We also back on a golf course and I agree with Chuck. We opted for a smaller Villa on a view lot, rather than a larger home with no privacy.

IMHO, Paying a lot premium is SO worth it.

Gi-gund-us TV or screened lanai.
 

Last night returning home from golf at dusk, we were coming down Morse (I think) and saw a party going on, spilling out unto the lanai and there was a HUGE flat screen TV on the lanai house wall and the guys were gathered round it. I hadn't thought to put one there. It was a screened lanai.

Be careful.... not all golf course fronts are private. I play a lot of golf and am amazed how close some of the cart paths run to the rear lanais. At times i feel like I'm in the persons living room when the sliding doors to the lanai is opened. I have spoken to people who sold their golf front homes (that they paid a 100K premium for) because the sunrise greens crew woke them every am and because golfers could stand there peering right thru their home. A Grantham corner couryard villa is a great alternative.

We back unto the Odell center and have a low, really beautiful wall that defines the space. THEIR wall, our pretty view, because the landscaping is gorgeous, and the grasses give privacy too. It is not a premium lot but it is a wonderful one. We can half see people playing shuffleboard and bocce and the pool is right there. It is the family pool so sometimes little children screaming or crying causes a little stress, (we are programmed not to be able to ignore those sounds) but their laughter is pleasant. The west facing view is not as hot as I thought and we get pretty sunsets. I have hung an IKEA outdoor drapery (very reasonable in price and quite long, so it goes from floor to ceiling) on the end which is next to neighbors because we like to have coffee in our sleeping clothes and they may not like to see it.

Very observant post!!

so confused and conflicted
 

We were in TV this past week on a lifestyle. Stayed in a courtyard with the lanai encloed and made into another room. sliding glass doors moved to outside if new room. Loved the privacy and sitting outside. then looked at the wisterias. many upgrades, loved the floor plan. NO PRIVACY. The real estate agent said to plant bottle brush trees to form a screen. No hedges above 4 feet. We don't seem to be able to make up our minds.

You are allowed to plant small trees or shrubs that are higher than 4 feet, as long as they are separate plants, not a group together that form a hedge.

Trees, shrubs - doesn't matter to me. The problem that I see with back to back lanais is the sound and no landscaping is going to solve that issue. I rented a designer in Largo whose lanai was no more than 30 feet from the one behind. I felt like I had to whisper to my wife.

But on the other hand we are very glad that we rented that type since we now know that we want some form of backyard privacy. Golf course or preserve or maybe even side street. I know it's not silent but at least it is not other people hearing your every word and you hearing theirs.

I have a question for CYV owners who have a wall behind with another villa on the other side - Can you still hear them over the wall? Is it just as annoying?

Russ

Russ -

I live in a CYV with a 6 ft. wall in back and high privacy fences on each side so it is totally private. I rarely hear my neighbors
unless they are having a large party on their lanai's.
For everyday or evening, it is very quiet and I can roam around anytime in my nighties without closing any blinds. :coolsmiley:

Good point. It pays to be careful when selecting a golf course lot. It is very true that not all golf course lots are private. We looked for a Villa that had the cart path on the far side away from our birdcage. We also looked for one that didn't have a tee right behind the Villa. So we occasionally see golfers driving by, and it is pleasant to see them while I'm having my morning coffee in my PJs.

We sometimes hear noise in the early morning from maintenance people. But we just close our sliding doors and return to bed. The Villa is practically soundproof.

And at night we can sit in our birdcage with a candle burning and watch the jack rabbits play.

Ahhhh .. life in TV .. priceless.

We have a couple of small palm trees to act as visual blockage to some degree. Seems to work well enough.

Have not heard my neighbors yet. We have "acrylic'd" our lania and that probably has made a difference in the noise level. when Snowbird season is in full swing, that may change. Time will tell.

Everyone has their own opinion about being directly on a golf course. My mother lives in an Orlando development where she is against a fairway. She is forever finding golf balls in her yard, just replaced another window from an errant drive, has to have heavy metal screens around her back windows to keep from being constantly ventilated, and the number of dings into the siding are too many to count. Her experience definitely kept me from being any closer to the duffers than necessary.

I hear you Steve, definitely a concern. I've hit a few homes myself especially in the early days of my hobby!

This is the reason why we specifically picked a lot behind a Tee box. Unless a golfer figures out how to hit it backwards, we should be OK. However, I wouldn't mind finding some free Titleists in my back yard. Plus, we plan to have scorecards like they used to use in the Olympics for gymnastic events and rate the drives from the Tee.

We just purchased a designer that backs to a CYV wall. The reason we chose this house was because we had talked to others that their neighbors had complained about their noise in the early evening and all they were doing is talking or watching TV.

For those who are looking for privacy in their home, an option could be to have their windows treated so no one could look in, but you can still see out. That way it does not matter what the nightie looks like or if you have one.

As for the size of lots. We have always had to maintain a 1/2 acre of grass and really like the smaller yards here in TV.