I grew up in St. Petersburg until the age of 27 (minus 3 years in the Army), and I also lived in the coastal city of Pensacola for 6 years, Savannah, Georgia for 8 years, Spring Hill, Florida for one year. However, prior to moving to TV, I spent the last 22 years in Baltimore.
I knew when I wanted to retire at age 60, nine years ago, it would be back in Florida, the warm weather was calling. I had some experience with a retirement community. My parents who worked all their life in St. Petersburg retired to Spring Hill, Florida, about 60 miles southwest of here near Weeki Wachee Springs. They lived in a community built by US Homes called Timber Pines started in 1983 and build out ended around 2000. It finished with 5,300 residents on 2.3 Square Miles, with 3 golf courses. It's completely walled with two gates and is not open to the public.
My parents lived in Timber Pines from 1983 until 1998, about 15 years. I visited them quite a few times and even lived in Spring Hill all of 1989 and sold real estate in Hernando County. So I had a good idea of a retirement community and how it should operate.
In 2003 I saw a 30 minute infomercial on the Golf Channel and got the VHS video and packet on The Villages. Finally in April 2011 we took a 7 day lifestyle visit and lived in a cottage at Lake Sumter that week. We enjoyed everyday, I played two rounds of golf, our salesman Tony Trussler showed us every style and model home we requested to see.
I had been thinking of Pensacola all these years, but after seeing what I did in 2011, it became obvious. We moved here fulltime in July 2011 and have never regretted anything.
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