Saddlebrooke Ranch, MO (Springfield, Ozark, Branson: transplants, for sale, real estate)

[garth]

Can anyone give me any insight into Saddlebrooke, MO, please? It's basically a housing development located off of US65 between Springfield and Branson.

I've been to their website ( http://www.saddlebrookemo.com ) and it's given me some info, but it has also revealed something that I've never heard about. I called the company and was told that Saddlebrooke has been "incorporated." That means to me that it is a city or town, with a mayor, city council, city laws, city taxes, etc. Everything that makes an incorporated governmental entity.

That doesn't appear to be the case with Saddlebrooke. The person I spoke to said that they do not have any of the above items. He said that they "incorporated" just so they could do their own zoning, instead of dealing with it through the county. There was no other motivation.

That sounds strange to me. I never heard of such a thing. Is it common in Missouri, to incorporate but not have a city, taxing authority, tec., or is there an issue other than zoning involved? It also raises questions of accountability, responsibility, and oversight, depending on who's in charge of the incorporated entity.

As you can probably tell, something isn't quite sitting right with me. You may have heard the saying that, "Just becasue you're paranoid, doesn't mean someone isn't following you." Well, that's why I'm asking you folks. Am I unreasonably paranoid or is something amiss?

Thanks

[Darren Stewart]

I know in their advertising they advertise it as a MasterPlan Community, I do not know the principles involved in the planning. I do know that if you drive down the highway its recognized as a town and has its own sign along the highway now, which you may have seen. I believe its in the Branson school district but it is its own entity as far as I am aware of.

My guess would be that there would be some kind of associational dues in lieu of taxes but that is just a guess.

[topjb]

We've been looking at Saddlebrooke and talking to the developers (Clyde Lorance and his son Tyler) for a couple of years now. We plan on buying/building there in the next year or so.

Saddlebrooke is a beautiful master planned community about 23 miles south of Springfield MO and 15 miles north of Branson, MO. The lots are anything from a large lot to acreage. We've been looking at 1/2 acre lots and they are, for the most part, in the 60-70K range. There are good size homes for sale in the $370-450K range.

The developers incorporated at the suggestion of the county. They are doing things like septic, water, roads, etc..that are state of the art and are WAY above the county code. So rather than keep going back to the county for approval on this stuff, the county suggested that they incorporate so they could continue without all of the buearacracy (sp?).

They used to allow horses, but that has changed in the past couple of years. Once the last of the boarded horses are gone, they will close the stable (which is off the beaten path from the homes). They have developed with the idea of keeping the area reasonably restricted for the protection of home owners.

They have a community pool, community park(s), and a fishing stream on the property. Additionally, there is a historical old school house that they are keeping in pristine condition for the enjoyment of the community.

The only downside is that it is still a very small community and they allow "investors" to buy land with no time limits on building a home.

The developer (Clyde) is the Mayor and he has a board of directors. It is set up to become a self-governing village if something should happen to him. But right now, it's really just a master planned community.

Hope this helps....

[Tom Walker]

I would readily confirm what topjb has shared about Saddlebrooke. They are exactly the facts that we've come to know during our research of the area.

We currently live in Madison, WI but have been regular visitors to the Springfield / Branson area for years. In fact we enjoyed the Ozarks long before Branson blossomed into what it is today. We got acquainted with Clyde, watched Saddlebrooke develop for a couple of years and then finally purchased a lot earlier this year. We are delighted with our decision and hope to build a retirement home there within the next five years. The more moderate winters are a real attraction to us in addition to the great scenery, relaxed culture, lower taxes, excellent healthcare and convenient location to name just a few things.

[garth]

Thanks for the info guys. Since I started this thread, I requested the info package and the CC&R's from the development. It sounds interesting, but there are a few things that concern me about the governing of the development (POA), governing of the incorporated "town," the future tax structure and participation of the concerned residents, and a few other things. I will investigate it further once I arrive back there.

We'll also need to look at the available land in the development. It seems that a lot of the lots are on the small side for being away from the major towns.

I also have a question about the sewer system in the development. It appears that I need to buy some kind of mechanism to be installed on the property. However, the governing documents require that the ownership of the mechanism is turned over to the devolper after purchase, even though he didn't pay for it. That seems strange to me and raises concerns about access to the property for maintenance of the equipment. Does it give the developer, who is also the defacto and unelected mayor of an incorporated city, in sole control of the Architectural Committee, and who has a status in the POA that I have yet to determine, unrestricted access to the property he sold because of his owership of the installed equipment he didn't buy? I don't know so I need to see some other documented and written guarantees about the future before I decide that it's a good development and not a fiefdom without community control or individual property rights.

There's also a question about community assets that parallel a similar development in Arkansas. These assets include the streets, pool, parks, etc. If the POA owns the streets and other community assets, what happens with them when the town actually furthers it's steps towards becomming an active governing entity? It's bound to happen one day since the incorporation ahs already been accomplished.

The Arkansas development (Bella Vista) ran into that problem. The POA couldn't turn the assets over to the newly organized city without compensation. They had to be bought. The problem arose when it was realized that the citizens of the development would end up paying twice for them, once when they were installed/maintained as part of their POA dues and again through bonds and the property taxes used to buy the assets from the POA that were floated by the new city. It doesn't seem right to me.

I find the development an interesting concept, but there's also lots of unanswered questions and dangerous possibilities in my mind. That's why I need more info before jumping in.

[Zoltani]

Saddlebrooke Ranch - We just purchased a .54 acre lot and are absolutely delighted with our acquisition. In terms of value and analysis of Southwest Missouri real estate, Saddlebrooke Ranch is a solid financial investment and favorably positioned among all major growth markets, Highway 65, and the new Branson Regional Airport. For us (Southern California transplants,) S.W. Missouri appears to offer an ideal balance of quality-of-life, traditional values, and reasonable climate. A half acre lot is enormous by California standards and allows plenty of room for building. Also, having two (2) Ozark Mountain spring fed ultra-clean creeks, i.e., Cook Creek and Bull Creek, is a lagniappe.

Would appreciate any recommendations for house builders in the S.W. Missouri area that are able to build a quality house in Saddlebrooke Ranch.

[Zoltani]

Saddlebrooke Ranch - We just purchased a .54 acre lot and are absolutely delighted with our acquisition. In terms of value - and analysis of Southwest Missouri real estate, Saddlebrooke Ranch is a solid financial investment and favorably positioned among all major growth markets, Highway 65, and the new Branson Regional Airport. For us (Southern California transplants,) S.W. Missouri appears to offer an ideal balance of quality-of-life, traditional values, and reasonable climate. A half acre lot is enormous by California standards and allows plenty of room for building. Also, having two (2) Ozark Mountain spring-fed, ultra-pure, and crystal-clear creeks, i.e., Cook Creek and Bull Creek, is a lagniappe. "Happiness = Reality - Expectations."

Would appreciate any recommendations for house builders in the S.W. Missouri area that are able to build a quality house in Saddlebrooke Ranch.

[8 SNAKE]

Congratulations. Saddlebrook is a nice development.

Did they ever fix the road so that you could go directly south on 65 coming out of the main entrance/exit? That always irritated me, for some reason.

[G4inMO]

Congratulations on your new purchase. I too am another one of the CA transplants. There is quite a few of us here and seem to all agree on why we chose SW Missouri. I will PM you with some questions. Good luck to you and you should search around here on City Data and you will find all kinds of information about the area.

Welcome to Missouri

[ShadowCaver]

Another post of congrats for ya, albeit from a MO native.

Curious as to your choice of the word "lagniappe" - not that common of a term, esp. outside of Creole-Cajun country, or even the rest of the Gulf area.

Welcome and again, congratulations.