[Schaumburger]

Originally Posted by Flourishing Palms

Today we bought our permanent, year-round home in The Village of Sanibel. Yippee! To say our experience was great is an understatement.

This morning's walk-through with our builder, Steve West, was very helpful. He explained construction features and finishes so we could understand how to maintain a Florida home differently than our previous Iowa home. We're thrilled with the new house, and also with the sales agent, Addam Roma who sold it to us. We're also grateful for the welcome and attention we received from Villagers staff, and the volunteers who provided excellent information for us newbies. We can't find anything that hasn't already been thought of, addressed, and offered as information.

The moment becoming a Villager became real wasn't when we signed the papers on the house, but after we saw our permanent photo IDs. I literally had goose bumps and shed a few tears of sheer happiness.

We're excited to move in, get settled and immerse ourselves in this amazing lifestyle. For anyone wondering whether to do this or not, or if you're hesitating in any way, do it! Life's too short to wait. Every moment we spent preparing (since January) for this move - sorting, purging, donating, selling, listing, closing, organizing, packing, loading, moving, house-shopping, buying and closing is worth it for what life has in store.

Linda, 59 year-old happy Villager #87,002

From one former Iowan (I was born and raised in Dubuque) to another, congratulations on your purchase in Sanibel. I'm just a TV wannabee, but I was in Sanibel today looking at cottages -- your village is great! May you have many happy times in your new home