Quote:
Originally Posted by charmed59
We are here now and I am extremely disappointed in the "Lifestyle Preview" program.
We are in a bungalow in the Alden section, which is south of pretty much everything. There is tons of construction going on here, and we are, by golf cart, 30 minutes away from Lake Sumter and at least 30 minutes away from all activities our realtor has signed us up for.
Unless we pack a suitcase for the day, we can't get more than two activities into a single day. We had to cancel a tee time to be able to try out the center closest to here, the Eisenhower center. Tennis on a clay court is 18 minutes by car.
The realtor showing us around told us the only homes available, new or pre-owned were near here. (Which a quick jump onto either the villages website or the MLS tells me is just not true.) However, what I did learn about the villages is if the only option is to live this far south, near a partially built out square where the only place to get a morning latte has lines out the door, I'm thinking the villages is not for me.
We did learn to play pickle ball, and that was great fun. I can see how people get addicted. The line dancing on the squares is extremely fun, though, in our case, hard to get to. Everyone (save the very grumbly realtor/lifestyle counselor) we meet here is very nice, and extremely happy here, though when we mention where we are located they cringe. I feel like we missed the opportunity to find somewhere in the villages we would be able to live that life we keep hearing about, as attempting it from here is just exhausting.
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did you take the trolley tour? that would have given you an idea of the area, plus according to old plans, you will be right next to 500,000 sq ft of shopping mall. i look at every ride as a chance to enjoy the beautiful place we live. i hated the idea of moving to Florida, having only experienced the southern end of the state, but fell in love with this place and moved here 2 months after the preview. we took a 1 year lease in springdale and eventually bought in hadley which over the last 2 years has become more central. with the hop across 44 perhaps with time, you will be more central. you can move to a more advantageous location in 6 months when your current home increases in value.
oops, you're on a visit, I am surprised that lifestyle visitors would be put there. anyway you don't have to buy there, there are homes sold in every village.