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[CelticCrafter]

I don't live in one, but after my parents died and it came time to sell the house - nosey, nosey, nosey neighbors with little else to do but look out the windows all day long and mind everybody elses business.

From demanding to know exactly what our plans were for the house to how much did it sell for.

Actually had one of them notify the Board of Elections after seeing their names on the registry that they were dead.  Thing is, my father wasn't known by his real first name except on legal documents and they assumed the name they saw on the registry was him, it wasn't - it was my brother, who was alive and well.

The only way I would ever live in one is if it came with a 6 foot privacy fence all around the property.

[Mominohio]

@CelticCrafter

@151949

I don't see the examples given for nosey neighbors any different than any other neighborhood in any community in any age demographic. 

Someone letting you know that you are calling for a husband that isn't within ear shot is simply friendly and trying to be helpful. And isn't it nice to know where someone actually is should you really need him quickly for something? 

Nosey neighbors and people putting themselves into situations that are just none of their business comes with living in close proximity to other people. 

The only true way to get away from it is to buy a lot of acreage in a rural area, then don't bother to meet or interact with the local people.

Not defending those busy bodies at all, that over step the boundaries of what is their business, but usually moving to a new neighborhood won't change that, it will only change the names and faces of people who will still do it.

I am anxious to see, in about six months or so, how well OP likes the new neighborhood with a better mix of age demographics. 

I grew up in a neighborhood that was exactly half retired couples and half young families with children. Most of the families had between 5 and 7 children each, and we played outside all day in just about any weather. 

Kick ball games in the street, bike riding, even through the puddles in the rain storms, tag outside till dark (we lived on a dead end street) sled riding down the one family's hill in the back yard that went down into a big park. Such fun!

The older folks loved having the kids around, and we loved them. We only had one old fuddy duddy that all the kids were terrified of, and we simply stayed clear! lol

[CANDLEQUEEN]

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We do not live in an over 55 community but we do live in a plan of villas (duplexs)in Florida. It has been fine for me - and I love my home & my friends here but my DH does not like it at all , so thus we are moving. We bought a single family home in a much smaller community - still in our same general area. The major problem with living in a place like this is there are way too many people , living much too close together, who no longer work, and so all they do all day , every day , is mind everyone else's business. My neighbors can tell me exactly where my DH is at any given time. For instance - if I poke my head out to tell my DH lunch is ready , at least 2 people will tell me he rode his bike up to get the mail and has been standing there talking to Bill for 10 min. Why is that anyone's business?

Our new home is in a community of all ages. There are swing sets in some of the yards. When we go over there to see the house we hear children playing outside, & see kids on bikes. All the houses do not look alike and it feels much more like an actual community.

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OMG!!!! I laughed out loud reading your post! I can't stand Nosey Neighbors. We have one on the one side of us, and I can't stand it. Especially in the summer, oh you grilling chicken tonight? Oh you putting in purple flowers, didn't you have red last year? I mean it never ends....Nosey, nosey, nosey.....So I just had to comment on your post......I personally would love to move where I have no neighbors right next to me, or if I do, I would love a tall totally fenced in yard.......I hope you will be happy in your new home!!!

[ScrapHappy]

My MIL has been living in one for almost 20 years now.  She moved into it just as it was being completed and purchased one of the models.  All in all, she has been happy there and it has been the right decision for her.  Her house has 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.  The floor plan is pretty spacious and everything is on one level.  There's a clubhouse and pool.  There are sometimes trips like to NYC to see a play but there doesn't seem to be as many as there used to be.  During our last visit, my MIL mentioned how the neighborhood is changing.  As people have gotten older, many have moved out and gone into an assisted living.  So, a new sets of people are moving in.  Not as many are as social, don't want to do anything, hardly anybody walks around anymore....stuff like that.  My MIL is very social and likes to go, go, go.  I agree with others, 55+ communities differ greatly.  When she began looking, she saw some homes that we almost as big as her home AND with 2 floors.  She didn't feel like that was down-sizing.  I live in Georgia and there are a lot of 55+ communites.  Many of the new ones are like a resort...you can get your hair done, movie theater, gym, casual dining and formal dining....the list goes on and on.  I think what my MIL has a "problem" with sometimes is maintaing her yard (which is small but she's still responsible for).  She gripes about taxes (who doesn't) but she lives in NJ and they're high and your always be reassessed.  She sometimes wishes she can call someone who is responsible for the AC or water heater, as like living in more of an apartment where it's not her responsbility. 

[DianeFM]

When my father-in-law retired, they sold their home in Northern California and moved to Las Vegas, Nevada's Del Webb Sun City north of the Vegas strip back in the mid 1990's.  Avid gamblers, they made  the trek to Reno monthly while he was still working, so moving to Vegas was right up their alley, plus they were going to save quite a bit of money on yearly taxes moving to Nevada.  They were not joiners, but they liked all the rules and regulations required to live in such a community.  Both already in their mid 60's when they made the move to Vegas, they seemed to lived there quite happily until their health declined and had to made other arrangements.  

[novamc1]

DH and I moved to a newly built "over-55 active adult" community not too long ago.  The neighbors are fantastic, super friendly,  even have set up a system in an organized way to be available to help anyone else in the community  if they need it.  When we moved in, people welcomed us with a visit or even a food gift.  Many friendships are formed at the community mailbox stack, just picking up the daily mail.

We don't have a game room, golf course, pool, tennis court or any of those things, but we do have an open invitation to join other neighbors at the community gazebo on Friday nights when the weather is good, to come to the monthly Book Club meeting, and activities like that.  The men have a periodic lunch outing to a local restaurant if anyone wants to join in and carpool.  Ladies often get together for lunch in small groups.

I have always needed and enjoyed having a lot of "alone time" to pursue my own hobbies and interests, so I'm not the most active community member, but I do my share and hosted a holiday party for the couples I've gotten to know better than the others in the community.  It was a fun evening, and I intend to do once every year if possible.

If you want friends, companionship with others of your own age  who have shared similar life experiences,  and you want to be around people who are willing to help if you need it, I suppose an "over-55" community for active adults" is a great place to spend one's  later years in life.

In our case, it brought us several states closer to one of our kids, our grandchild and some old college friends of DH.  That alone was worth the move.   Well, maybe the sharp reduction in our property tax burden and other expenses after moving from a high-cost area was worth it, too.!

We own the home outright---it's not a condo or rental-- and for a reasonable HOA fee get landscape maintenance and other perks.  The community is gated, with gates  open only  from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., so that might provide some people with a sense of security.

[GingerPeach]

I think I would be that fuddy-duddy to steer clear of, @Mominohio !

[FrostyBabe1]

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OMG!!!! I laughed out loud reading your post! I can't stand Nosey Neighbors. We have one on the one side of us, and I can't stand it. Especially in the summer, oh you grilling chicken tonight? Oh you putting in purple flowers, didn't you have red last year? I mean it never ends....Nosey, nosey, nosey.....So I just had to comment on your post......I personally would love to move where I have no neighbors right next to me, or if I do, I would love a tall totally fenced in yard.......I hope you will be happy in your new home!!!

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I have incredibly nosey (and needy) neighbors as well. They just can't mind their own business. I tried to nicely tell them that I didn't need to be kept tabs on. Their response was "oh, but we don't mind"! Mine was "but I do!". It worked for about 2 weeks. I told them that there must certainly be more interesting and fulfilling things to do with their time than watch what I'm doing with mine, and I insist that they find them. That didn't work at all. I finally had to bluntly say  "stop spying on me NOW!". That's sort of worked. They just let all the other neighbors know everything that they "can't help but notice". Ugh. 

[geezerette]

You say that your main consideration is the quiet from no children, etc.  Well, do make sure you do your research on how strict the Homeowners’ Association is and whether they follow through with offenders before you buy.

We lived part-time in an age-restricted community many years ago.  No children under 19 were allowed for longer than a few weeks at a time.  A couple on our block blatantly disregarded this rule and had their teenage grandson living with them permanently.  The HOA tried feebly to get them to either leave the community or have their grandson do so, but they just refused.  The HOA didn’t want to take them to court, so we had to put up with his hot rod coming and going at all hours, among other things.

Also, my parents lived in another age-restricted community.  They, too, had a family near them that had noisy underage children living with them.  Also against the rules was parking in the street, which these people did all the time because they had so many visitors coming and going from their house. They happened to live across the street from my parents, and it was very difficult to get out of my parents’ drive when they had several cars in the street.  Once again, the HOA didn’t want to make waves by taking these people to court over the rules they were blatantly defying.

Do your homework, or like any other neighborhood, it can get unpleasant if you have some people that don’t go along with the program.

[GingerPeach]

Good thing to watch out for, @geezerette.    I will be sure to confirm the strictness of the HOA carrying out its rules before purchase.