Article Courtesy of The St. Petersburg Times

By STEPHANIE HAYES
Published July 14, 2006

WESTCHASE -- The gold-leafed signs decorate Linebaugh Avenue, the busy thoroughfare connecting Carrollwood and Oldsmar. Radcliffe. The Greens. The Fords.

Westchase's golf course is lush and sprawling. Charming apartments sit atop a string of boutiques and cafes in West Park Village.

Ever driven through and thought, Could I live here?

Planned developments are everywhere you turn. With their uniform color schemes, green parks and bustling town centers, they are prime rib for real estate agents.

But when you buy a house in a large planned community like Westchase, it isn't all ice cream and pesticide. On top of your mortgage, you'll be shelling out homeowner dues, extra taxes and closing costs that go into keeping quasi-Utopia intact.

For the person who has ever stared out the car window on the way to Westfield Citrus Park mall or Tampa Bay Downs to scope out the real estate, here's a glimpse of what it could cost to park a U-Haul in a Westchase driveway and settle down.

Homeowners association

There are about 3,500 homes in Westchase, from modest villas to estates nearing $1-million. The average home value is $420,000.

Each homeowner belongs to the Westchase Community Association, which maintains two swim and tennis centers and enforces deed restrictions. This year, each household was required to pay $205 to the association.

Those deed restrictions ensure that the guy down the street doesn't stockpile auto parts in his front yard, or that the woman across from you doesn't paint her house aquamarine and hang hounds-tooth shutters.

Consistency keeps property values up, the reasoning goes.

"The theory that we're using is, once you let one thing go, then you're going to let other things go and it snowballs," said association president Daryl Manning. "Our goal is to have everything the same across the board, whether it's basketball hoops or dirty shingles."

Fines for violating a deed restriction are generally $100 a day for up to 10 days each month until the problem is fixed. Home-owners can always appeal the citation if they think they've been wronged.

Most planned communities have deed restrictions and charge association fees. In Tampa Palms, assessments are $149. FishHawk Ranch homeowners pay $140.

Still, it's not an apples-to-apples comparison to Westchase's $205. Each community's budget can vary for a stew of reasons. In Westchase, the assessment is figured at a detailed yearly budget workshop. Things like legal fees, community parties, office equipment, bookkeeping, auditing and facility improvements are considered.

At least 11 villages within Westchase have subhomeowner or condo associations, which handle extra landscaping, maintenance and amenities. Homeowners living there pay separate fees on top of the umbrella association fees.

Real estate agent Melanie Simmons of Cooper & Associates does about half of her business in Westchase. She says that most buyers who shop in the neighborhood understand what lies ahead.

"Usually people who end up looking in Westchase want to be in a development with the homeowners association and the rules and regulations," she said.

Rarely do they decide it's not for them, she said.

"I've had people buy and they thought they wanted it because they look so neat and clean, and they turned around a year and half later and sold."

Then there are CDDs

A bigger chunk of change goes to community development districts, commonly called CDDs. These are special taxing districts in which residents bear the costs of a community's infrastructure.

Developers use tax-free municipal bonds to finance the building of roads and utilities in new communities. Annual homeowner fees pay off the bonds over time and pay for maintenance of things like signs, fences, gates and trees in common areas.

CDD assessments will appear on your county property tax statement, but be sure to know up front what the fees will be. Florida law only requires that there be a statement in real estate closing contracts saying a CDD can levy fees - it doesn't require a Realtor to tell you up front.

Michelle Bahizi, an agent with Bay West Real Estate Services in West Park Village, said she always lays it out on the table for would-be buyers.

"Even before we step out of my office, they know, because there's no point in looking if they don't realize there are all these fees," she said.

Westchase has two CDDs, and fees range from roughly $400 to $2,700, depending on which village you live in. Most homeowners pay between $1,000 and $1,500.

For example, a house in the Harbor Links village with a tax value of about $350,000 would pay $2,271 to the CDD. That's on top of county property taxes, which in 2005 were close to $8,000 for this house.

In Tampa Palms, which has almost completely paid off its bonds, CDD rates also vary. A house with a tax value of about $475,000 there pays $1,867 to the CDD. In FishHawk Ranch, all homeowners pay a uniform assessment of just under $1,000.

Again, keep in mind that all communities have different amenities and are at different stages of development - factors that can affect taxes.

While many CDDs, including Westchase's, are stable, deep debt is possible.

In Lutz's Heritage Harbor, developers hoped golf course revenue would pay off an $8-million loan, but business lagged. A CDD member spent two years negotiating with the developer to help cover the debt.

In 2003 in New Tampa's Heritage Isles, homeowners were left scrambling to cover $1.3-million in losses accumulated by the CDD.

Many out-of-state shoppers don't even know what a CDD is, Bahizi said. But those who are familiar with the area assume there are going to be fees involved.

"Most people know what they're getting into and they're willing to pay for the way Westchase looks and presents itself," she said.

Capital contribution

If you've ever bought property, you know about closing costs.

In Westchase, you can expect to tack on a little extra. Currently, new homeowners pay a $100 "welcome documents package" fee, which covers printing and mailing of the deed restrictions.

That could soon change. Westchase's deed restrictions are being revised, and a new fee has been proposed.

It's called a capital contribution, and it would be collected at closing time.

The new fee would be equal to the yearly association assessment, $205. The money would go back to the association to cover operating and other expenses. You'd also get a copy of the thick package of deed restrictions.

The $100 closing fee may seem minor, but it has not gone without contention. In 2004, Fords resident Gregory Grant moved to a new home in Westchase and was charged for documents again. He's suing the association to get the second $100 back.

With the proposed capital contribution, homeowners who move to a new house in Westchase within six months or convey a house to a family member would not have to pay twice.

Most Realtors who sell homes in the area will tell you that people are more concerned about living in a well-kept place than paying fees.

"People want to live in a community where there are deed restrictions," said Marie Cooper of Cooper & Associates, who has sold homes in Westchase for eight years. "They want all the houses to look pretty. They want the grass to be green and maintained."

It's not just Westchase. In Hillsborough County alone, there are 41 developments with CDDs.

Associations, CDDs and rules, said community president Manning, are what make planned developments like Westchase stand out.

"You drive around areas of Hillsborough County and other counties where there are not planned developments or deed restrictions, and you'll see property in all states of disrepair," Manning said. "The county has mechanisms to deal with that, but they can't be everywhere. We don't want to rely on that. We want to bring people in and let them know about the standards up front."