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We are visiting these two communities next week from San Diego and are looking for a social community with residents in our stage of life - we are young mid 60's, retired 3 years, active, appreciate nice wines and great food. Love to entertain in our home.
Husband plays occasional golf, so probably not a "golf" level member, but perhaps "social" level membership to country club.
Originally from the Northeast, we have lived in N. Cal for 14 years and San Diego area for the last 4 years. We are disgusted with California and the ridiculous cost of housing, taxes and everything else.
The so-called great weather has even deteriorated due to climate change...it is now hotter and humid and we have bugs in the summer, just like the East coast! Winters are colder and rainy now. Not a whole lot better than the East coast.
From San Diego we can purchase a much nicer, newer home in Leland/Wilmington area for 1/2 the cost of San Diego suburbs.
Property tax is a fraction. Gasoline is $1.60/gal. less. Groceries also much less. Really...everything seems to cost much less.
We realize the humidity will be much worse in the summer months. A concern but not a deal breaker.
We do not want to buy in a totally 55+ as they seem to translate to 75+! We are not there yet!
Any comments or recommendations that we should consider would be greatly appreciated.
We are visiting these two communities next week from San Diego and are looking for a social community with residents in our stage of life - we are young mid 60's, retired 3 years, active, appreciate nice wines and great food. Love to entertain in our home.
Husband plays occasional golf, so probably not a "golf" level member, but perhaps "social" level membership to country club.
Originally from the Northeast, we have lived in N. Cal for 14 years and San Diego area for the last 4 years. We are disgusted with California and the ridiculous cost of housing, taxes and everything else.
The so-called great weather has even deteriorated due to climate change...it is now hotter and humid and we have bugs in the summer, just like the East coast! Winters are colder and rainy now. Not a whole lot better than the East coast.
From San Diego we can purchase a much nicer, newer home in Leland/Wilmington area for 1/2 the cost of San Diego suburbs.
Property tax is a fraction. Gasoline is $1.60/gal. less. Groceries also much less. Really...everything seems to cost much less.
We realize the humidity will be much worse in the summer months. A concern but not a deal breaker.
We do not want to buy in a totally 55+ as they seem to translate to 75+! We are not there yet!
Any comments or recommendations that we should consider would be greatly appreciated.
If you've never visited Brunswick county before, it will be a culture shock. There is a reason that everything is so much cheaper than California and other places. The exception is Southport which is very nice, but not one of the communities that you mentioned. Also, Wilmington is nice (in New Hanover County).
I am your age and wouldn't be caught dead in one of those planned communities.
We are used to living in the suburbs and are looking for a planned community with amenities. Does Southport have a planned community and/or a community with many amenities?
You may be correct, that Brunswick county will be a culture shock.
.....We are used to living in the suburbs and are looking for a planned community with amenities. Does Southport have a planned community and/or a community with many amenities?
St James Plantation has a Southport address. It is a large, country club community with 4 golf courses, tennis courts, a marina, a private beach house, etc. It may be what you are looking for, but the membership in the golf courses is expensive. (St James is not a 55+ community, but the average age of residents is probably over 60.)
Southport itself is a real town with some historic homes and some actual neighborhoods which are not planned communities. See Owen Wister's posts about living in Southport.
Last edited by goldenage1; 08-08-2023 at 07:02 PM..
We are used to living in the suburbs and are looking for a planned community with amenities. Does Southport have a planned community and/or a community with many amenities?
You may be correct, that Brunswick county will be a culture shock.
No. That's the beauty of Southport.
BUT, a short ferry ride across the water is Bald Head Island. Stunning. You have the Bald Head Island Club and the Shoals Club. Please Google BHI and see for yourself. I was there two weeks ago for the first time. I was blown away.
Brunswick Forest and Compass Pointe are the largest "planned" communities in the Leland area.....Brunswick Forest is closest to shopping, restaurants and alligators.....Compass Pointe is a bit further out and requires a ten mile drive to pretty much anything. All that is changing as there are many planned developments going on in the Leland area which will increase traffic and also pave over land which now gives the stormwater a place to soak in..... Brunswick Forest has public roads with higher speed limits and over the past several years a connector route from somewhere has fed into their main road which brings lots of truck traffic (as has been reported in news)...pick an interior lot away from the main drag.......Compass Pointe has private roads (but lots and lots of construction....there is also nearby noise from various industrial sites across the highway (quarry, railroad etc) and route 74 which is the only egress to Compass Pointe...again, pick an interior lot or a resale in the interior areas. The new areas have lots of building going on and you will live in a construction zone for at least another two years.....also the west entrance to Compass Pointe is undergoing massive construction and you may experience delays coming and going during construction hours 7am to about 6pm.
Brunswick Forest has slightly higher real estate taxes because it is in Leland city limits....when completed the development is expected to be larger than Compass Pointe. Both have recently privatized their golf courses and require memberships to play.
Brunswick Forest builds additional amenities as needed and has several swimming pools and gyms spread out over its development...Compass Pointe's new developer has not responded to residents continued questions about additional amenities that had been promised by previous developer....we have what we have and our pool and lazy river and parking facilities for our amenities area prob hold 150 cars and fewer people.
St James and Southport are nice - but pretty far from anything but the local beaches (all of which require parking fees) St James is actually its own municipality.....St James country club and restaurants do not allows jeans or t shirts....St James has a place on Oak Island Beach for its residents to park. A trip to the "big city" Wilmington downtown from either St James or Southport is at least a 30 to 45 minute trip primarily on a two lane road. Roads from either to Leland are also two lane, no shoulder and are the main routes to and from Brunswick County beaches....so plan trips accordingly.
Always ask about FEMA flood zone maps and any development that has already been permitted by the county or the town. Southport has some development under consideration now that may change the sleepy little town character....Leland and Brunswick County has lots of development (including a baseball stadium, curling facility and lots of shopping centers and homes) all of which will add to its increasing traffic problems
Thank you for responding, MikeRetired... I was hoping you would!
You have provided invaluable information and spelled it out so nicely.
I'm glad you confirmed what I saw regarding BF taxes being higher due to within Leland city limits.
Really desire a quality home in a beautiful and active community that is well maintained and consists predominantly of people in our stage of life.
I would love to find a fairly new resale, but assume that will be difficult. Trying to balance convenience with getting all the details I want; a tough task with my design background and my retired pilot who will not have a home face west on the back.
A spec home in mid construction could be a great option...if there are any.
Not looking forward to building again...this will be our 10th home in 40 years.
Compass Pointe still ticks more boxes than any other, so far.
Are there areas in CP that are in a flood zone at this point?
How long have you lived there and are you happy with your decision overall and your daily life in that community?
Where did you move from?
Although the area is building up and has growing pains such as increased construction and traffic, I suspect it won't be worse than what we're used to in the San Diego suburbs where everyone drives 80mph and you drive around in parking lots for 15 minutes looking for a spot.
Any information you want to add is greatly appreciated!
Check how far Compass Pointe is from doctors and hospitals. We find ourselves driving longer distances to get good care.
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