More where to buy questions. To Gate or not, Golf or not (Country Club: lease, HOA fees)

[jsup]

A concern is leaving my house vacant for half the year. Is this why there are so many gated communities? Is it therefore not a good idea to buy outside a GC in this situation? Or, is there a service you buy to periodically check the house? My thought process is to avoid golf communities as I am only an occasional golfer and assume that a golf course drives up the expense of living in the community. Is that necessarily true? Are there public or semi public courses for the occasional play?

[bbronston]

Let's take these one at a time. A gated community does not necessarily guarantee security and some gated communities cannot even control who goes in because the roads are public. Next, the greater concern for absentee owners is just being sure that the A/C is still functioning, the water didn't leak (or the roof), the yard is being maintained, that sort of thing. There are businesses that mind absentee homes in this way but I'll bet most just ask a neighbor to watch the place while they are gone. A maintenance-free community can be a help but you can also just hire a regular lawn guy to keep the yard in shape. Last, not all golf communities require you to be a member. Some do, some only require a social membership (which can be a plus) with a minimum food expenditure that amounts to roughly a pizza a week, so not unreasonable. If you are in a golf community that does not require membership, I don't think the HOA cost is necessarily higher than in a non-GC community.

[jsup]

Thanks, a community with an optional golf membership seems like a goog idea in case I ever decide to devote more time to the game. Also, would think it would broaden the market for resale.

[TamRE]

Some gated communities are manned, others use a gate code or gate card. Not all gated communities have the same type or level of security. Some golf course communities require membership, others do not. The one's that do, you will notice much higher fees. Some have a choice of a social membership fee or a full golf membership fee. You just have to look at the differences and choose one that meets your needs.

As far as maintaining the property while you are away. Most communities will have someone in the community that can look in on your home while you are away, usually a neighbor will do it too. If not, there are home watch services that provide this type of service. One thing you want to make sure you have is a Humidstat. That will control your A/C and help prevent mold or moisture in the home while you are away.

Yes, there are plenty of public golf courses for occasional play.

[Sunshine Rules]

Many of the golf course communities allow the public to play their golf courses. A few are private, closed to the public -- those are the equity membership ones that typically charge the residents annual fees to cover the maintenance of the golf course, whether you play or not.

For example, Bent Tree, Rosedale (near Lakewood Ranch), Laurel Oaks, The Meadows, Palm Aire, University Park, Misty Creek, the Legacy course at Lakewood Ranch Country Club, Stoneybrook at Heritage Harbour are various communities that have golf course(s) open to the public. University Park requires the homeowners in their various neighborhoods to belong to the country club, but they offer various tiers of membership at various prices.


Regarding gated vs non-gated. As bbronston said, some gated communities have public roads and therefore cannot keep cars out, although they do record license plates as you pass thru the guard gates. Others (such as Village Walk in Palmer Ranch, Central Park in Lakewood Ranch to name 2) have private roads which the community maintains so they can restrict cars coming into their communities.
Many insurance companies will give you a discount if your home is in a gated community.

But gated does not equal crime free. A few years ago there were problems with thefts going on in the exclusive gated community of University Park. Turns out the thieves were entering the community thru the golf course from University Parkway. Living in a gated community can help cut the chances of theft but it's not a guarantee.


I personally live in a community where the HOA takes care of the lawn maintenance. There are a number of residents in our community that do go north for the summer, but you wouldn't know it by driving by the homes because everyone's lawn is the same. If I go away I don't have to worry about a lawn service not showing up, or quitting, or doing a so-so job because they know I'm gone for several months.

If you are concerned about letting your home sit for months at a time, other options might be a villa or perhaps a free standing villa which lives like a single family home but the condo association is responsible for exterior maintenance.

[loves2read]

My experience has been that golf course communities usually are more expensive with HOA fees and stricter with HOA requirements than non golf course HOAs--
depending on how the covenants are written...

some communities self-manage their course and some lease them out to 3rd party management that take care of all requirements and pay a fee/per centage to the community for doing so...
lots of factors decide how much cost is apportioned to the homwowners...

my husband worked with guy who lived in fairly exclusive development in Fort Worth TX area with golf course that the developer controlled and let a 3rd party manage and basically run into the ground so that it was reducing the value of the development...
the homeowners got together, formed an LLC, bought the golf course from developer and run it themselves...more expensive in some way but kept value of their homes (1M+ in most cases) from deteriorating...
and they decided to close the course to keep off public trade--more expensive again--but most of them are able/willing to pay for less crowded course and doing less damage from overuse and bad play...

Some people complain about strict enforcement and restrictive covenants AFTER they buy into a development--that is just not taking responsibility for proper research---especially if you have pets and/or likelihood of wanting to have others use your home...

read the CCRs and go to at least one HOA board meeting if you can
HOAs are a lightining rod for people's opinions...and many times what bothers someone else might not bother you at all...
you just want honest financials...

[GoldenRuleHomeWatch]

When away hire a Home Watch company just today I got a new account only cost them 80,000 for new flooring to realize what an asset having someone look after there home can be. MOST qualified homewatch companys are better than the retired automaker next door.

[jsup]

Originally Posted by GoldenRuleHomeWatch

When away hire a Home Watch company just today I got a new account only cost them 80,000 for new flooring to realize what an asset having someone look after there home can be. MOST qualified homewatch companys are better than the retired automaker next door.

Had that owner utilized a home watch service would the damage you described been prevented or would it have been the service company liability?

[jsup]

Originally Posted by loves2read

My experience has been that golf course communities usually are more expensive with HOA fees and stricter with HOA requirements than non golf course HOAs--
depending on how the covenants are written...

some communities self-manage their course and some lease them out to 3rd party management that take care of all requirements and pay a fee/per centage to the community for doing so...
lots of factors decide how much cost is apportioned to the homwowners...

my husband worked with guy who lived in fairly exclusive development in Fort Worth TX area with golf course that the developer controlled and let a 3rd party manage and basically run into the ground so that it was reducing the value of the development...
the homeowners got together, formed an LLC, bought the golf course from developer and run it themselves...more expensive in some way but kept value of their homes (1M+ in most cases) from deteriorating...
and they decided to close the course to keep off public trade--more expensive again--but most of them are able/willing to pay for less crowded course and doing less damage from overuse and bad play...

Some people complain about strict enforcement and restrictive covenants AFTER they buy into a development--that is just not taking responsibility for proper research---especially if you have pets and/or likelihood of wanting to have others use your home...

read the CCRs and go to at least one HOA board meeting if you can
HOAs are a lightining rod for people's opinions...and many times what bothers someone else might not bother you at all...
you just want honest financials...

I am leaning towards a non golf community but won't exclude outright and take your advice to properly research. Thanks.

[GoldenRuleHomeWatch]

The damage in that one case scenario would have been minimal, with a weekly home inspection...No one was at fault.