Why It Worked: You could say that The Villages on Mount Hope Bay makes the best of its waterfront surroundings. By providing active adults with spectacular views, extensive waterfront-related amenities, and attractive design features, the units offer the ideal place to retire, relax, and recreate.

  • A luxurious 10,000-square-foot clubhouse provides residents with a fitness center, a library, game and media rooms, a putting green, and more.
  • Residents have the option of using the “mooring field” for their boats.
  • Waterfront access to the adjacent Mount Hope Bay allows for fishing and sailing opportunities while beach paths and nature trails enable non-sailors to stay active.
  • Designed for adults 55 and older, each unit features single-level living.
  • A restaurant, an inn, and various shops are all currently under way.
  • Nearby Newport and Providence provide lots of cultural activities, but larger metropolitan cities such as Boston and New York are only a short drive away.

    • Project Credits
    Project: The Villages on Mount Hope Bay; Sales started: July 2003; Sales through August 2004: 114; Units planned: 290; Price: $550,000 to $850,000; Unit size: 1,492 to 2,940 square feet; Developer: New England Property Holdings, Tiverton, R.I.; Builder: O. Ahlborg & Sons, Cranston, R.I.; Architect: Bloodgood Sharp Buster, Des Moines, Iowa; Land planner/Landscape architect: Brown Sardina, Boston; Interior designer: Design East Interiors, Portsmouth, N.H.

    Learn more about markets featured in this article: Des Moines, IA.