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We have sold our home in the cold North are looking to relocate to Florida,
We are looking in a number of areas and one of them is Lakewood Ranch
What are the positives and negatives about the area and the community ?
If you live there would you buy again? If not why ?
If not Lakewood Ranch than where?
Location: Sarasota/ Bradenton - University Pkwy area
4,613 posts, read 7,531,187 times
Reputation: 6026
Lakewood Ranch is an 8,500 acre master-planned community consisting of 7 villages, with housing ranging from condos priced under $70,000 to custom, million dollar estates. LWR has business parks, retail shopping centers, a medical center, 3 golf courses, an athletic center (fitness, aquatics & lighted tennis courts), community parks, lakes, nature preserves and over 150 miles of sidewalks & trails.
Many of the events and festivals that Lakewood Ranch hosts are centered around the arts, such as Music on Main, Evening Under the Stars, Suncoast Wine Festival and Art at the Ranch.
The Premier Sports Campus at Lakewood Ranch officially opened in April of 2011. It is a multi-purpose facility that will be home to 22 full-sized, mixed use fields for soccer, lacrosse and other amateur sports. It will also host professional sporting tournaments, events and clinics.
Lakewood Ranch and it's various neighborhoods are clean, well maintained and the community areas are landscaped and meticulously kept. Some of the neighborhoods are gated, others are not. All have deed restrictions, including those pertaining to the maintenance of the exterior of homes & landscaping requirements.
Lakewood Ranch has consistently been voted as the "Best Neighborhood" by Sarasota Magazine.
As to the potential negatives:
Lakewood Ranch does have a community development district, and the CDD fee is added each year to the homeowners' tax bills in most (not all) of the LWR neighborhoods. A Community Development District or CDD is a special tax district that has been established to create a community with a higher level of amenities within an area/district and to maintain them to a level or standard of a specific developer had established. It help pays for the operation and/or to maintain facilities and systems such road improvements, management of wetlands areas, water and sewers, common areas and parks & recreational areas.
Some people consider these annual CDD fees to be a negative. Others consider them a small price to pay for having a well maintained, well run and manicured community.
There is also the controversy regarding whether Lakewood Ranch should stay a part of the county or incorporate and become a city.
I posted this on city-data a couple of weeks ago:
A battle is brewing in Lakewood Ranch over keeping the status quo as a group of neighborhoods or incorporating and becoming a city.
The pro-city Incorporation Study Group plans to conduct a straw poll in September. If a majority supports Lakewood Ranch becoming a city, the next steps would be to submit a special act to the Legislature by December 1st, then hold a referendum.
The anti-incorporation friends group is compiling a petition to stop the straw poll and build its case against a city if the proposal were to reach the Legislature. The friends group formed last year with a goal to preserve Lakewood Ranch as a community with neighborhood government groups but no formal city government. They believe forming a city will lead to less representation and higher taxes.
If you like the concept of a large, planned community with lots of amenities, you may also wish to consider in Manatee county both Heritage Harbour and Greyhawk Landings. Both are located just east of I75, on SR64. Stoneybrook at Heritage Harbour is especially popular with buyers.
Heritage Harbour is mainly gated, has a large recreation facility, miles of walking trails and golf. This guard-gated community offers exceptional home designs surrounded by pristine lakes, natural preserves, and beautiful wildlife.
Greyhawk Landings is a gated, upscale community noted for it's large lots and exceptional recreational features, such as the enormous lagoon-style community pool with water slides, waterfalls and spa. Other amenities include a fitness center, tennis & basketball courts and playground. There are also bike and walking trails, a fishing pier plus soccer and baseball fields.
Other communities in the University Parkway area that you may also like are University Park (gated) or Mote Ranch of Palm Aire (other neighborhoods in that Mote Ranch area to consider are Carlyle at Palm Aire, Copper Ridge, Grand Point, Riverbend, Longpond at Mote Ranch & Chaparral).
If you prefer to be closer to the beaches, you may also like Palmer Ranch in south Sarasota. Palmer Ranch consists of condos, townhomes and residential neighborhoods, many gated. Gated condominium communities include Bella Villino, Stoneybrook, Plaza de Flores, Pinestone & Serenade. Gated neighborhoods such as Arielle, Village Walk, Turtle Rock, The Palisades, Mira Lago feature low maintenance single family homes, villas & townhomes with lots of community amenities. Gated residential neighborhoods such as Marbella and Huntington Pointe are known for their landscaping, protected wetlands and wildlife preserves. Custom luxury homes/ condos can be found in the gated neighborhoods such as Deer Creek, the Country Club of Sarasota and Botanica. Palmer Ranch has both private and public golf courses, shopping and restaurants.
This is a broad overview of Lakewood Ranch & similar neighborhoods in the Sarasota area. If you will provide more specific information as to what you are looking for - price range, home or condo, gated or not, amenities you're looking for, etc. then I could give you a more detailed list of neighborhoods that you may like.
Congratulations on making the move to Florida. Having moved from the cold midwest myself many, many years ago, I can appreciate why you want to make sunny Sarasota your next home.
My wife and I looked at Lakewood Ranch and we really liked it......the communities...the houses...the way it was maintained...unfortunately they used Chinese Drywall in several of the communities......and if you do not know what that is...just Google it...a real eye opener as to the meaning of "BUYER BEWARE".......
If you're looking at Lakewood Ranch you might also want to consider Palmer Ranch. Palmer Ranch one of Sarasota's most popular and largest master planned communities with over 10,000 acres. Palmer Ranch actually consists of many neighborhoods, all individually operated under their own HOA. The common areas of Palmer Ranch are maintained by a master association. The overall look and feel of PR is "green" - the roads are grass and treelined, the sidewalks wind throughout the entire community, and they have recently been able to add the Legacy Trail to the many great aspects. The Legacy Trail is a paved walking/biking trail that runs through the woods along the path of the old railroad track.
Palmer Ranch is districted for great schools, is only 10-15 minutes to the beach, and is next door to the mall, new 12-screen movie theater and a fantastic YMCA complex, including a huge waterpark. Palmer Ranch is very popular with families.
Silver Oak and Prestancia are going to be your more upscale neighborhoods. Silver Oak has a championship golf course, tennis, canoing, nature and bike trails, clubhouse, pool/spa, exercise facility. All home sites back up to a lake or preserve. It is one of the newer neighborhoods in PR.
Prestancia has two championship golf courses, country club, etc. The boundaries for Prestancia are-Palmer Ranch Way, McIntosh and Beneva. It pretty much runs inside of those streets-it encompasses 565 acres.
Reymore St is the southern boundary for Palmer Ranch. The eastern boundary runs out to I-75, the western boundary goes to Beneva and the northern boundary runs nearly to Clark Rd. This tells a little more about Palmer Ranch: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmer_Ranch Within Palmer Ranch is CJ Lofino YMCA Complex. It has a full aquatic center, gym/fitness, basketball, swimming, tennis, and water park for the kids.
Unlike Lakewood Ranch, Palmer Ranch does not have any CDD fees.
My wife and I looked at Lakewood Ranch and we really liked it......the communities...the houses...the way it was maintained...unfortunately they used Chinese Drywall in several of the communities......and if you do not know what that is...just Google it...a real eye opener as to the meaning of "BUYER BEWARE".......
Oh boy, here we go again. Lakewood Ranch had one builder in one village, in one neighborhood, on one street that had Chinese drywall issues. That builder stripped every home down to the studs and concrete pad (where the owner would let them) and rebuilt the homes. An agent in my office has a daughter who went thru that and I have a friend, too, whose house was caught up in this. The agent had an environmental testing company come in to test the house thoroughly after the remediation and, despite the concerns that the studs and/or pad might have absorbed the gas and then released it again, they found no sign of that happening. Chinese drywall should not be any more a concern in Lakewood Ranch than in any other community.
Nancy707, I live the Lakewood Ranch slogan "live, work, play here" so, of course, I am a bit biased, but I think the positives for LWR far outweigh the negatives. However, I've worked with enough buyers to know that it is not for everyone and there's only one way to make that determination. You have to come here! Ask your agent to bring you to the visitor center where you can get a great introduction to our community. You can also get discounts to some of our restaurants and possibly free tickets to an event if the timing is right. You can also get a free 2-day membership to the Country Club where you can play golf, dine in the dining room, play tennis, etc. If you are thinking about building (you can build realistically from the upper $100's), an 'ambassador' can take you and your agent to the areas and builders that are building in your price range. They can also give you a driving tour of the ranch if your agent doesn't know the area well.
Although Sunshine's info was good, I think it is important to add that there is a difference between a planned community (i.e. Greyhawk et al) and a master planned community. A master planed community includes medical facilities, schools, shopping, commercial space, recreation, etc. all from the start so it works well and is relatively self-contained. We even have colleges and medical schools integrated into our community. Why does that matter? Because Lakewood Ranch has most of the things that most people want, right here on the ranch. That makes us a more desirable community for more people and, when the economy and the market bounces back, those things (historically speaking) should result in better appreciation relative to the rest of the market.
Lakewood Ranch is an 8,500 acre master-planned community consisting of 7 villages, with housing ranging from condos priced under $70,000 to custom, million dollar estates. LWR has business parks, retail shopping centers, a medical center, 3 golf courses, an athletic center (fitness, aquatics & lighted tennis courts), community parks, lakes, nature preserves and over 150 miles of sidewalks & trails.
Many of the events and festivals that Lakewood Ranch hosts are centered around the arts, such as Music on Main, Evening Under the Stars, Suncoast Wine Festival and Art at the Ranch.
The Premier Sports Campus at Lakewood Ranch officially opened in April of 2011. It is a multi-purpose facility that will be home to 22 full-sized, mixed use fields for soccer, lacrosse and other amateur sports. It will also host professional sporting tournaments, events and clinics.
Lakewood Ranch and it's various neighborhoods are clean, well maintained and the community areas are landscaped and meticulously kept. Some of the neighborhoods are gated, others are not. All have deed restrictions, including those pertaining to the maintenance of the exterior of homes & landscaping requirements.
Lakewood Ranch has consistently been voted as the "Best Neighborhood" by Sarasota Magazine.
As to the potential negatives:
Lakewood Ranch does have a community development district, and the CDD fee is added each year to the homeowners' tax bills in most (not all) of the LWR neighborhoods. A Community Development District or CDD is a special tax district that has been established to create a community with a higher level of amenities within an area/district and to maintain them to a level or standard of a specific developer had established. It help pays for the operation and/or to maintain facilities and systems such road improvements, management of wetlands areas, water and sewers, common areas and parks & recreational areas.
Some people consider these annual CDD fees to be a negative. Others consider them a small price to pay for having a well maintained, well run and manicured community.
There is also the controversy regarding whether Lakewood Ranch should stay a part of the county or incorporate and become a city.
I posted this on city-data a couple of weeks ago:
A battle is brewing in Lakewood Ranch over keeping the status quo as a group of neighborhoods or incorporating and becoming a city.
The pro-city Incorporation Study Group plans to conduct a straw poll in September. If a majority supports Lakewood Ranch becoming a city, the next steps would be to submit a special act to the Legislature by December 1st, then hold a referendum.
The anti-incorporation friends group is compiling a petition to stop the straw poll and build its case against a city if the proposal were to reach the Legislature. The friends group formed last year with a goal to preserve Lakewood Ranch as a community with neighborhood government groups but no formal city government. They believe forming a city will lead to less representation and higher taxes.
If you like the concept of a large, planned community with lots of amenities, you may also wish to consider in Manatee county both Heritage Harbour and Greyhawk Landings. Both are located just east of I75, on SR64. Stoneybrook at Heritage Harbour is especially popular with buyers.
Heritage Harbour is mainly gated, has a large recreation facility, miles of walking trails and golf. This guard-gated community offers exceptional home designs surrounded by pristine lakes, natural preserves, and beautiful wildlife.
Greyhawk Landings is a gated, upscale community noted for it's large lots and exceptional recreational features, such as the enormous lagoon-style community pool with water slides, waterfalls and spa. Other amenities include a fitness center, tennis & basketball courts and playground. There are also bike and walking trails, a fishing pier plus soccer and baseball fields.
Other communities in the University Parkway area that you may also like are University Park (gated) or Mote Ranch of Palm Aire (other neighborhoods in that Mote Ranch area to consider are Carlyle at Palm Aire, Copper Ridge, Grand Point, Riverbend, Longpond at Mote Ranch & Chaparral).
If you prefer to be closer to the beaches, you may also like Palmer Ranch in south Sarasota. Palmer Ranch consists of condos, townhomes and residential neighborhoods, many gated. Gated condominium communities include Bella Villino, Stoneybrook, Plaza de Flores, Pinestone & Serenade. Gated neighborhoods such as Arielle, Village Walk, Turtle Rock, The Palisades, Mira Lago feature low maintenance single family homes, villas & townhomes with lots of community amenities. Gated residential neighborhoods such as Marbella and Huntington Pointe are known for their landscaping, protected wetlands and wildlife preserves. Custom luxury homes/ condos can be found in the gated neighborhoods such as Deer Creek, the Country Club of Sarasota and Botanica. Palmer Ranch has both private and public golf courses, shopping and restaurants.
This is a broad overview of Lakewood Ranch & similar neighborhoods in the Sarasota area. If you will provide more specific information as to what you are looking for - price range, home or condo, gated or not, amenities you're looking for, etc. then I could give you a more detailed list of neighborhoods that you may like.
Congratulations on making the move to Florida. Having moved from the cold midwest myself many, many years ago, I can appreciate why you want to make sunny Sarasota your next home.
everything about lakewood ranch is positive---the best,well thought out community i have ever experienced with friendly people to boot----moved cause of job change but i would go back there in a heartbeat if i could
Lakewood ranch is beautiful and its really not that far of a drive to the beach about 25 minutes. I have a friend who lives i there and they love it but hoping to buy a house in Parrish.
Really Really Really Really read the Home owners association manual before moving here. It's insane the number of things that you simply cannot do. If you would like to come here as your "Retirement" then it's great. If you are wanting to move your family here, read the manual first.
My husband and I are planning a move to the Sarasota area at the beginning of next year. We traveled to Sarasota in May of this year to look at neighborhoods. At that time, we thought Lakewood Ranch was too far from downtown Sarasota, the beach, St. Armand's, etc. However, I've been watching the housing market, reading the crime stats in other Sarasota neighborhoods, and reading up on homeowner's insurance. Now it looks like Lakewood Ranch might be a good fit for us. Many of the newer homes in the Sarasota area (a concern for affordable homeowner's/hurricane insurance) seem to be in Lakewood Ranch, and it looks like the Lakewood Ranch Main Street shops and restaurants might be a destination in themselves.
I do have a couple of questions though.
1) We live in the state of Washington now, but I originally came from Southern California. There, if you're more than 3 miles from the ocean, the temperature is significantly hotter in summer. Since Lakewood Ranch is about 15 miles from the ocean, is it also significantly hotter there than it might be in, say, Palmer Ranch or other Sarasota neighborhoods of the same quality? In SoCal, this difference is mainly due to a lack of morning marine cloud layers inland, and lack of a sea breeze.
2) We LOVED downtown Sarasota and DIDN'T love "downtown" Venice because, pretty as Venice was, it couldn't be described as vibrant and didn't offer a lot of entertainment and restaurant choices. In short, it seemed pretty dead pretty early in the evening. Will we find Lakewood Ranch's Main Street to be more like downtown Sarasota or more like Venice?
Thanks for any insights you can offer,
NWSusie
P.S. In response to the concern over HOA rules, I can empathize, and agree they should be read and understood before buying, but having lived in neighborhoods both with and without them, I can tell you that if you have a concern for your home's value, you WANT an effective HOA with enforced rules. It can mean the difference between looking out your windows to a beautiful Florida neighborhood or lake view versus looking out at RVs, blue plastic tarps, old autos being worked on in the front yard, bushes growing out of people's roof gutters, weedy, unkempt yards, and homes with peeling paint (and much worse). In short, those pesky HOA rules are what helps to ensure that your home's value remains as high as possible.
Last edited by NWSusie; 08-10-2011 at 01:21 PM..
Reason: Add a response to the concern over HOA rules.
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Chinese Drywall
...the communities...the houses...the way it was maintained...unfortunately they used Chinese Drywall in several of the communities...
...and if you do not know what that is...just Google it...a real eye opener as to the meaning of "BUYER BEWARE"....
Lakewood Ranch had one builder in one village, in one neighborhood, on one street that had Chinese drywall issues. That builder stripped every home down to the studs and concrete pad (where the owner would let them) and rebuilt the homes. An agent in my office has a daughter who went thru that and I have a friend, too, whose house was caught up in this. The agent had an environmental testing company come in to test the house thoroughly after the remediation and, despite the concerns that the studs and/or pad might have absorbed the gas and then released it again, they found no sign of that happening. Chinese drywall should not be any more a concern in Lakewood Ranch than in any other community.
