Our Retirement Community Visit, Phoenix-Phase III (Scottsdale, Sun City: condos, townhouses, landscaping)

[MotleyCrew]

I guess since we paid only $83,000 for our little chicken coop here in the original S.C and had planned on gutting it anyway, another $3,000 was not an issue for the wonderful rec centers here. The homes we looked at in Trilogy were 4X the price for less square footage and a neighbor right on top of us. Taxes were very high in comparison.

[thinkalot]

Originally Posted by GeneR

As we consider a future home we ask ourselves how important is it to have numerous rec centers? Are we likely to use more than one or two? If not, why should we care there are 3 (or 7)? If the activities we pursue are available in 1 center why would we want to pay for the upkeep or expansion of more? What if we pursue no activities? A huge attraction to Sun City is the amenities.

The number of rec centers matter because people will do different activities as they age. More rec centers more options. I would hate to be limited to what is offered at one rec center. It might be fine now but what will my interests be in 10 years?

$3500 one time and $462 a year for all that Sun City offers? The people that visit me cannot believe what we have and what we get for that money. When I tell them about my tax bill they are shocked when I tell them that is for a year and not for a month.

Whatever 55+ you decide on will charge you for the amenities if you use them or not, and it will cost a lot more than Sun City.

[wit-nit]

Originally Posted by thinkalot

The number of rec centers matter because people will do different activities as they age. More rec centers more options. I would hate to be limited to what is offered at one rec center. It might be fine now but what will my interests be in 10 years?

$3500 one time and $462 a year for all that Sun City offers? The people that visit me cannot believe what we have and what we get for that money. When I tell them about my tax bill they are shocked when I tell them that is for a year and not for a month.

Whatever 55+ you decide on will charge you for the amenities if you use them or not, and it will cost a lot more than Sun City.

Well stated^^^

[gbpakrfan]

Fees and monthly costs are one of the "joys" of living in a 55+ development. I guess it depends on your tolerance level, as well as what you're comparing it to.

For us, our $140 monthly HOA fee is a bargain compared to what we're used to. Our monthly condo fee in WI was $300 a month. What did we get for that, you ask? Okay, you didn't ask, but I'll tell you anyway. Outside maintenance, snow removal, grass cutting and trash. That's it...no pool, no clubhouse...no nothing.

Here we have an outdoor pool, an indoor pool, state of the art workout facility, pickleball, fishing pond, softball field, clubs, classes...well, you get the idea. I didn't even mention the golf course...mainly because it's not included in the monthly fee...but again, you get the idea.

We will happily pay half the monthly fee that we used to pay and enjoy 10 times the amenities. It's all relative, I guess.

[MalteseJane]

Gene, watch out for the Property Taxes. They have gone way up since we bought here. Just paid 2015 and it was 3,100$. In 2009 we paid 2,126$. Granted the value went up too. We are part of Maricopa.

[MalteseJane]

HOA fees right now are 135$ per month. One recreation center. No matter how many recreation centers there are, you can only use one at the same time, you cannot be on both places at the same time. Personally we don't care, we rarely use it. There are so many clubs with activities but I am not interested. I am happy at home doing my own thing. I have tried a few but it is just not for me. So the amenities were not something we looked at when we bought. For me it was mainly the floor plan that mattered and the lot size.

[Riggo44]

What is the HOA fee and PIF at Ventana Lakes?

[GeneR]

Originally Posted by Riggo44

What is the HOA fee and PIF at Ventana Lakes?

I believe the HOA (or rec fee) is $88 monthly paid on a quarterly basis. I don't know what a PIF is so I can't answer that question.

[Riggo44]

Capital Improvement Fund.

[Riggo44]

At Sun City, it is the Preservation and Improvement Fund for about $3600 one time paid by buyer. Not sure what the equivalent is at Ventana Lakes.