I have had both electric and gas heat at various places I've lived. Usually have been told that electric heat pumps are "more efficient" but that is not the same as less expensive. It's hard to get the straight version, but at current prices, I believe the cost of gas heat is still less than the cost of electric heat pumps.
I have gas heat here in The Villages - you can't get it in new construction but if it's really important to you there would be many resales that are less than 5 years old to choose from. I am not sure when they stopped using gas in new construction here in TV - I think around 2007?
I agree that gas heat feels warmer than electric, but really, you are not normally using your heat here that much, except maybe at night. When it's really cold here it is usually sunny and you would be surprised how much your house can warm up by just opening the blinds during the day. Everyone's different though, on what temperature they find comfortable/tolerable.
What I'm trying to say is that even though I prefer gas heat and gas for cooking, I wouldn't make my decision to buy here on that. You will be using your a/c far more than you will be using your furnace and for weeks in spring and fall, not using either, unless you have special health concerns.
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