Windsor Hills vs Windsor Palms

[Tink_83]

From what I have researched it seems like the only difference between the two is that the Windsor Hills has a far better pool (especially for young children and a teen, I'm thinking the water slide as the biggest selling point). But I figured I'd reach out here to see if there was something I'm missing. I have two rentals I'm considering priced almost the same, both 4 bedroom houses with pools (looking forward to soaking in the hot tub when we get back from the parks!). Anyway, is there any other difference that I've missed?

 

[PulsarIII]

Although I have only stayed at Windsor Hills I’m fairly aware of Windsor Palms. Both of these gated communities were developed by same developers. Windsor Palms is a few years older than Windsor Hills and Both were built as tourist destination “neighborhoods”. Both have good control on keeping the buildings and proprieties maintained very well, so age should not be much of a problem. Windsor Hills a very small advantage for its location near WDW.

The big factor with all Kissimmee tourist rentals is what company the owner uses for maintenance. Sometimes it not easy to find that information and even if you know the name of the MC; are they the good guys the bad guys. I would like to help you out, but the company that handled maintenance for the places I’ve stayed the last few years has closed down.

The community pools and clubhouse amenities may differ somewhat and it may be a major factor you and your party but with a private pool out by the lanai...

G’day
III

 

[Heluvsme]

We have stayed at both, Windsor Palms is older, feels a little more tired, in need of some sprucing up maybe. It wasn't bad, don't get me wrong, it just didn't have a resort feel to me. Yes there is a gate and a guard, but it was on a smaller scale and needed a little repair. Also, WP was tucked back into more of a neighborhood setting.
WH is our choice over the two, but again, it wasn't a deal breaker for us, just a preference.

 

[ParkHopperFan]

Windsor Hills is newer and closer to the parks. The community has more offerings in terms of pool, water park, sports courts, etc. than Windsor Palms.

 

[Sha259]

If they were priced equally I would chose WH simply for its distance to parks. WP is right behind WH, but navigating around will take longer to get to the main road and the parks. I have only stayed in WH, but went with a great property and will be doing WH again for my next trip!

 

[omniscientmommy]

We've stayed at Windsor Hills 3 different times and other than the individual units property varying on quality, we like the closeness of WH to the parks and the amenities. That being said make sure to do your research before renting, especially through Airbnb. We've recently had 3 bad Airbnb experiences with property management companies.

 

[canlafre]

Who have you booked through to stay at Windsor Hills?

We've stayed at Windsor Hills 3 different times and other than the individual units property varying on quality, we like the closeness of WH to the parks and the amenities. That being said make sure to do your research before renting, especially through Airbnb. We've recently had 3 bad Airbnb experiences with property management companies.

 

[Heluvsme]

We have used 2 companies for WH, Dave Robinson at Vacation Central Florida, and Magical Vacation Homes.

Both were good, we have had no problems with either one and we have stayed there close to 11 times now.

 

[omniscientmommy]

@canlafre We've also used Dave Robinson at Vacation Central Florida. It's really the best priced although all the units he has are dated. We figure we'll deal with it being dated and enjoy having more funds to spend on doing something extra at Disney!

 

[Brer Shay]

We have stayed at both properties and would go back to either. WP tends to be less expensive, is slightly farther, and the amenities are older and not as grand. It's also a bit smaller, less crowded, and definitely less noisy. WH is closer and the amenities are new and shiny; it's a newer and busier atmosphere. No matter where you rent, trust the individual reviews more than any generalization.

 

[Sha259]

I got a good, not great, deal from a TH owner in WH through AirBNB. But the owner really was amazing to work with and included the pool heating, no extra charge. If my party for our next vacation was smaller, I would book that house in a heartbeat! Great quite location very close to community entrance but not tons of car through traffic so my son was able to play around the front without me worrying he would get hit. Great privacy for the back spa!

 

[lovin'fl]

We are looking to buy a townhome with pool in one of these and are more focused on Windsor Palms. It is smaller, that is a draw for us, PLus the townhomes are located more tucked away in the resort where at Windsor Hills they are at the front by the gate and main road with a wall barrier on the back portion to separate them from another resort/community. And the difference in drive to Disney is 3 minutes.

Another thing we like is the Tiki bar at Windsor Palms. And they tend to sell for a little less so that is a plus!

Any regular visitors (or owners) want to give me more info, I'd appreciate it. If an owner could tell me how rentable they are, like how many weeks a year can we expect to rent it, that too would be great. We may not have to rent it, but in case we do we are curious how well it would rent.

 

[bearzabout]

Check availability chart on rentals through Vrbo and home away for the two resorts. This will tell you a lot. You can always email one of the owners and start up a conversation that way.

 

[lovin'fl]

Now we are looking at, and like a tad more, Paradise Palms if anyone knows anything about there??

 

[china mom]

Now we are looking at, and like a tad more, Paradise Palms if anyone knows anything about there??

I was shopping for a TH. I had my search narrowed down to Paradise Palms and Windsor Hills after looking at about five or six communities. Paradise Palms is newer and has better finishes. They have stone counters and nicer cabinets. The shower walls are much nicer. I prefer the poured concrete pool deck over the brick at WH. One of the features that appealed to me was the covered lanai and slightly larger pool deck. Also, the units I looked at were 4 bedroom

BUT, I ended up making an offer on a unit in WH for several reasons. One big selling point for me was the proximity to the parks. PP is a little bit further away but felt like a much longer drive. Also, WH has a very strong homeowners group with a web page where you can post your rentals as well as an active FB page.

I spoke to a well respected realtor who knows the STR market and his advice was that if you are looking for a place for yourself to use and are going to rent it occasionally, PP might be a better choice. But if you are looking for an investment property where rental income is important, go with WH.

 

[lovin'fl]

I was shopping for a TH. I had my search narrowed down to Paradise Palms and Windsor Hills after looking at about five or six communities. Paradise Palms is newer and has better finishes. They have stone counters and nicer cabinets. The shower walls are much nicer. I prefer the poured concrete pool deck over the brick at WH. One of the features that appealed to me was the covered lanai and slightly larger pool deck. Also, the units I looked at were 4 bedroom

BUT, I ended up making an offer on a unit in WH for several reasons. One big selling point for me was the proximity to the parks. PP is a little bit further away but felt like a much longer drive. Also, WH has a very strong homeowners group with a web page where you can post your rentals as well as an active FB page.

I spoke to a well respected realtor who knows the STR market and his advice was that if you are looking for a place for yourself to use and are going to rent it occasionally, PP might be a better choice. But if you are looking for an investment property where rental income is important, go with WH.

Thank you for this info. Very helpful. Did you happen to get a rental history on the unit you made an offer on? Kind of curious how many weeks a year, normal year like 2019 and not covid year, it can rent out. We may not rent at all as our DS-24 looking at jobs down there and he may stay in it and then we will also be down there about 3-4 months total. But if DS does not move down there, we will want to rent it about 15-25 weeks a year. Wondering how likely that is.

 

[china mom]

I got a bunch of rental histories from several communities and several homes in WH. I mostly asked for 2019 numbers since 2020 was such an anomaly. I found that the results varied but most seemed to rent about 75-85% of the time.

There are a lot of overseas owners and they usually block out a month at a time for their personal use so you can't always go by occupancy numbers for a specific property so I used averages. You should easily accomplish 15-25 weeks a year - even with COVID.

How much money that equates to depends on several factors including how updated the unit is, how well it is marketed and what fees and commissions you pay.

 

[lovin'fl]

I got a bunch of rental histories from several communities and several homes in WH. I mostly asked for 2019 numbers since 2020 was such an anomaly. I found that the results varied but most seemed to rent about 75-85% of the time.

There are a lot of overseas owners and they usually block out a month at a time for their personal use so you can't always go by occupancy numbers for a specific property so I used averages. You should easily accomplish 15-25 weeks a year - even with COVID.

How much money that equates to depends on several factors including how updated the unit is, how well it is marketed and what fees and commissions you pay.

Do you know the HOA amounts for each place? My realtor was thumbing through and trying to give us exact number and came up with $418 for WH, $350 for WP and $554 for PP. Sound right? And do you know if it includes water bill? I know they include internet, cable, pest control, yard, trash and clubhouse/pool/gate/etc. But we could not figure out water.

 

[china mom]

WH actually has two HOAs you have to belong to. The master HOA and then the condo or townhouse HOA. I don't know if the single family houses have one or not. Total combined HOA for a TH is $5015/yr paid quarterly. I includes internet, phone and cable. It also includes trash removal and access to all of the amenities. Pest control is not included for the TH but I have one quote for $20/mo. water bill is not included.

The number for PP sounds right but I don't have my notes with me. I don't recall exactly what is included.

I didn't look at WP

 

[lovin'fl]

WH actually has two HOAs you have to belong to. The master HOA and then the condo or townhouse HOA. I don't know if the single family houses have one or not. Total combined HOA for a TH is $5015/yr paid quarterly. I includes internet, phone and cable. It also includes trash removal and access to all of the amenities. Pest control is not included for the TH but I have one quote for $20/mo. water bill is not included.

The number for PP sounds right but I don't have my notes with me. I don't recall exactly what is included.

I didn't look at WP

You have been a big help. Thanks. I think we will end up at WP townhomes. The HOA at PP is just too much more...$200. We like PP and WP over WH because they both have the poolside tiki bars. I like the newness and updates and 4th BR at PP. But it is a few minutes longer drive to Disney and that HOA fee is a lot. But we don't want to redo bathrooms or kitchen or AC plus pool heater too. Many of the Windsor (both) units need all that. A lot to consider. Did you close on yours or waiting to close?