[Peachie]

No one feels worse than we do regarding TH's experience, it's dreadful and I don't know how long ago they purchased their property but, hopefully, the real estate market in The Villages will appreciate and TH will be able to at least recoup the money invested and sell his home at that point. That being said, I think excitement got in the way of thoroughly investigating the area prior to purchase. And that's not a judgment against TH, we have all had some occasion where action preceded all the homework... We have owned 6 homes and lived in 9 different residences and made it a point to thoroughly scour the area for any issues that we couldn't live with and sometimes the issue would build next to us after we lived in a home for awhile.

We were never told there were good/bad neighborhoods by anyone in our four visits to The Villages prior to purchasing and we talked with many, many visitors. The people did say that it was important to check out the different areas, that there are different taxing districts, sewer locales, train locale and many other details. (We didn't know about TOTV at that time).

You need to come to The Villages first of all and see if it lives up to your vision. If The Villages lives up to your expectations, then you can investigate the different areas and find the comfort zone for your level of involvement and activities. Unfriendly to some people is privacy to other people. Not everyone wants a block party, neighbors on the patio or a pool within ten steps or even ten blocks. We all want different things in life, that doesn't make us bad, we simply need to choose what works for us. (Personally, we like the block party/neighbor thing very much and lots of golf).

Bottom line, come and visit wav ! Do investigate the local government and yes, the POA.
This is a decision only you can make and if it takes 2 or 3 visits, so what? There are worse places, IMHO, to spend your time. Oh, and continue to tune into the TOTV. Good luck CIB and keep your home listed, you never know!!!