CAI-NJ August 2021

NJ’s “55+” Communities Have Come of Age

By Rich Wieland, Lake Ridge Homeowners Association

T his is not your great-grandmother’s idea of old age! Today’s senior communities are not sleepy “retire- ment villages”. They are homeowners’ associations designed for “active adults” who are enjoying far more than shuffleboard and bingo. What brought about this major shift in the way of life in New Jersey and across the nation? Self-governing HOAs originated during the Industrial Revolution when wealthy families wanted to escape the crowds, noise and pollution of American cities. Llewellyn Park in West Orange was the nation’s first planned com- munity in 1857, and its shared parkland and elected committee of managers made it New Jersey’s first HOA. However, for almost a century afterward, land planning and property value protection through common ownership and maintenance fees were limited to upper-income buy-

ers. The average lifespan was only 47 in 1900, and most people worked as long as they were able, retirement was only for the wealthy. “Old folks” often lived with their adult children or were relegated to “rest homes.” New Jersey was transformed in the post-World War II boom and HOAs proliferated after highway construction opened suburbs to housing developments. Desirable and inexpensive land in convenient locations became scarce. Cash-strapped towns encouraged construction of private neighborhoods that would provide their own services and facilities so municipal taxes would not rise sharply. Developers clustered middle-class houses, townhouses and condominiums on small plots with common green spaces. All those homes were marketed to young families – not seniors. The first HOA for active adults was built in the CONT I NU E S ON PAGE 26

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