Is Condo Living for ME???

Greetings All!
Welcome to the Lake’s Edge first BLOG. I wanted to introduce myself first and foremost. My name is KT and I am a 7-year resident of this beautiful property. I am 31 years old. I am a busy businesswoman with a more than full time career. Single but with an abundance of friends. I found my way to this lakeside haven when I moved to the area from Dallas, TX. At the time the property was known as “The Landings Apartments”, built in the 1970′s and was just for RENTERS. Even back then the community was bustling with energy and activity. There was a comfortable air of tranquility and yet it was anything but boring.  THE LOCATION was breath-taking…shoreline 20 feet from my back door. Waking up to the sounds of ducks and geese.  Enjoying a glass of wine while watching the best sunset view in all of Lexington….I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it exactly was until finally several neighbors were talking one evening, out by a campfire on the shore chatting about ‘life’ and someone said “you know, living here is like living like I’m on vacation every day”.

There it was…everything I had been feeling finally put into the perfect words. I ‘live like I am on vacation’. We should all be so blessed.

I was one of the very first renters to seize the opportunity to buy a unit when the condo-conversion started (about 3 years ago). I had heard rumors for a year or more that the apartments were going to be for sale and I already had made up my mind that I wanted one. For years I was toying with the idea of finally buckling down and investing in a real “big girl house” and stop “throwing away my hard earned money on rent” (read in a deep dad voice for effect) but no matter where I looked in town, I could not find anywhere that seemed to give me the joy, peace, and feeling of “home” as my little lakehouse.  For me, the decision was easy.

So what about you? Are you questioning if Condo-Life is for you? When I survey my neighbors who also love condo life I find that we all have similar things in common…

1) We don’t want to WORK after we get off of work/school. We are perfectly satisfied with someone else mowing the yard and planting the flowers (even though some of my neighbors have a pretty green thumb and have beautiful baskets/pots of flowers – unlike me).

2) We don’t want to worry about roof, siding, windows, etc. When you own a condo, your responsible for what they call “The Studs In”…at first I thought they were saying “The Studs Inn” which I thought made for an interesting amenity!

3) We don’t mind being a part of a community. Just because you live at the Lake’s Edge doesn’t mean you throw your peace and privacy out the door (unless you are like me and the door is always open) it just means that people will be naturally considerate and concerned for you and your well being. We all share the same parking lot, we all make the same short walk to the mailbox, we all share the same dock and pool…YOU WILL MEET PEOPLE (some of the best people in the world by my standards). You can be as involved or passive as you wish, however, if you are a social creature, you will thrive here.

This is a blog and if I didn’t mention the downsides of condo life you would naturally be suspicious that this is just an advertisement for the property. If you require a garage, covered parking, own 25 vehicles, hoard cats, hate old ladies, blast your stereo at volume 1,000,000, don’t poopie-scoop after your Great Dane, like to stand in your condo and jump up and down over and over….. and over all day and night long, or have more than 5 co-inhabitants…condo life may not be for you!  It is MULTI-UNIT HOUSING…for 7 years I have NEVER once heard my neighbors on the sides of me (because of the fire-walls I found out later), but a few years ago the entire UK FOOTBALL TEAM moved in above me…and for the most part it was fine…until they would wrestle…

Ideal candidates for condo living (according to me of course, only you can decide if its for you):

-Retired people who want a place to relax and unwind from the decades of life (and hopefully cook yummy treats)

-Empty Nesters…Do you find yourself in a big empty house now that the kids are gone and/or at school? Sell and downsize. Live like you are on vacation. Reward yourself for the years of diapers, teen drama, etc. The kids wont complain because you will live on a LAKE (and there are plenty of neighbors who will loan them a boat).

-College students….There are several college students (who we have lovingly adopted and feed often) who’s parents have purchased a condo in Lexington. It is close to campus, not a frat-party every night, has sweet old ladies to make sure they do their laundry and don’t stay out all night, etc. Your kid wont be in better hands!

-Starter families…units range in size from 900 sq. feet to almost 1700 feet…perfect for young couples (and we have a clubhouse for baby showers).

-Business people…(like me)…if you travel a lot and/or do not have time to worry about safety, house maintenance, need someone to pick up your newspaper or friendly neighbors to drive you to the airport….it works out n-i-c-e-l-y.

-Second home in Lexington…Believe it or not, condo life is well suited for a second residence. We have several people who live part-time on the property…they stay for UK games, Lexington events, Keeneland (horse racing), summer, etc.

It can be summarized in a mind-altering quote…by a great philosopher, theologian, spiritual guide, historian, etc.

“Wont you be my neighbor?” -Mr.Rogers