementary school is Ober. Palo is a great high school. The rest of Lakes goes to Christensen, which doesn't score well but seems to have happy parents.

With that said, I think Ober is terrible due to its administration, but it scores well. We pulled our child out of there for a variety of reasons.

Lakes is about 2/3 to 3/4 the price of a comparable Summerlin home. I'm across Hualapai from the Lakes and follow the crime reports. There are more burglaries on the Lakes side around Sahara/Hualapai. It may be due to the lower end apartments on Sahara there. Pull a crimemapping.com report for the specific neighborhood. It seems the rates drop substantially the more you go south towards Desert Inn.

[jjameson922]

I'm in Summerlin and my HOA runs $100 a month, including the Summerlin master plan. TThat gives me pools, tennis courts, golf coarses and roving security. My input would be that I think you will always find more appreciation in Summerlin and the big one for me, modern floorplans. Modern floorplans generally means one big great room instead of the space being divided between two smaller areas called living room and nevada room and much more modern kitchens and baths.

[LasVegasPlayer]

My less upscale Summerlin South HOA is $43. Each neighborhood varies on whether it has private amenities and security.

[Bps401]

Wanted to purchase in the Lakes, as our apt was right across the street. But alas, as a teacher, couldnt afford it. Love that area though and looked at a couple of houses (older ones that needed a lot of upgrading), but still wouldve done because its such a nice area.