itsbetsyh
Active Member
I'm feeling the same. I always wanted to be a part of the Magic, but now upon more research...I kind of like keeping it as my very happy place.
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Golden Oak Update
- Thread starter emcclay
- Start date
TimeTrip
Well-Known Member
You can't really use housing prices outside of Philly to compare to Central Florida. 500k gets you a really nice house down around these parts. Easily 4000 sqft or more.
Magenta Panther
Well-Known Member
I like the Tuscan style very much, but those houses look frickin' huge. Even if I had the dough, they wouldn't be suitable. I'd need a one-person dwelling. Oh well, there's always Celebration... 
luv
Well-Known Member
When I was looking at homes, there was a brand new 2500 sq ft house for $175,000. I didn't like it, but there it was. I got a small (1600 sq ft), less than ten year old home that was kept up very nicely, pretty landscaping (with palm trees, which I liked then) and a screened pool (!) for $130,000. Around here, people leave appliances and window stuff, too.
I was ready to pay $190 for what I wanted and quickly found it was much less!
I did replace the counter, because i prefer the cheapo laminate and don't like granite (which the owner told me she paid to have put in just to sell the house, lol) The master bath has one of those giant tubs, which I don't want or need, so I may re-do that eventually, but otherwise, I've been happy here and had no problems with the house except a $50 air conditioning issue and a $220 plumbing thing.
Houses are CHEAP in Orlando, even now. For $500K, you can build a really large home.
1.5 million to live in the middle of all the tourist stuff is just crazy. The only reason to buy it would be for a vacation home...for me, anyway.
I was ready to pay $190 for what I wanted and quickly found it was much less!
I did replace the counter, because i prefer the cheapo laminate and don't like granite (which the owner told me she paid to have put in just to sell the house, lol) The master bath has one of those giant tubs, which I don't want or need, so I may re-do that eventually, but otherwise, I've been happy here and had no problems with the house except a $50 air conditioning issue and a $220 plumbing thing.
Houses are CHEAP in Orlando, even now. For $500K, you can build a really large home.
1.5 million to live in the middle of all the tourist stuff is just crazy. The only reason to buy it would be for a vacation home...for me, anyway.
I like the Tuscan style very much, but those houses look frickin' huge. Even if I had the dough, they wouldn't be suitable. I'd need a one-person dwelling. Oh well, there's always Celebration...
You are forgetting the three L's. Location, location, location. The distance between a million dollar house and a $250k house can sometime be a matter of just a few feet. You can easily find 2 near identical houses across the street from each other where the price easily doubles, tipples or more. All it takes is if that house across the street is next to the beach, a river, etc. WDW is Golden Oak's beach. Sure, you can get an identical home for less in Windermere, but you can not here the train whistle form the Walter E Disney when it pulls into Main st station from there.When I was looking at homes, there was a brand new 2500 sq ft house for $175,000. I didn't like it, but there it was. I got a small (1600 sq ft), less than ten year old home that was kept up very nicely, pretty landscaping (with palm trees, which I liked then) and a screened pool (!) for $130,000. Around here, people leave appliances and window stuff, too.
I was ready to pay $190 for what I wanted and quickly found it was much less!
I did replace the counter, because i prefer the cheapo laminate and don't like granite (which the owner told me she paid to have put in just to sell the house, lol) The master bath has one of those giant tubs, which I don't want or need, so I may re-do that eventually, but otherwise, I've been happy here and had no problems with the house except a $50 air conditioning issue and a $220 plumbing thing.
Houses are CHEAP in Orlando, even now. For $500K, you can build a really large home.
1.5 million to live in the middle of all the tourist stuff is just crazy. The only reason to buy it would be for a vacation home...for me, anyway.
luv
Well-Known Member
My point is that it isn't a good location. Why would anyone want to LIVE there? All the tourist crap, tourist traffic, crappy stores for tourists...you're right in the middle of all of that!! All the time! I know all the Disney fans think, "Oh, me! I'd love to live at WDW!" But if it came right down to it and they had to pick between living with all that and moving to Windermere...they'd go for the latter.
I'd take a ten million dollar home on the ocean and live there if you gave it to me. If you gave me a Golden Oaks house, I'd sell it immediately.
Maybe I'm wrong, though. Maybe people will live there.
Many if those homes are built in a U shape with the pool or yard in the middle. As such, it might not matter much to some people that it is surrounded.
One thing you have to remember is that these houses are 4-6 times the size of your average house and still have only 4-5 people living in them. While the houses might only be 20' apart there just aren't that many people there to make a ruckus.
216bruce
Well-Known Member
Keep it as an escape. Growing up, I always thought it would be great to work for my favorite sports team. I ended up working for them much later in life and it definitely removed the illusion of glamour from pro sports. I found out that it's like any other workplace and even just going to games as a fan has lost some of it's enjoyment.
I thought as I retired it would be great to move to Florida and work part-time for Disney. Now, I realize it's probably best to just keep it as an escape and enjoy the illusion.
BigThunderMatt
Well-Known Member
Not to mention the square footage is significantly less.
I always find it amusing when people get so worked up over things like Golden Oak, the Four Seasons, new DVC resorts, etc. As much as we all love Disney, it is a business. And, like any business, they are trying to grow and maximize profits.
With Golden Oak (and the Four Seasons), they are trying to tap into a new market. The homes are pricey because they're luxurious, in an exclusive community, on WDW property and essentially attached to a Four Seasons.
Most people that are buying these homes are not living there year round. They are likely part of a real estate portfolio that includes their primary residency in an affluent part of the country, a home out west or in New England for skiing and probably a vacation home near their primary (such as Cape Cod for Bostonians).
They are probably spending anywhere from one week to three months a year at Golden Oak and that's it. When at Golden Oak, they are probably not spending a lot of time off property driving around to the local CVS or Walmart.
The homes are built on zero lot lines because the people that own them don't want to deal with maintaining a large yard. They are there to relax, be pampered and take the kids and grandkids to the parks; not maintain the garden out back. This type of construction is becoming more and more popular as baby boomers retire and people's lives get busier.
I, for one, would buy in Golden Oak if I had the money without hesitation.
With Golden Oak (and the Four Seasons), they are trying to tap into a new market. The homes are pricey because they're luxurious, in an exclusive community, on WDW property and essentially attached to a Four Seasons.
Most people that are buying these homes are not living there year round. They are likely part of a real estate portfolio that includes their primary residency in an affluent part of the country, a home out west or in New England for skiing and probably a vacation home near their primary (such as Cape Cod for Bostonians).
They are probably spending anywhere from one week to three months a year at Golden Oak and that's it. When at Golden Oak, they are probably not spending a lot of time off property driving around to the local CVS or Walmart.
The homes are built on zero lot lines because the people that own them don't want to deal with maintaining a large yard. They are there to relax, be pampered and take the kids and grandkids to the parks; not maintain the garden out back. This type of construction is becoming more and more popular as baby boomers retire and people's lives get busier.
I, for one, would buy in Golden Oak if I had the money without hesitation.
lazyboy97o
Well-Known Member
You're taking the erroneous approach that any business is good business, and that is simply not true especially when dealing with a brand and its image. A casino would make money but would be inappropriate for Walt Disney World. The direct-to-DVD sequels made money, but they were killed because they were hurting the Disney name.
nytimez
Well-Known Member
My problem with this is not that it is a luxurious community for the rich or that Disney is trying to maximize its profits. It's that the land this close to the MK can only be sold once. That's it - this is forever. And I hate to think that this is the best possible use of such premium land, at least from my perspective. If I was wealthy enough to afford a home here, I might have a different point of view.