Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My teenage nieces and nephews still play outside. Baseball, basketball, soccer, water guns in the summer...all of that. Of course, as a previous poster said, a common area will serve the same purposes, especially as the kids get older.
But I don't think kids ever stop (or should!) playing outside.

My 15 and 12yos never use the yard in the summer, and neither do we, because the mosquitos (and heat) make it intolerable. Even when they were younger, they didn't use the yard much during those months. In cooler weather we used the park a lot.

IMO this climate makes a backyard not all that usable from May/June through September.

Yep. heat and mosquitos are killer in the summer. WE head to our neighborhood spray park in the summer or the pool.

Anonymous wrote:My teenage nieces and nephews still play outside. Baseball, basketball, soccer, water guns in the summer...all of that. Of course, as a previous poster said, a common area will serve the same purposes, especially as the kids get older.
But I don't think kids ever stop (or should!) playing outside.

My 15 and 12yos never use the yard in the summer, and neither do we, because the mosquitos (and heat) make it intolerable. Even when they were younger, they didn't use the yard much during those months. In cooler weather we used the park a lot.

IMO this climate makes a backyard not all that usable from May/June through September.

Can you hire someone to mow the lawn, OP?

Anonymous wrote:Mine are 7 and 5 and still love the yard. But they're just as happy walking down the street to the park to play.

+1

We go to our neighborhood park way more often than playing in the yard. It is a 2 block walk. There is a lot more to do there and a lot more space. Most kids are there since we live close-in lots/yards are small.

We are in a condo but it has a common area (with a pool) and is very close to a park. I think as long as there's someplace outside to play it doesn't have to be YOUR yard.

My teenage nieces and nephews still play outside. Baseball, basketball, soccer, water guns in the summer...all of that. Of course, as a previous poster said, a common area will serve the same purposes, especially as the kids get older.
But I don't think kids ever stop (or should!) playing outside.

Just find a townhome with a common area and -problem solved - you got a yard without maintenance. We have a grassy area, tennis courts, basketball courts, playground, and a pool just beyond our patio.

It's terrible that everyone is suffering so. I can see the appeal of a town house.

I'm 37 and I still love playing in the yard!

My 11-year-old plays with friends in the backyard all the time. Wiffle ball, smores in the fire pit on summer evenings and "Destroy Tokyo," in which they stand on top of the old playhouse and roar. I'm glad they have the space.

Oldest is 10 here, and still uses play set and the yard as often as weather is nice.

Our 10 yo plays in the yard, with friends. He can pull out his lacrosse rebounder too. I don't think we're near the end of yard use. We have a 6 yo too who loves outside.

Mine are 7 and 5 and still love the yard. But they're just as happy walking down the street to the park to play.

Don't know. We're at 10 and counting...

Probably depends a lot on the kids.

We've been in our SFH for almost 3 years and exhausted with the upkeep-lawn, cleaning, maintenance. It's an older home so had to do some work to it. We really miss living in a townhouse and the simplicity of maintaining a townhouse. However, our children (3 and 4 years) spend most of the week-ends in the yard. They love it. Just thinking ahead to when we can consider buying a townhouse, at what age do children stop playing in the yard?