[villagetinker]

Used Citizens first 4 years ago, went very smoothly. IMHO, go to lending tree, and get the typical rates, then talk to LOCAL (Villages area) banks. Make sure which ever mortgage company you decide to deal with has dealt with Florida, and with the villages, I recall some stories on this site with problems when using 'online' or out of state mortgage companies. At the time that we got our mortgage, Citizens First was very competitive. Also, there are some significant closing costs, since you state you are buying a new home, the villages sales agent should be able to give to an estimate of all of the costs. If you were not made aware, there will be a BOND associated with the new home, it is NOT tax deductible, we just paid ours off.
Hope this helps, and welcome to The Villages.