By Michela Worthington, ABR, SRS, SRES, REALM Certified — The OwnRVA Group, brokered by Real Broker, LLC
Age-restricted and age-targeted communities look nearly identical from the street and are governed completely differently. An age-restricted community operates under the federal Housing for Older Persons Act, which requires that at least 80 percent of occupied units be occupied by at least one person 55 years of age or older. That rule is recorded in the community's governing documents and enforced by the association. An age-targeted community has no such requirement — it is simply designed and marketed for active adults, with first-floor primary suites and low-maintenance exteriors, and anyone of any age can buy. In the Richmond metro, CrossRidge, Chickahominy Falls, and Colonial Heritage are age-restricted. Magnolia Green's Charleston Club, Charter Colony, and Twin Hickory are age-targeted. The distinction changes who can live with you, what happens when you inherit, and who your buyer pool is at resale.
What Does "Age-Restricted" Legally Mean in Virginia?
Age-restricted means the community claims the housing-for-older-persons exemption to the Fair Housing Act's familial status protections, and has to meet specific federal conditions to keep it.
Under 24 CFR § 100.305, a 55-and-older community must satisfy three things: at least 80 percent of occupied units are occupied by at least one person 55 or older; the community publishes and adheres to policies demonstrating intent to be housing for persons 55 and older; and it complies with HUD rules for verifying occupant age, which requires reliable age surveys updated at least once every two years.
Two consequences follow that most buyers do not anticipate. First, the 80 percent figure is a floor, not a target — associations typically hold a buffer well above it, and some enforce internal thresholds stricter than the federal minimum. Second, the exemption applies to familial status, not to the other protected classes. An age-restricted community still cannot discriminate on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or disability, and Virginia's Fair Housing Law adds further protected classes on top of the federal list.
What Does "Age-Targeted" Mean, and Why Does It Exist?
Age-targeted means a builder designed the homes for active adult buyers without recording any age restriction, so the community is open to buyers of every age.
The design signals are consistent: first-floor primary suites, single-level or nearly single-level layouts, low-maintenance exteriors, yard work bundled into the HOA, and amenity programming aimed at adults rather than families. The buyers who show up are overwhelmingly 55-plus. The legal structure simply does not require it.
Builders choose this structure for flexibility. An age-targeted section inside a larger master-planned community lets the developer sell to whoever shows up while still serving downsizers, and it avoids the ongoing administrative burden of biennial age verification. Magnolia Green's Charleston Club is explicitly age-targeted rather than age-restricted, and Charter Colony and Twin Hickory both attract heavy active-adult populations inside communities that are not age-restricted at all.
Factor | Age-restricted (55+) | Age-targeted |
|---|---|---|
Legal basis | HOPA exemption, 24 CFR § 100.305 | None — ordinary community |
Occupancy rule | 80% of occupied units need one resident 55+ | No age requirement |
Age verification | Required, at least every two years | None |
Buyer pool at resale | Narrower — 55+ buyers | Wider — all ages |
Neighborhood character | Consistently adult | Mostly adult, not guaranteed |
Richmond examples | CrossRidge, Chickahominy Falls, Colonial Heritage, Cottages at Viniterra, Heron Pointe, Celebrate Virginia, Mosaic at West Creek | Magnolia Green – Charleston Club, Charter Colony, Twin Hickory |
Does Your Spouse or Partner Have to Be 55?
No. In an age-restricted community, only one occupant of the unit needs to be 55 or older for that unit to count toward the 80 percent requirement.
That single fact resolves the most common worry I hear. A 58-year-old and a 52-year-old buy together routinely. What varies is the community's own written policy, which can be stricter than the federal floor — some associations set a minimum age for any permanent occupant, often in the 40s or 50s. That number lives in the recorded covenants, not in the sales brochure, so it is worth reading before you fall in love with a floor plan.
If you are in an age-targeted community, this question does not arise at all. There is no age rule to satisfy.
Can Adult Children or Grandchildren Live With You?
Extended visits are almost always fine; permanent occupancy by someone under the community's minimum age usually is not, in an age-restricted community.
Guest policies in Richmond-area 55+ communities typically permit visits measured in weeks per year, with the specific limit set in the association's rules. Where buyers run into trouble is a permanent arrangement — an adult child moving in, or grandchildren living with grandparents full-time. That can conflict both with the community's minimum-age rule and, at scale, with the 80 percent calculation the association has to maintain.
Age-targeted communities have no such constraint, which is one of the genuine reasons buyers choose them. If there is any real chance a family member will live with you long term, that possibility alone can decide which structure fits.
What Happens If You Pass Away or Need to Move to Care?
A surviving spouse under 55 can generally remain in an age-restricted community, and an inherited home can generally be sold — but the specifics live in the covenants, and they vary.
Most associations include a survivorship provision allowing an under-55 spouse to continue occupying the home. Most also allow an estate to sell the property, subject to the buyer meeting the age requirement. What they typically do not allow is an under-55 heir moving in and living there indefinitely.
If you are buying in your 70s or 80s, or buying with a significant age gap, read the survivorship and inheritance language specifically. It is a short section, it is easy to miss, and it is the one that matters most to the people you leave the house to. I raise it with every client in this age band before we go under contract.
How Does the Restriction Affect Resale Value?
Age restriction narrows your buyer pool and, in a good market, does not hurt price — but it does affect how long a sale takes and how sensitive the home is to demand shifts.
Two forces are working in favor of Richmond's age-restricted inventory. Per the National Association of Realtors' 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, the median repeat buyer is now 62 years old and the median seller is 64 — both all-time highs — and 26 percent of all buyers paid cash. That is precisely the buyer profile for a Richmond 55+ community, and it is growing rather than shrinking.
The offsetting factor is simple arithmetic: a home only 55-plus buyers can occupy has fewer eligible purchasers than an identical home anyone can buy. In practice this shows up as slower absorption in soft markets, not as lower pricing in balanced ones. Age-targeted communities like Charter Colony and Twin Hickory carry the wider pool by design, which is a legitimate reason to prefer them if resale flexibility ranks high for you.
Builder reputation matters as much as the age structure. Communities built by established regional names — HHHunt, Eagle Construction, Boone Homes, Cornerstone Homes — have tended to hold value well here.
Which Structure Is Right for You?
Choose age-restricted if a consistently adult neighborhood is central to why you are moving, and you want the association legally obligated to preserve it. Choose age-targeted if you want the active-adult home design without the occupancy rules, expect family to potentially live with you, or want the widest possible buyer pool when you sell.
Neither is better. They solve different problems. What I do not recommend is assuming a community is one or the other because of how it markets itself — "55 and better" appears in the marketing for both. The answer is in the recorded covenants, and confirming it is a five-minute job for your agent.
Want Help Reading the Covenants?
I pull and review the governing documents for every 55+ client before we write an offer, because the age structure, the guest policy, and the survivorship language are all in there and none of them are in the brochure. Start with my guide to the best 55+ communities in Richmond VA to see which communities fall on which side, then compare the two most-asked-about age-restricted options in CrossRidge vs. Chickahominy Falls and understand the cost side in what your 55+ HOA fee actually covers.
Michela Worthington, ABR, SRS, SRES, REALM Certified The OwnRVA Group, brokered by Real Broker, LLC Phone: (804) 391-9294 Email: michela@ownrva.com
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to be 55 to buy in a 55+ community?
In an age-restricted community, at least one occupant of your home must be 55 or older, because federal law requires that at least 80 percent of occupied units have a resident 55 or older. Your spouse or partner does not need to be 55. In an age-targeted community such as Magnolia Green's Charleston Club, there is no age requirement at all.
What is the difference between age-restricted and age-targeted?
Age-restricted communities record an enforceable age requirement under the federal Housing for Older Persons Act and verify residents' ages at least every two years. Age-targeted communities are designed and marketed for active adults — first-floor primary suites, low-maintenance exteriors — but have no age rule, so any buyer can purchase.
Can someone under 55 inherit a home in a 55+ community?
Generally an heir can inherit and sell the home, but permanent occupancy by an under-55 heir is usually restricted. The exact rules are in the community's recorded covenants, and they differ from association to association. Read the survivorship and inheritance provisions before you buy.
How long can grandchildren visit a 55+ community?
Guest stays are typically limited by the association's rules, commonly measured in weeks per year rather than months. Short visits are almost never a problem. Permanent occupancy by someone under the community's minimum age generally is.
Which Richmond 55+ communities are age-restricted?
CrossRidge, Chickahominy Falls, Colonial Heritage, The Cottages at Viniterra, Heron Pointe at Swift Creek, Celebrate Virginia, and Mosaic at West Creek operate as age-restricted 55+ communities. Magnolia Green's Charleston Club, Charter Colony, and Twin Hickory are age-targeted rather than age-restricted.
Does an age restriction hurt resale value?
It narrows the buyer pool without necessarily lowering price. The demographics are moving in favor of 55+ inventory — NAR's 2025 profile put the median repeat buyer at 62 and the median seller at 64, both record highs, with 26 percent of buyers paying cash. Expect slower absorption in soft markets rather than a price penalty in balanced ones.