Pros and Cons of Living in a Gated Community in Redlands

Thinking about living in a gated community in Redlands? Gated communities have seen an increase in popularity amongst those with greater financial means over the last couple of decades. If you’re considering this exclusive option for the location of your next residence, consider the pros and cons of living in a gated community in Redlands.

Increased Privacy and Security

The clearest and present benefit provided by living in a gated community is a vastly increased sense of privacy and security.

The neighborhood, by definition, is contained within a walled-off area, but it may or may not have an around-the-clock actively populated security gate.

Some gated communities rely on a singular access route that is automated or only manned for specific holidays or times of the day. Due to the necessity of a pass or passcode in order to gain entry to the neighborhood, this means a much greater level of privacy.

However, this can easily be subverted by someone in the neighborhood giving out the passcode unnecessarily. It also means putting yourself or any visitors through a bit of a process to get to your home.

It’s not uncommon for a gated community that requires a physical passcard for entry to deny access to absolutely anyone attempting to gain entry without the passcard.

Peace and Quiet

Due to there being fewer people allowed into the gated community, this definitely means less traffic and a tighter sense of personal investment to the community.

Chances are you will become familiar with everyone within the community over the course of a few weeks, if not months.

The flipside to this is that each gated community is its own small social ecosystem, and you may discover that the residents of your chosen gated community prefer solitude, and would rather not engage in social activities. Finding the right mixture of personalities when moving to any community will help guide you in finding a place you feel is best for you to plant yourself with your new home.

Neighborhood Beauty

Most gated communities are known for their beauty, strict organization, and some for their additional amenities.

Some of these neighborhoods provide a swimming pool, gym, or office work area as a value-added facility for those living in the community. Granted, they will typically be smaller than your average equivalent public facility, but this is because the gated community amenities are there only to serve a smaller population residing within its walls.

The neighborhood beautification projects and added amenities do cost money, and the funding for these things comes straight from the local residents.

If you’re going to be living in a community that is gated, be prepared to shell out extra money not just to purchase your home, but to keep everything looking good and operating normally.

A Controlled Environment

By nature, gated communities are highly controlled environments, and some individuals find peace of mind in the expected norms and consistency.

The Home Owners Association, or HOA, keeps an eye on everything in the neighborhood to ensure that things maintain a certain aesthetic particular to that gated community while enforcing violations of the norms and aesthetics agreed to by the persons who choose to live in that particular gated community.

On the other hand, you may feel that this potentially high level of micromanagement and control over your property is intolerable, even offensive. Some HOA’s will be extremely picky about the length of your grass, color of your house, or even holiday decorations on display.

This is another aspect to get a feel for prior to committing to living in a given gated community. Each one will have different standards and ways of operating, so it’s very important to understand what you’re getting into before you sign on the dotted line.