SWFL “Bundled” Golf Communities… Lower Upfront & Annual Costs

I’ve been told by a number of my well-traveled clients that the “bundled” golf community concept is proprietary to Southwest Florida. I haven’t been able to confirm this, but during my 11-years of specializing in residential real estate sales in SWFL golf communities, I’ve definitely observed that a large percentage of my Buyers have opted for the economic advantages of purchasing a home in a “bundled” golf community.

For Buyers that can be down here only a few months of the year, it’s often difficult to justify paying the $15,000-$30,000 upfront initiation fees of even our most-affordable non-bundled, “equity/non-equity” country clubs, let alone those of the higher-priced clubs. “Bundled” golf communities—which include a full-golf/social membership with the purchase of any type of home, without the payment of an initiation fee—offer a viable lower-cost purchase option. In addition, the on-going annual golf fees in “bundled” golf communities are typically about half of those charged by the non-bundled clubs, which range between $8,000-$14,000/year.

The “mix”, or assortment, of homes in “bundled” golf communities also contributes to their overall annual savings, because these communities typically have a larger offering of multi-family homes (ie condos, verandas, carriage homes, and coach homes) which have lower total annual expenses than single family homes. These lower expenses are a result of homeowner’s insurance, exterior building maintenance, lawn & landscaping, and irrigation water expenses being pro-rated to each owner in the building as part of their condo/HOA fees.

Just as retail stores have to pay close attention to the prices of their nearby competitors, “bundled” golf communities have to do the same in order to remain competitive to prospective Buyers. Some “bundled” golf communities can justify higher annual costs by offering additional, and/or renovated, facilities and amenities; but, overall, they have to be very careful about getting out-of-line on their annual costs.

New construction “bundled” golf commun-ities offer a great opportunity to save on annual costs, as their developers typically “buy down” the annual golf fee in order to keep the community ultra-competitive to sell homes faster.

In my experience, most Buyers end up asking the same key question as they compare homes in various golf communities…”What are my annual carrying costs?”  Here’s a simplified—but reasonably accurate—recap of the average annual costs for a $300,000 multi-family home in SWFL’s newer and nicer “bundled” golf communities…

• Golf/Social Membership Fee $5,500
• Master HOA & Condo/HOA Fees 5,200
• Real Estate Taxes 3,300
• ANNUAL TOTAL $14,000                                  

Obviously, taxes will increase with the purchase of a more expensive home. The total annual cost will also increase if the community has a food and beverage minimum, special assessments, CDD charges, etc.  Owning your own golf cart will also add a “Trail Fee” to the total. 

If you want a lower annual overhead, focus on somewhat older (but still extremely well-maintained) “bundled” golf communities. And, as mentioned above, the new construction “bundled” golf communities typically have lower annual golf fees. Keep in mind, though, that this situation is short-term…it only exists until the developer turns the community over to the members, which typically occurs when the community is 90% sold-out; after that, annual costs will rise to a more-normal level.

A suggestion for significantly reducing the annual carrying costs of your SWFL home is to consider renting it out during at least part of the key season (January-April). In most of the nicer “bundled” golf communities, in-season rent will range between $3,500-$4,500/month for a $300,000 multi-family home, and renting it for all four in-season months will typically cover your entire annual expenses (not including principle and interest, if you financed it).  

In conclusion, “bundled” golf communities offer a great option for minimizing and controlling BOTH the upfront costs and the annual carrying costs of your new Southwest Florida golf home!

NOTE: For more information regarding SWFL “bundled” golf communities, please review my exclusive “Top SWFL Bundled Golf Communities” list.