How do you deal with the closeness of the homes?

[beady]

We live in a condo, in an end unit. The next building is 20 feet away with trees in between. The back yard faces a road, again with trees as a buffer. Across from the front is an open field.

In TV that is a rare find unless you have a golf front home. I am concerned about being so close to neighbors on what appears to be 3 sides.

We will be down to TV on September 12 and hopefully purchase a home, can't wait, but the close proximity of neighbors is a bit troublesome. :) :)

[Frank2]

Initially, I felt the way you do about having neighbors so close to one another. However, I've discovered it's not a issue to be concerned about as you'll find most neighbors are friendly, helpful and keep to themselves unless invited.

Also, the configuration and location of homes on the sites are such that there are no windows that look directly into the neighbors living quarters. Mostly they are across from your neighbor's garage. You'll also find that you are not home long enough to let this worry you.

I'm certain that if you look long enough, and are willing to incur the expense, you can find a home that has the privacy you think you need.

I suggest you come to the Villages and rent a unit to experience the, "closeness" of your neighbor first hand.

Good luck and we welcome you to the Villages, neighbor.

[golfnut]

I've never found it to be an issue, I think Frank covered the subject. One other thing I've noticed is many people put in plantings between houses that are back to back to provide a buffer. Myself, we bought a house that backs to a secondary road and put in some low palms, bottle brush and ligustrums that shield the lanai from the road for what little traffic does go by.

[nanci2539]

This is probably my only concern - privacy. I just don't want to see, smell or even hear what my neighbors are having for breakfast! Nor do I want them to hear our occasional squabbles or our conversations if we talk on a cell in the lanai. Moving from Boston to IL was shell shock for us. We had two acres of land in Boston that backed up to woods. The closest home was a city block away. I could wave to my neighbors but we had complete privacy.

In IL; we have homes around us, pretty close. We're very lucky to have 1/3 acre of land, more than most people have in our area. We spent over five years putting in what we call creative landscaping. Our back yard neighbor's patio is in view of my deck and patio but with the trees and schrubs we put in, it blocks the view and plus it's pretty to look at.

So, where we will be picky about the lot we end up with, if you find a home you love but don't like how close you are to your neighbor, the first thing I would do is put in lots of trees, bushes, prairie grass, etc to block the view. It's worth the investment.

[golfnut]

One other thing I noticed in FLA is that many of the plantings grow pretty quick.

[LG]

After they see you naked once, they will never look you way again!! :joke:

[golfnut]

so true

[swrinfla]

Back in St. Louis, I had only 3 feet or even less between me and my next door neighbors, so the ten and more feet I've got here is wonderful ;D
But, up north my back yard had nearly 100 feet to an alley, with an 8-foot fence at the alley. Here, there aren't any alleys, and my neighbors behind me are pretty g.d. close. Fortunately, they're usually here only a month or two out of the year. I do worry that they may put in a pool, so I occasionally think about what sort of plantings I can add to screen that. That seems to be down the road, however.
Bottom line: you either make early friends with your neighbors on all sides or you end up being unhappy. Far better, you make friends!

[saratogaman]

You can do what we did...purchase a home on a deeper lot. Our lot backs up to other future homes with deep lots so that we all will have a lot of space between us. You will pay a premium for a larger lot...we paid an extra $34,000 and it's well worth it. There's probably 130-150 feet between the house backs. The sides are close, but there are no windows on the sides anyway.

[BUC]

You could do the unthinkable and build a fence in the back yard of the property you paid for plus the property taxes you pay!!!

[Nursee]

I have some great screens on my lanai. All that can be seen from the outside is shadows. It's not prefect but it helps.

Mary Ann

[mejahu]

You could do the unthinkable and build a fence in the back yard of the property you paid for plus the property taxes you pay!!!
With those revolutionary ideas, you are in danger of being "tarred and feathered". :joke: :agree: To many rules and regulations these days.

[Lil Dancer]

It's easy to create visual privacy with screens, shades or plantings, but noise is another thing. Our lanai butts up to our neighbor's lanai in the back, only about 30 feet apart, and they keep the door from their house to their lanai open virtually all the time. We hear everything . What is a problem for us is they keep their television on all day long in their living room, and they're hard of hearing so it is blasting, and we try to sit on our lanai and we hear it word for word. We've spoken with them a few times, and nothing seems to get better. So, I think it depends on your neighbors, and their lifestyle, how considerate they are, and the distance between the homes as far as how much noise there will be. We're going to try enclosing our lanai with soundproof glass or acrylic, and see if that is an improvement. We rarely hear neighbors on the sides. good luck!

[pili]

Nan2539,

It seems you are facing the same issue we are. We also live in Illinois (Barrington) and we have one acre lot. I don't see or hear my neighbors (and they are wonderful people) unless I want to. Being too close to other homes is an issue for us. What type of home are you considering? I'm thinking of Ranch or Designer because the Villas are not very pretty on the outside (all the same). We plan to visit TV next May. Our goal date to move is early 2009.

Pili :)

[Avista]

Nan, My husband and I were raised in Cary--just 2 more stops on the train. :)

[zcaveman]

I purchased a house that backs up to the villas. I have a 6 foot high villages built fence between me and my neighbor. Works good!!

[BUC]

It's OK to build a fence? If it is great! I'm so HAPPY

[Hancle704]

Don't believe covenants allow homeowners to build any fences around ranch, designer or premier homes. The Developer does put walls and fences in Villa neighborhoods. Regarding plantings between you and your neighbor. Suggest you do research before you plant. Somethings grow so fast and so tall that you may regret planting them.

Another issue about the closeness of homes has to do with Developer's desire to put the maximum number of homes in the minimum amount of space. Apart from concerns about noise and privacy you may want to concern yourself about the potential for fire to jump from one home to another with strong winds.

[villagerjudy]

"Closeness of the homes....". Oh please let the person who explained it to me to know what he was talking about...... There are density laws about houses per acre. What TV did was put the houses close together to allow for the "green" spaces and still meet density requirements. If this is incorrect I will admit I bought ocean front property in Arizona LOL.

[mejahu]

It's OK to build a fence? If it is great! I'm so HAPPY
If you buy a house in front of a villa, you get the advantage of their fence. If TV prvides it, it's OK. to have a fence. :cop:

[Barefoot]

The closeness of the homes was something that bothered us greatly, coming from the country with acreages. :dontknow: We originally wanted a Ranch, we thought Courtyard Villas were ugly, as everyone seems to think. But I really wanted a small fenced yard for Biggins and Brutus. Then I reasoned "How much time do you spend looking at the front of your house?" Not much at all, compared to how much time you enjoy the privacy. So, strictly for the fenced back yard, we bought a Courtyard Villa (Block, as we thought they look nicer than frame). We back on a small stretch of golf course (no golf cart road nearby) so we don't have anyone looking into our yard. I think it will be perfect for our needs. ;D We didn't get the exact model we wanted, but we reasoned, we can make changes to the interior, but not to the location.

As LG said in an earlier post "Once they see you naked, they'll never look again". :agree:

[beady]

::) I thank you all for your advise and humor regarding privacy.

We will be in TV in mid September to buy and I will tell our agent that privacy is the top priority. As ,barefoot at last ,mentioned, changes can be made to the interior if it isn't quite what we want. I look forward to meeting neighbors, but like Nanci2539 says I do not want to listen to their conversations and I do not want to be heard.

As for scaring them away by lounging on the lanai in the buff, not my style :redface:

[opbob77]

My wife and I set the criteria for our TV home. Being aware of the closeness of the back-to-back homes we would not consider anything but a cul-du-sac, corner lot, or something that backs up to a street, villa wall, or wildlife preserve. Be careful of the street though. You wouldn't want to back up against Buena Vista or Morse for example. I did have to remind the sales person that I will decide where to live, not her. We wound up with a beautiful lot that backs up to Bonita Dr., up on a hill and looking down on Havana golf course. That also was a big discussion at the pool one day. How do the sales people decide where to "place" you?

[rsetterlund]

I was going to start a separate posting, but seeings how many people have mentioned plantings in this thread I will ask my question here. How does an outsider find out what are all the rules are? A part of our decision making process will be what can be done with the yard. If we were to purchase a ranch, would be permitted to install plantings to block the view of our Lani? Is it possible to purchase a hot tub and have it installed either on the Lani or backyard? There will be occasions which we would like to have another couple over and would not want to disturb out neighboors.

[Frank2]

Rsetterlund,

My neighbor has a ranch home with an enclosed lanai, and an attached birdcage with a hot tub, all on the same concrete slab. Also, they have privacy plantings, i.e., bottle brush and palm trees, all this without an issue.

It seems to me there are few, if any, restrictions on plantings as a privacy screen. You can pursue this with our friends in the neighborhood watch office.

Good luck

[rsetterlund]

Frank2,

Thanks for the information. That helps. I understand rules change from village to village. What village do you and your neighbor live in.

It looks like we are going to have to start trying to select a village.

[jtdraig]

Gotta tell you that unless we had found a lot and house that was as private as possible, trust me, I would not be here in the Villages. Fortune smiled upon us and we bought a golf course lot and were able to situate the house so we opitimized our view and our privacy. Getting a lot that overlooks a marsh or golf course will almost always ensure that you have the privacy you want. However, with that, comes a hefty pricetag but it is worth every penny. We came from Connecticut where I had two acres of land, complete and total privacy surrounded by my own woods and quiet neighbors. We have everything here but the two acres...you'll also find for the most part that your neighbors will become friends. Our street has bonded over the past two years so we have golf and social events together. I hope this helps.

One other thing...if you do find a lot with a view make sure that something won't be built on it in the future. If you stay with marshes and golf courses, you'll be fine. Be careful of land overlooking Lake Sumter Landing or commercial property as on Route 466 where a strip mall could be built in your backyard.

[F16 1UB]

I'd just take off my glasses. That way I couldn't see em anyway. As far as hearing them - probably not. My wife says I never pay any attention to her. Bring em on.

:welcome:

Steve

[rsetterlund]

What about taxes. In New Hampshire, if you can see water your taxes are a lot higher. Does the same apply in TV? I understand that being on a golf course comes with higher taxes, but what about water? We are not wealthy and I would not want to give the tax man any more than what is necessary.

[Frangyomory]

I don't agree that courtyard villas are "ugly" nor do any of my neighbors. We all have stucco homes, courtyard villas, and we have the privacy we wanted and a place for our dog to enjoy her new home. Personally, I couldn't live in a ranch home where the lanai faced the neighbors lanai. I wouldn't feel very comfortable using my lanai or back yard with neighbors so close.

We have a Woodlawn model courtyard vila with a semi open kitchen. I love our floor plan. We paid a premium for our corner lot and full wrap around back yard and it was well worth it. We have wonderful neighbrs and we are seconds away from the pool and all the shopping and restaurants on 466.

Wouldn't trade in our villa for anything!!! :bigthumbsup: :bigthumbsup: :bigthumbsup:

[Avista]

We love our Courtyard Villa too. We think Villas are beautiful.! :bigthumbsup: Our dogs love Villas too..

[Barefoot]

Avista & Fran .. My two doggies also picked out a Courtyard Villa for us, they refused to live anywhere else. ;D We are very social and friendly people, but we like to roam around in our pjs in the morning, and we're not the prettiest sight in the world! We looked at Ranch houses and we liked them, and thought of plantings for privacy. But we were told by the Developer Sales Rep that everything planted had to be approved by a committee. Yikes. So let's hear it for Villas! :bigthumbsup:

[BUC]

My wife and I are coming down in Oct. to check out the villa, we/she decided I should quit complaining about not having a fence. For our little dogs. So the only choose is a villa?

[Avista]

Buc, When we came to visit we told ours sales rep we only houses we wanted to see were Courtyard Villas. We had a Villa in Tampa, and our little dogs really liked it. I didn't want a house where I had to walk my dogs all the time.

Villas have so many good points.
1. Wonderful for dogs.
2. The courtyard villas come with ceiling fans and window treatments in each room
3. When you get ready for bed or want to walk around the house in your PJ's, no need to close the blinds.
4. My husband cuts what little grass we have with an electric mower. Takes about 10-15 minutes.
5. There is quite a nice selection in Courtyard Villas. We looked at a number of preowned ones.
6. Eventually decided on a new Savannah--Stoneybrook.
7. You can decide on either the vinyl siding Keys or the cement siding Savannahs.
8. Lots of models to choose from.--We selected the Stoneybrook (AnaMarie in the Keys)
We liked the double sink in the bath, and the abundance of tile on the floors. We also preferred the closed kitchen. It comes both open and closed. Eveywhere my husband eats, he leaves crumbs (can't understand it :dontknow:) The closed kitchen has room for a kitchen table in the kitchen on tile. The open kitchen is also very nice and has room for a breakfast bar and dining table. They are both on carpeting. As I said, my husband does better eating on tile. Other models have sliding door to the lanai from bedroom.

9. There are so many beautiful designs. Each design has something another doesn't.

10. Probably the lot is one of the most important things. Some back up to neighbors, some to a street and some to a golf course. The golf course homes have a low fence in back. I know my Boston would jump right over it, so didn't consider this.

11. My husband and I use one of our 3 bedrooms for an office. We both have computers. I sit at my computer and look out the window that overlooks the street. I see everything that is going on and love it.

Keep an open mind. Most of us who live in Courtyard homes, love them.

[Barefoot]

Buc, unfortunately if you want a fenced backyard, the only choice is a Courtyard Villa. Other people have used invisible fencing or "tethering" their dog. I bet there has been a high demand for fenced yards (especially for those of us who have pets or desire more privacy), and the Developer is offering CVs as their solution to that need. :welcome: I think you're purchasing at a good time ... prices in TV seemed to have really decreased! Good luck with finding your special home!