Century Village Deerfield Beach vs. Century Village Boca Raton (Kings Point: low income, sales)

[travelingsolo2]

Snow is becoming unbearable in the northeast… not looking forward to the winter. Plus, summer is no better with heat and frequent thunderstorm. I am thinking of relocating to Florida in late 2016 to a gated retirement community in Palm Beach County.
I am an active, healthy female, 64, retired teacher, and plan to continue contributing to the greater external community wherever I live through volunteerism. My lifestyle includes, but not limited to: - education, aquatic, theatre, enjoy learning, reading, and when budget allows…traveling. I hope to live within driving distance to good shopping, city entertainment and a church…preferably a Baptist Church.
My budget is no more than $175,000.00 to buy a home (Villa/ townhome) in a community built after year 2000 with space to accommodate family or friends when they visit.
I have read so many negatives about Florida retirement communities, that I am feeling uneasy about my plan; therefore, I will welcome your suggestions, comments on the pro and con from those of you with FACTUAL experience about these communities.



I plan to visit Southeast Florida within a few months; can you please recommend or suggest a few communities in Palm Beach County that I may visit.
Thank you.

[ndcairngorm]

We are getting a bit off topic in this thread, but I think this is a great subject generally. TravelingSolo2, you may want to start a new thread with your inquiry because you might not get the coverage here that you need.

We are not condo newbies; we have lived in at least six condos previous to now, in several different states and two different countries. Their one huge drawback is as has been discussed - you may end up paying for other people's troubles. This is the gamble you take in a condo. Next year someone else could be paying for your problems. In general, older condos tend to be a sinkhole for disposable cash, unlike new ones, which can coast along for 15 to 25 years without any maintenance problems, lulling everyone into thinking that condos are a bit like apartments, pay your rent and forget them.

Knowing all this, however, helps one to make decisions based on perusal of their financial sheets. In Canada, buyers have the right to study all meeting minutes for the past two years and try to decide if the building is for them. I have never been offered that choice in the States but of course one could request it. I don't know if it could be the basis for changing your mind after having made an offer as it can in Canada. I guess here people rely more on an independent inspection.

The one big plus in condo ownership is security. For someone who will not be there full time it helps to know that someone else will be looking to maintenance problems, and also it helps to know that no one will know whether you are in there or not, behind that door.

Century Village has other advantages - all those activities and the shuttle buses, which means you don't really need to get out that car and fight the traffic if you don't want to. I can't quite decide if I like the outside aisleways, which means someone will always be walking past your front windows.

Back to the original question: it's interesting to learn that people's HOA payments can be parsed in all sorts of ways. I never experienced that in my condo living experience.

[JimT7406]

Just going back to my original point. Total HOA fees are generally the same in both communities. Somewhere around $400 to low $400 range per month.
As to foreclosures, they did not effect the bottom line that much in these communities, again keep in mind that you have thousands of units and the percentage amount of foreclosures was not way out of line to make a difference.
As to the banks, I believe they are required to pay back 12 months of delinquent fees. For an individual trying to purchase a foreclosure directly from the association then I think they can go after the entire amount due.
As to the exit off I-95. The construction is under way and in the end nothing much will change with the noise along SW 10th Street. I think the main focus is to alleviate the back-ups on I-95 at the exit. Personally, I do not think the road noise is that loud and it should not effect any buildings other than those facing the street.
BTW, if you want a slightly larger condo, you may want to look at Wynmoor Village in Coconut Creek which is pretty similar in the concept, facilities and services. The main difference is larger units but still reasonably priced.
If you are looking for a unit facing the golf course in CV Deerfield, I recommend that you find out what they are going to do with it. Have not been there in a while so I do not know if they are keeping it up, also there was talk a few years ago of building new homes on the land but I have no idea what if anything was agreed on.

[City Guy997S]

Originally Posted by ndcairngorm

Actually, foreclosed condos do have the HOA paid on them each month. .

Absolutely not true......

The bank only starts paying once they have taken title....sometimes deliberately delayed to avoid HOA fees. The smart associations start their own foreclosure proceedings on the property to simply take it from the bank or get the HOA fees paid.

In most cases the outstanding/past due assessments get negotiated. I was involved with one where the dues were 3 years past due. HOA forgave 1/3, bank paid 1/3 and buyer paid 1/3 and the total was over $20,000! Previous owner paid ZERO.

[travelingsolo2]

I am new to this forum, Not sure where to post for best result. Any suggestion.....?

[ndcairngorm]

Look up at the top of the first conversation on this page. There is a button which says "Start a New Thread." You can click this and get your own new thread started.

[veggienut]

Originally Posted by City Guy997S

HOA fees in condos are based on two big expenses: Insurance costs and building maintenance!
Taxes are paid by individual owners.

Being the Deerfield CV is older and further east in Broward County then I would expect the costs for insurance and building maintenance to be higher. Compounding this issue is foreclosures, Deerfield has more which means more people not paying the HOA dues, making it more expensive for the owners that do!
Remember when looking at a 20-30K condo, the HOA fees could exceed your purchase price in a few short years ($400 a month X 5 years = almost 25K). Lots of people see the cheap purchase price but don't consider the longer term expenses.

I know someone that lives in the one in Deerfield and it is so small compared to where she came from that was perhaps 2,000+ square feet. It does seem like the whole area is older and the ones in Boca are newer.

[ndcairngorm]

I guess one of my hangups about Century Village is that you don't have your own washer/dryer. Since it's this way in Deerfield Beach, I'm assuming it's this way in all the Century Villages. Anyone know?

[JimT7406]

Yes it is the same in Deerfield, Boca and West Palm.

[ndcairngorm]

Thanks, JimT! I'm also wondering - and maybe only someone who lives there could comment - do you think one might get sort of a "bird in a gilded cage" kind of mentality in these places? Because they're gated and because things might be a little different "outside?" Or maybe gated situations are a fact of life in Florida.