[villages07]

Lots of questions....you'll get lots of opinions. So much depends on what you can afford, how you want to live (Villa vs Designer size), and what you like to do. There truly is something (housing-wise) for everyone....from original manufactured homes selling for $80K to new Premier size homes selling for a million dollars...and, everything in between.

A few thoughts...

New vs resale: higher closing costs on new; high bond in newer neighborhoods; good - it is new, all are pre-built so you know exactly what the house and lot and view look like; 1 year warranty; latest design techniques. I hear that the developer is offering more incentives on new houses. Building now in a location that is close to the geographic center of what the Villages will eventually encompass (i.e. central location)

Resale - much of the initial stuff is done...blinds, landscaping, painting, etc. Landscaping is more mature; if more than 2 years old, the owners have made a tidy profit and price should be more negotiable. Actually, you may not find much difference in sales price between new and resale of the same model.

Vinyl vs CBS - Stucco is more expensive but sure seemed to weather the tornado better than Vinyl. Then it becomes a matter of personal taste.... I came from NE too and had had enough of Vinyl siding houses...to me, Florida living is block and stucco.

Location....depends on whether you want to be close to the action or in a quiet distant corner. The best advice someone gave us when looking was to find a house where the Lanai faces North or East so that you don't get summer afternoon/evening sun in the Lanai. If you buy new, you're limited to where they are building. If you look at resales you can zero in on your preferred location. Resales...Villages lists a total of about 500 properties; other realtors and FSBOs probably account for at least an equal # of properties for sale. New Homes .... there is a lot of inventory to choose from so anyone should be able to find something that meets their major requirements.

I bought last summer, just as the frenzy was winding down. One house we liked was gone by the time we went for a second look. Fortunately, we then found another that was even better and we had essentially 4 hours to decide to put a contract on it or it would be back on the open market. I'm not sure how the sales process has changed in the past year. At our time, you put down a $2,500 deposit and had to come up with 20% of the sales price within 5 days. Closing is pretty fast too...less than 30 days. If you have a house to sell....sell it first before you come here to buy. Many folks came down here and bought a house on a whim only to find they couldn't sell their home back north and got in a tight financial bind.

OK...that's enough; I'm sure others have alot to offer too.