New Braunfels 55+ Communities: What Active-Adult Living Actually Costs in 2026

If you are weighing a move from a cold-weather state, this video pairs with the numbers above: it makes the case for San Antonio and the Hill Country for retirees and semi-retirees.

On my channel: Escaping Cold Winters? San Antonio Might Be Your Answer

The New Braunfels 55+ landscape, in dollars

New Braunfels now has true 55+ choices at three distinct price points. At the entry level, Voss Farms by Lennar lists 55+ Watermill and Barrington collections with homes from about $212,000 to $279,000 and an HOA near $32 a month. In the middle sits Del Webb New Braunfels at Veramendi, an age-qualified community with builder-published plans starting around $327,990. At the top, The Grove at Vintage Oaks is a 111-home 55+ enclave with entry prices around $490,000 to $500,000 and climbing. If you are not ready to buy, Larkspur at Creekside is the area's only true 55+ rental, at roughly $1,592 to $3,363 a month. None of these is the best pick for everyone. Each one fits a different budget and lifestyle.

Del Webb New Braunfels at Veramendi: the biggest new option

Del Webb's age-qualified enclave sits inside Veramendi, a master plan of roughly 2,400 acres planned for about 6,000 homes, with about 650 homes in its first phase. Builder-published pricing starts around $327,990, floor plans run from 1,223 to 2,758 square feet, and the lineup stretches to about $600,000, with the Renown plan, for example, listed at $599,990. Del Webb does not publish its own community HOA fee, and the broader Veramendi HOA runs about $50 to $70 a month, so the all-in cost is a question to put to the builder's sales office directly.

• Del Webb New Braunfels at Veramendi (builder site)
• Veramendi 55+ community profile on 55places

The Grove at Vintage Oaks: a 55+ enclave inside a Hill Country master plan

The Grove is a 111-home active-adult section within the larger Vintage Oaks community, built out since 2017 by builders including Scott Felder. Entry prices run roughly $490,000 to $500,000 and climb to the high $700,000s, with a minimum home size around 2,100 square feet. The Vintage Oaks POA assessment runs about $700 a year, roughly $58 a month, in the non-gated areas, with extra assessments in the gated neighborhoods. If a Hill Country setting with roomier single-story homes is the priority, this is the community to visit.

• The Grove at Vintage Oaks on 55places
• Vintage Oaks POA and assessment details

Voss Farms by Lennar: the lowest entry point

At Voss Farms, Lennar's Watermill and Barrington collections are marketed as 55+ communities, with homes listed from about $212,000 to $279,000 and an HOA around $32 a month. One honest caveat: Lennar also builds family-age collections elsewhere in the master plan, so before you count on an age-qualified neighborhood, confirm the restriction in writing with the builder. At its price, this is the most affordable new active-adult entry in the area.

• Voss Farms Barrington Collection by Lennar
• Voss Farms 55+ listing on ActiveAdultLiving

Renting first: Larkspur at Creekside

Larkspur at Creekside is the only true 55+ active-adult rental in the area, a pet-friendly community of apartments and cottages with rents running about $1,592 to $3,363 a month for one and two bedrooms. For relocating families and empty nesters who want to test the river-town lifestyle for a season before buying, it is a low-commitment way to do exactly that.

• Larkspur at Creekside official site

What Comal County taxes actually run for 65+ buyers

The tax number matters as much as the listing price. Comal County's median effective property tax rate runs about 0.96% to 1.21% depending on the source and method, with a typical annual bill near $3,558 to $4,827 on a median home value around $399,000 to $427,000. Two Texas rules help seniors: homeowners 65 and older file for the over-65 exemption on their homestead, and under Texas Tax Code Section 11.26 the school portion of the bill freezes at the amount owed in the year you first qualify, so future appraisals cannot push that part up. I pull the last two years of tax history on any home you seriously consider.

• Comal County property tax data on Taxdrop
• Comal County property tax trends on Ownwell

The 55+ label, explained honestly

Age-qualified communities are a legal housing type in Texas, and 55+ communities operate under the federal Housing for Older Persons Act, which allows them to require that at least one resident in a home be 55 or older. That rule is a deed restriction, not a judgment about who belongs in the neighborhood. Rules on visiting grandchildren, long-term guests, and rentals vary from one community to the next, so ask each sales office directly. And plenty of empty nesters buy a smaller single-story home in an age-diverse neighborhood instead, with no age rule at all. I help buyers of every age find the fit that is right for them.

Five questions to ask every 55+ sales office

Before you choose, get these in writing: the exact age requirement and how the community verifies it; the rules for guests, grandchildren, and long-term visitors; the full HOA or POA fee and exactly what it covers; whether resale homes in the community need builder approval or carry an extra transfer fee; and the last two years of property tax history on the specific home. The answers separate a community that fits your life from one that only looks like it on a tour.