Do Fence Me In
By Gayle Pollard-Terry, Los Angeles Times
If a man's home is his castle, gates are the modern equivalent of
living behind the moat.
Gated communities, in fact, are the fastest-growing form of housing
in the U.S., according to census data. Why? Those who opt for gates
point to reduced crime and traffic, a safer environment for children
and the prestige of living somewhere that's exclusive. But not everyone
likes being sealed off from the world. Some people view gates as elitist
or don't want the bother of calling the guards each time a visitor
is expected.
Whether new or old, suburban or urban, surrounded by affluence or
a gritty neighborhood, a secured perimeter with controlled access
generally makes a home more expensive.
"Gated communities command a higher price when they enter the
market," said Setha Low, an anti-gates anthropologist who wrote "Behind
the Gates: Life, Security and the Pursuit of Happiness in Fortress
America." "Their advantage diminishes as the development
ages and their maintenance costs increase."
The view on the ground in Southern
California comes from John Karevoll, chief analyst for DataQuick
Information Systems, a La Jolla-based real estate research firm. "There
is initially a bit more value to those properties. In general, 5%
to 7%.
"Say a home in one of those communities costs $500,000 to get
into, and a corresponding home costs $475,000" outside the gates,
he said. "Five years later, the corresponding appreciation is
going to be the same."
In expensive markets such as Malibu, the home-price difference on
gated and non-gated streets can be substantial.
"The gates could be worth another million dollars," said
Richard Wolk, an orthodontist who has developed nine beachfront properties
in Malibu — none within the gated Malibu Colony, due to a lack
of opportunity. That would work out to 5% on a beachfront
property priced at $20 million.
For some homeowners, however, the advantages of living behind gates
are priceless.
"There are a lot of celebrities and regular people who would
not live in Malibu Colony if it was not behind the gates….
These are very wealthy people who want privacy, and price is no object
to many of them," said Chad Rogers, an agent with Hilton & Hyland
Real Estate Inc. He grew up in the Colony and sells
properties along the mile-long stretch of 120 homes, which has been
gated since its origins in the late 1920s.
It's one of the factors that attracted Richard and Diane Fisher to
their oceanfront home.
"I wanted a gated community because we were not here all the
time," she said.
To get inside, everyone — residents, guests and workers — must
pass the guardhouse and barred entrance that blocks
the only route for cars from a road near Pacific Coast Highway.
That 24/7 security isn't free.
At the Colony, property owners share the $300,000 to $400,000 annual
cost, according to Jeff Rogers, an officer of the homeowners association
and Chad Rogers' father.
Depending on the level of protection
in a gated community, the expense can range from several hundred
dollars a month per homeowner to less than $50. Guards on duty around
the clock who check driver's licenses and record tag numbers cost
the most. Less pricey are unmanned, automated barriers — tall fences or a bar across a driveway — operated
with a remote, by keypad or card swipe.
Even when money is not an issue, many people shun gated communities.
Some dislike the idea of someone keeping tabs on their comings and
goings.
Agent Rogers recalled staying out
past curfew when he was a teenager. "The
guard on the gate would tell my dad, and he would ground
me."
Even without guards, others still consider gates too restrictive.
"I would never live behind gates again. I truly felt like I
was living in a prison — a high-class prison," said Dawn
Sutherland, who spent eight years in Emerald Estates, a gated community
of town houses in Culver City. "Everything was walled. It was
claustrophobic."
...excerpt from the Los Angeles Times |
