Agree, I’m on corner also. Just wish I had straight drive way. At least I have privacy on three sides.

Thanks for the clarification.

Where are you that you have to walk on neighbor’s driveway to get to back yard? This is not the case for courtyard villas in our area, south of 44. Just curious.

The pricing of a home has several elements. Cost of property, cost of material, of course the going rate, and in the margin is the pay of the workers. Each time that The Villages buys land, that land cost goes up. I think they know their market and know the costs and that is why the lots are smaller in the newer areas.

Has anyone driven through The Village of Harmeswood in Bellaire, north of 466 and off of Buena Vista? Those homes have enormous lots. Many people do not want a large lot to take care of. Drive through there sometime to look. Lovely homes with designs like nowhere else in The Villages. We have a lot of homes here to choose from and I am very glad they are sought after. I want to pass down a valuable item to our kids and grandkids. But first we are enjoying the heck out of living here.

Courtyard Villas
 

Old design, common issue for those north of 44. They fixed the problem with the newer courtyard villas south of 44. My sister just bought one in Marsh Bend. She doesn't have to go anywhere near her neighbor's driveway to get to her back yard. The awkward old design of the courtyard villas north of 44 led to her decision to purchase south.

Almost all of the coutyard villas I have seen, where the garage is parallel to the street, between Rt 44 and Rt 466. The driveways are constructed partially on the next door neighbor's property. So, to get access to your gate, you need to walk across part of your neighbor's driveway.

If you live in one of these houses, you should read the deed restriction document that describes, in great detail, the "driveway" easements and the "side yard" easements. You need to read them at least 5 times before you will really understand what they mean.

We live in Courtyard villa and all the complaints from others living in this style is garage size, most would prefer a two car garage , a bonus for our villas is active social events within , cookouts cards golf group monthly potlucks at homes neighbors helping neighbors , home watching , dog or pet walking . Just a great place to live and enjoy life , all in addition to what The Villages offers.

We just bought a Durham model in DeSoto and it was constructed “the old way”. A simple examination of the floor plans will show you why this is.

Keep in mind that the set-up is so the neighbor has no window/door access to your patio. The floor plans would have to be reversed if the gate to your patio was on the logical side. Guess it is just “bass-ackwards”. The thing that gets me is that I own some of my neighbor’s property. Who designs that landscape and maintains it. Fortunately my neighbors on both sides are great!

Why would you walk on that land anyway? It is considered rude to be bothering neighbors for a small piece of land that doesn't affect you unless of course your own villa is painted or power washed!

We are down here looking for a house to purchase. I originally loved the idea of a CYV.. perfect for the pet owner! Realizing after looking at a few, you walk into your neighbors driveway to access your gated yard. Some say it’s not a problem for them because nobody uses their gates! BUT the landscapers, bug sprayers, etc do!! My husband jokingly stated “who shovels the snow on that part of the driveway”? 🥴.

This is true. I go out of the gate very occasionally, come into the gate never. Don't have to, as there are two easy access points from the house.


The only reason I would go out of the gate is if I'm carrying some messy landscape stuff I don't want to haul through the house to get to the driveway.

I have an end unit with a double garage and two entrances . I love it.

I think you are right about aesthetics being an important aspect. Architects often prefer that garage doors not face the street if possible. They are big and blank and not all that attractive. On narrower lots, there isn’t a good way around it. In thousands of homes in The Villages, a double garage does face the street directly—perhaps 22’ wide—but another 20’ of house also faces the street. The house with garage is nearly square. Lots of patio houses with garages facing the street have only six or eight feet of house facing the street, apart from the garage. That’s not very attractive, though the designers have used clever tricks to keep the garage doors from overwhelming the neighborhoods.

I like the courtyard house design. The average garage of these houses is about 14’ x 20’. The smaller garage allows an extra 6’ x 20’ of living space (120 sq. Ft.). The slanted lots allows room for a little extra driveway space and makes it much easier to get out of the garage than would a 90° door. See how the lots straighten out in the back? That provides about five extra feet of space on the side where the living room windows are, making the area seem more spacious. Clever! Meanwhile, the sideways garage with a door on the side allows some decorative elements on the front, such as windows or buttresses, that look nice, and allows a small garden area that can be landscaped. It would have been very nice to have the garages seven feet wider, but then there would have been no garden space in the front. That would have been pretty ugly.

All told, I think the aesthetics of house design at The Villages is remarkably good. One thing I like about the courtyard houses is that you aren’t looking at your neighbors on their lanai a few feet away as they watch TV in the evening. The courtyard houses are sort of enclosing, comforting, safe, private. Granted, they work best if you don’t have two cars, and the bedrooms are adequate only if you sleep in a single bed, or perhaps a double. Still, I like them.

We have a corner lot, private entrance to back yard, oversized 3 car garage and driveway. For sale thru Villages Realty