I live in a CV and have a dog. I have never experienced the echo of barking dogs and know there are 14 dogs that live in the neighborhood.

you could buy a CYV and the neighbors don't have a dog, BUT they could sell and your new neighbors MAY have a dog. No one knows what the future holds. Buy what you like now.

I’ve found that all you need is one inconsiderate dog owner and your living in hell.

We live in a CYV. When we were looking to buy we told our realtor, no barking dogs. She delivered.

A few feet in distance does not make much of a difference. If you're near a barking dog you will hear it.

No, if I walk down the street I might hear a stray bark now and then.

i'd say no, because most dogs are not kept outside all day. in my area, dogs are out when their owners are, and yes, they bark, but it's shouldn't disrupt your life to the point of despair. you should know almost everyone on my street has dogs, except for 2 people, and if you don't like them, i'd investigate the area 1st. either way, i wouldn't loose any sleep over it. (unless of course, there's relentless barking, lol)

We have a CV and have not experienced any of the issues mentioned. I would say that it’s a non issue here. We have 2 dogs as many neighbors have dogs. There is no echo nor do we hear barking dogs.
Hope that helps.
We enjoy the privacy and ability to just open the back door to let the dogs out. We have an oversized corner lot, some have hardly any yard space for a dog. Keep that in mind.

I had a 3/4 acre lot in Ohio, and the entire neighborhood was plagued by a barking dog.
The owners went to work and left it outside….or if they were home they also left it out, because they didn’t really like the dog much.
So lot size, or distance between homes doesn’t help with dog noise.
It’s been my Experience in TV that owners are retired, home with their pets, and they don’t want to hear them bark either. So they tend to keep them indoors and happy.
Yes, many dog owners choose CYV, for the convenience of letting them out in a yard to potty.
Most are loving pet owners and will let them inside as soon as they bark.

we have a home and a dog next door/ and it barks at us all the time so we heat the people next door

I live in a veranda which backs to courtyard villas. I hear an occasional barking dog. I think you would have to be very unlucky for that to be an issue.

If you want a little more house consider a Veranda home. They have the same concept (fences around all homes).

That being said I just moved into a Designer home (no fences) in the Village of Shady Brook partly to get away from barking. Guy across the street has a screen on his garage door. He puts two large dogs in the garage and they bark all day long at passing cars. Didn’t see that coming.

Lived in a CYV and a designer. No difference in noise levels from one to the other. And, yes, I agree that dogs bark on lanai’s throughout the villages. The Villages is not a quiet place to live. There is constant noise from a myriad of sources. If you are looking for tranquility this may not be the place for you.

I have lived in a CYV since 2021 and the answer where I am is no. Dogs won't be left out in the yard for fear of animals getting in there and harming your dog so they go out to do their business and come back in.

We LOVE our CV! What did bother us was being near a busy road!! We used to live in Duval (which I love) but now I would never move back to our old house as the road noise is super loud! I find my neighbors have always been courteous with their dogs and love them to be close to them ❤️. The privacy of the courtyard villa is the best and unless near a busy road !