Moving to Marion County/Ocala area from out of state. (Gainesville: apartment, HOA)

[nyfamilyof3]

Current situation:
Myself, husband, and 5 year old live in NY. Need to leave soon for financial reasons - the least of which being our current property tax is $15000 a year. (No, not kidding)

My mom lives in Summerfield and works for The Villages. She is looking to sell her current home and move with us, but in order for her to logistically stay at her job she wants no more than a 30 minute or so commute (during non-traffic hours)

This pretty much puts us in range from the Villages to Marion Oaks. I have started looking at Marion Oaks and read the threads here but haven't been there yet. One thing I'm concerned about (and it probably sounds silly) but can you fence in your yard there? I haven't seen any in the research I've done so far.

I know about the unemployment rate, it is not much better where we currently live. Also I am likely able to job transfer (retail management) so that is not a concern.

If anyone can suggest any good areas to look between The Villages/Lady Lake up to Ocala I would really appreciate it. Thanks!

[SFrost]

Marion Oaks or the Belleview area would probably suit you very well. There are no fencing restrictions in Marion Oaks, so yes, you can put a fence up there.

[bigtone]

Actually there are some fencing restrictions in Marion Oaks, but only that the fence has to be behind the house, not in front. Also, if the house is on a corner lot, you can't block the view. You can get a copy of the deed restrictions at the Community center, but it seems to me like they do not really enforce the restrictions in Marion Oaks. At any rate, there are not alot of restriction anyway.

[dontaskwhy]

There are a lot of homes built in the past 3 years that are available in Marion Oaks at fantastic prices.

[OcalaFl2010]

Enforcement is minimal and very light at best and the association members I believe are volunteers, this is not a paying HOA community thereby eliminating the heavy handed restirctions commonly associated with an HOA.

Fantastic deals can be had within Marion Oaks and it is one of the safest areas with concerns regarding Hurricanes and the like....

[islands4evr]

SO TRUE! Marion Oaks does not ENFORCE deed restrictions!!! We have been living here over 5 years and have turned in many residents for violations of deed restriction. They want neighborhood involvement but do not want to enforce. If this mess was next to their home or in their immediate neighborhood, it would be taken care of. I do not know how many times you have to turn someone in for the same thing before they take action. Why bother??? Nothing gets done! I understand that volunteers man the office and the community is very large, but still, nothing seems to get done when you turn someone in over and over again for the same violations...if I did not work 12 hour days, I would volunteer and you can bet something would be done!

[Loudclear]

If you got the money, Marion County is presently a buyers' market. Highest unemployment in the state. Welcome.

[steven r.]

I moved out of New York and also live down under cause I wasn't paying 15,000 dollars a year in property taxes either. Welcome to the south my friends, my brother lives in Ocala and in my opinion I think it's a very nice family community.

[ali9771]

Steve, I have seen you post on another thread too. I am moving from NY too - but not as a homeowner, so taxes haven't bit me in the butt. But as a recent RN graduate, finding jobs up here (WAY north) is a bit of a hassle. I live in a VERY rural area - 35 minutes to the nearest walmart and only other groceries can be had at price chopper or aldis.

I hear people say ocala is "small"...but in reference to what? My previous home was rural CT.

Anyway - what I want is someplace between Gainesville and The Villages (parents there), with a YMCA, organized community sports for my 4 yo son and local shopping. Nothing high end - we can travel to the malls if the mood strikes. I am thinking an apartment with a pool and playground and perhaps fitness gym....but clean, family friendly amenities - cuz I hear there are some places that have pools but are overrun by partiers and alcohol. I also like the idea of all the parks in ocala - I'd love to take my son fishing or camping sometime.

Any thoughts?

Right now the job prospect is in Gainesville. but in order to pull of 3-12 hour shifts - I need family support and don't want them to have to drive all the way there to help. I also saw an ad for an Ocala daycare that runs 24/7. Also, while I am single and would love to meet someone - I am not looking for any kind of nightlife...way past that stage in my life. And if I met someone - we can always get out of town for the night - being from a rural area, I am not against any kind of drive....it's what I am used to.


Anyway, would love your thoughts.

[FloridaHappy]

Ocala is not small. Population inside the city limits in 2011 was 57,371. It's not Atlanta, no, but who would want to live in Atlanta? I have a friend who lives in Hay Springs, Nebraska, population 589. Now, that's small. Marion County is actually larger than the state of Rhode Island and total population for the county was 331,290 as of 2010.

We have 5 Walmarts and they're building another. Sam's Club, Target, K-Mart, Golden Corral, El Toreo (great Mexican food), Lowes, Home Depot, Paddock Mall with the usual mall stores, any shopping you need, about any restaurant you might want to eat at. Tons of thrift stores. Employment is getting better. I'm seeing signs outside businesses advertising for help. It's still over 10%, though, and there are beggars on street corners (although one, I understand, drives a new Ford pickup to his chosen spot). Munroe Regional Hospital currently has 55 full time openings for RNs.

Having spent the last couple months house-hunting, Marion Oaks has some pretty homes, most missing the A/C units and anything else not nailed down. Crime seems to be rampant in that area. There are other much nicer parts of town. Just saying, I wouldn't let my daughter or grandkids live there.