<p>I feel the need to respond to the almost “snobbery” I sense in some of these posts. My experience is based on my mom’s living in an over 55 community outside of Philadelphia.</p>
<p>It was fantastic. Beautiful (small) single home with all outside yard work and snow removal covered by the monthly fee. The members of this large community were “intellectual”, had all levels of education, were in various stages of working, semi-retirement and full retirement. They were some of the most friendly, out-going and engaging people I have ever met. I wanted to live there.</p>
<p>Among the daily/monthly activities in addition to a beautiful clubhouse and pool were: yoga, book clubs, trips, community service of all types including tutoring, providing meals, providing filled backpacks, etc. There were supper clubs, religious groups, grandparent groups,poker, crafts, work-out clubs, spontaneous trips to Philadelphia, New York and full support of the arts at local venues and colleges. The community library was 3 minutes away, as were multiple hospitals, restaurants, walking trails, and other things you might be looking for.</p>
<p>Many of the residents moved there in their late 60s and early 70s but most wished they had done it years earlier.</p>
<p>Most of my mom’s friends made the move to remain independent as long as possible - they did not have to rely on relatives to care for them as their lifestyle was something they could manage and resources / experience were already in place for when more care is needed.</p>
<p>Please keep an open mind and decide after you’ve explored some communities on your own. Avoid the stereotypes and I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.</p>
<p>^ @MAB222, I live in the Philly area (western suburbs/Main Line) and would be interested in the community you describe. Could you provide the name, by PM if you prefer?</p>
<p>H and I are 64. He is not yet retired.</p>
<p>I have an interest in moving, at some point (BEFORE it is necessary), from our home on an acre to a single floor, turn-key condo type situation within walking distance of a good library, grocery shopping, etc. Not sure of location but probably Northeast/mid-Atlantic. H not so gung ho on this idea but will go along with it if we can find an appealing situation. Have kept our eyes open for years but have not yet found exactly what we are looking for.</p>
<p>Not a fan of over 55. I’d never buy in one. When I go visit my parents in Florida (they are not in an over 55 community) I am really glad that not everyone is old. I have been in plenty of over 55 communities and have had friends whose parents are/were. When we were all young parents and would go to Florida to visit our folks - my friends would come to the pool at my parents because at the over 55 communities the people were always complaining about the babies and toddlers - they were not allowed in the pools - and would get yelled at if they were playing and being too noisy. </p>
<p>MAB222, I understand what you are saying to a point. But some of the things you mention I personally am not interested in - not at age 55 anyway (my current age). I want to do my own yard work. I don’t want “small”. I don’t want all those activities in a somewhat closed community. I’m kind of introverted. I want to enjoy running past the young mom in the neighborhood who is also running but also pushing her stroller. I want to pass the park that has lots of people playing on the play equipment. </p>
<p>So I personally see a different need right now - age 55 then I might at 70 - but really, who knows. That could all change too. </p>
<p>Some folks in 55+ communities simply don’t want to be around kids. Same with dogs, one retirement community by me the developer allowed buyers to bring their dog into community, but when that dog died, they couldn’t get another dog. I don’t need that much regimentation…too sterile…if I step in dog crap once in a while I’m not going to call for a special association meeting at the community center to raise hell about it.</p>
<p>No interest in moving to an over 55 community and no interest in moving to Florida or another warmer climate. I like where I live and have great friends and wouldn’t want to go somewhere where I had to start all over. We have a vacation place near the water and will stay there from May to October. When H cuts back on his work (he’ll never completely retire), we might travel during January and February. H’s company has an apartment in San Francisco (they are doing a project in CA) and we’ve considered taking it over when the company finishes the project. It’s right in the city and we’ve enjoyed that because it’s so different from where we currently live (rural New England).</p>
<p>For us, a lot depends on where our kids end up. If they don’t come back we will leave this too long of winter area for something warmer, but no snow bird retirement area in AZ or FL. We like the areas around Charlottesville VA and Nashville as climate is milder, the health care is excellent and cultural opportunities abound. Our other dream is to move wherever the kids are and be available to help out with grandkids, if they come along. </p>
<p>We had an acquaintance in one of those places and they bought their small one bedroom place back in about 1982. When they could no longer live alone, they sold in 2007 for about 50% higher price than they had paid. (These are mid-five figure value places, so its a modest lifestyle.) Since the reset in national real estate prices, the value of the places has steadily declined, to the point where the current values are less than they sold for in 1982.</p>
<p>Appreciation isn’t one of the prime reasons people go to these places, but its something to keep in mind.</p>
<p>As far as the other aspects of living there, I think it was generally satisfactory. </p>
<p>My folks live in Oakmont in Cal. Must be well over 1,000 homes. Multiple rec centers. A small library. Bocce courts. Two golf courses. Many tennis courts. Wineries close by. Great views. Great weather. </p>
<p>My folks place is 1400 sq ft. You can buy bigger. My aunt’s is around 2,000 sq ft. If you want to garden, you can buy a place there where you own the land and you can garden as much as you want. </p>
<p>It’s my folks dream place. They love it. </p>
<p>I could live there and be happy. The place is a little too quiet for me. I don’t play golf or tennis. </p>
<p>Home prices run from $400,000 to $1,000,000. Not cheap…but not horrible compared to surrounding areas.</p>
<p>I know people who considered over-55 communities and rejected the idea because of strict restrictions on younger people moving in – even temporarily. They were concerned that they would not be able to help out younger family members in an emergency. For example, if one of their children wanted to stay with the parents for several weeks while recovering from surgery or for several months while unemployed, that would not be permitted in some communities.</p>
<p>Funny I was thinking about a geriatric college dorm life the other day myself! What I concluded is that it sounded fun but unrealistic given the lack of sense of adventure/trying the unknown that most older folks aren’t interested in. </p>
<p>I would have more problems being in a tightly regimented community/HOa than a over 55 per se. </p>
<p>I have always dreamed of having a property with my three best girlfriends and their husbands where we had small personal cabins and a larger communal dining/kitchen and a cabin for a caretaker to take us shopping/to doctors and a guest cabin for visitors. So I guess I want to buy an older girl scout camp. LOL.</p>
<p>My uncle recently visited my AZ town and stayed a month in a house rental in a 55 and over and expected to not like it but ended up loving it. He loved how active everyone was…they took up pickle ball which is sort of low level tennis which was a hot game…and LOVED LOVED LOVED that what people cared about was what was happening now not what you did before you retired. </p>
<p>My mom was a widow since she was 41. ( not counting me at 17, she had two younger children at home, I moved out soon after). She stayed there for about another 18 years, even though that suburban neighborhood was not set up for anyone but car dependent families. We even only briefly considered moving there when she was selling, even though it was walking distance to good schools and we had young kids. When there aren’t many sidewalks, walking isn’t as attractive.
She then moved to a condo in the downtown of the next larger suburban city. That worked much better for her, as she lived across from a park, shopping and medical care was convienent and it was fairly close to my sister who used her quite a bit for child care.
However, somethings were still far enough away that she needed to drive.
Bellevue does have a couple senior centers, but I don’t think she ever used them.
That’s an amenity I’m going to start using cause they have $5 yoga classes, whereas other studios charge $15-20.</p>
<p>I see the attraction of designed communities. Two friends have parents & inlaws, who they discovered live in the same senior community in Florida. ( they are also Jewish and from NYC, so they were perhaps predestined).
It seems to be a good set up, becuase they were able to increase the level of care as needed. One is now in her mid '90’s and while her mental state is not as sharp as she used to be, her physical body is quite strong.</p>
<p>Id like shared housing where I just have maybe a large studio, but there is a community kitchen, workshop and garden. Bartering of services.
Perhaps like this.</p>
<p>H and I have the house we will retire to, and spend most weekends/summer there. It’s near the water in the same state we live in now, which, most likely, both kids will still be living in in the future. It’s in an area where a lot of people do retire, so many neighbors are older. But others are not. H and I like maintaining our own place, and we really don’t like restrictions. Gated community rules would make me crazy. There are a lot of amenities for seniors in the area. Plus there is the bay and beach nearby. We’re not really group activity people, so that’s not something we’re looking for. And we do have some friends and family in the area, in case we get too hermit-y (which is a failing of ours, lol.)</p>
<p>One of the senior centers I attended a seminar at indicated they rent furnished units by the month to anyone interested and have some clients that come every year for a month or longer and stay there. All meals are provided as are shuttle, housekeeping and other amenities. It might be a way to try a community to see whether it might be a good or bad fit.</p>
<p>We are in our early 60’s and in the process of redefining our lives. We just sold our home in an upscale family suburb and have six months to move out (sold to a builder as a teardown). DH would not consider a 55 plus community and we’ve spent years trying to find the right place to relocate. We have zero social life here and I hate winters. DH would probably be content to stay here indefinitely going to his health club every evening and services on Saturday and spend his days on the computer and reading papers and doing yard work. He’s the one with friends all over the country, but we seldom see them.</p>
<p>As some of you know, we are in the process of trying to find a home in San Diego. I’ve got a vision of a full life out there - finding people and activities via the JCC, synagogues, libraries, universities, and just walking around the neighborhood. He’s not so sure it will work out but acknowledges that if we don’t move now, we probably never will as we continue to age. We’ve each had accidents in the last year or so that laid us up so I really pushed for this all to happen now (OK, I pretty much had a mild breakdown on my birthday and DH recognized that we had to make a change).</p>
<p>If there is a 55 plus community near water and a metro center in a warm water climate with single family homes and somewhat of a Jewish population, please let us know! We’re still open to other ideas.</p>
<p>Marilyn - there are many 55+ communities and non 55+ communities (where most of the people are retired or are snowbirds) in S. Florida - especially Palm Beach & Broward (Ft. Lauderdale) County. Some of the communities have single family homes and some have both single family and condo’s. There is a huge Jewish population in that area. </p>
<p>Thanks Emily, we’ve considered Florida but as far as I can tell, most of the communities are not near the metro areas and fairly far from the coast. Plus Florida in the summer is not something we’d like to experience. We’ve been to the Atlantic and Gulf coasts multiple times on vacations. I’ve seen some big gorgeous homes online but they all seem to be at least a half hour drive from anywhere except other developments and shopping. I’ve also heard that a lot of the Florida communities are badly built and don’t hold value, not that we intend to move ever again unless it becomes physically necessary,</p>
<p>I keep telling DH we can always get a condo in Boca but he just gives me a look. >:P </p>
<p>I researched the HOA rules for Tampa Palms (there are some churches and a small temple in it, btw). It is nice that no political signs are allowed and other things that require people to keep up their places. But not confining as I was thinking. Plenty of Jews, conservative Muslims (by the adult women being covered up), Indians and other ethnic groups from warm climates in our part of the county. People from many different states. The snowbirds live in their condos and trailers, not in our area. Plus professors and other professionals for the nearby U. Not stereotypical old/retirees Florida but more of our age group and from elsewhere than in many places. It is easy to live in a nice environment without being in an age specific community. </p>
<p>My personal observation is that Jews from the East Coast tend to go to the eastern coast of FL (Boca Raton, Delray, Palm Beach, etc.) and Jews from the Midwest tend to go to the western coast of FL (Naples, etc.).</p>
<p>Absolutely interested in 55+ communities in SC, NC and Florida - in theory. Need to do some serious visiting/research over the next few years. Like the idea of buying a single family detached one-level home in a community with pools, clubhouse and all the amenities/activities. Need to look at the rules and restrictions - some of you have mentioned things that would concern me - such as an adult child needing to stay for a few weeks. We have friends living at Sun City Hilton Head who love it - will start there.</p>
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