buying a villages home

[tanbcu]

looking for anyinfo on what to ask an look for . will be revisiting in june. some real facts would be greatly appreciated thanx eddid d

[chuckinca]

Read thru "Nuts and Bolts of the Villages" at the bottom of the "Talk of the Villages" front page.

[GMONEY]

1. Make a list before the visit, think of everything and anything...
2. If you are Thirsty, watch what you drink.... and who gives it to you
3. Make sure you ask the sales rep you are with everything that is on your list.
4. Watch what you are drinking.....
5. Ask people you see here what they think, where they live, and get a idea on what it is really like.
6. If you do have a drink, make sure you smell it first....
7. relax when your here, and enjoy it.
8. By now you had a drink, it was filled with Voo-doo mojo and you have signed a deal. Told you watch in step 2, watch what you drink, espcially if your sales rep offers it to you.. Now your hooked, move on in....

[Army Guy]

Money, you are too funny.

tanbcu, we just bought. Basically the place is REAL that is the hardest part to get use to and over. I mean it is so hard to believe the place isn't made up. It really is as people say, "a bubble".
Once you get over that, you have to decide what size you want. TV offers about anything any style. So it really is, "about YOU and what YOU want". We just told our rep what we wanted and darn if she didn't ake us to exactly that and showed us several to boot. Also have established a price range. Decide about location. Is a view a must? i.e. pond, golf course, etc.cause you will pay more for it. Or, like us, did you want a quiet interior location near both a Rec Center and golf.
So do your home work before your arrive and have a real sit down with the wife and decide the above. That will make it very easy.

Feel free to email or PM me for more detail.

Army Guy

[ChattanoogaTn]

I too agree that location concerning squares, pools, and neighborhoods are a factor. In my haste to get here I am within a few hundred feet of a "Sports Pool" and wasn't aware until after I had signed contract that a "sports pool" is not a "lounge" pool and therefore we are further away from (family/adult) pool that we had thought. We did like the privacy of a "courtyard" Villa but intend to buy a home with LARGER garage once we sell some property (if ever?) in Tenn, rent the Villa we bought and will better learn the areas. Some people can just buy a home within a couple days but after 3 trips down and (after) signing contract on a home here .... I'm still learning

Also have learned to "make sure" that once you get an "inspection" of home you are buying (still wondering if it was worth it?) that you tell your Realtor that you would like to have repairs down (correctly) BEFORE closing as my Realtor never got the point across to the seller that this was suppossed to be done....( and done correctly ) before closing!

Many things you'll learn and as another person wrote.... "Ask people about certain things" as we have learned a lot from The Villages and NOT the Realtors!!

Hope this helps :beer3:

[downeaster]

looking for anyinfo on what to ask an look for . will be revisiting in june. some real facts would be greatly appreciated thanx eddid d

Other than the obvious, look for:
Location of:
sewage disposal facilities.
railroad tracks.
principle arteries.
pickle ball courts.
restaurants.
Or anything else you can think of that produces noise and odors.

[rshoffer]

If you decide to move here I strongly recommend you rent for at least 3 mos. Then you can take your time, visit endless open houses, models, locations, lots---new and prev owned. The task is daunting.

[paulandjean]

make sure when you buy that you will be here for many years. selling a pre-owned home in the villages is very very difficult. those who do sell take a very big hit. many homes are sold but way below the purchase price.seems the village staff only pushes new home sales.

[Bogie Shooter]

make sure when you buy that you will be here for many years. selling a pre-owned home in the villages is very very difficult. those who do sell take a very big hit. many homes are sold but way below the purchase price.seems the village staff only pushes new home sales.

I believe the "hits" people are taking are also a result of the current economy. Prior to the economic slow down pre-owned were selling quite well. I sold a designer in 2 days....in was not very very difficult (then).

[paulandjean]

the hits people are taking are also because new homes are so cheap in price. the days of selling pre-owned homes in days are gone. now months and months are the norm.

[oldguy953]

Hi,I'm a wannabe going to TV this August they say your taxes in FL go lower after living there a year. Homestead act of some thing.......And whats a bond on your home if it's new? do you have a bond if you buy a resale.........I'm from LI would I be able to take the hot summer heat ? Thanks to anyone who replys....................:thumbup:

[TrudyM]

We are not in the villages yet, I am at the data crunch stage. That said we have moved allot. I am analytical by nature and always crunch the numbers. I found allot of info in the nuts and bolts forum.
One big thing is bond or no bond. It will impact your monthly expenses. (If you are an obsessive number cruncher, you can get a life expectancy number for yourself from sites on the web and do the math if you are like me.)
Another is if I am not mistaken the different counties have different tax rates as TV is huge it covers several counties.

Unlike the above poster I believe the inspection is a must. That said it only finds visual problems they don’t open up walls. Subject to inspection and termite report should be in the contract. The punch list of repairs should be put in an addendum to the contract to clear that contingent. We have in the past gotten estimates for the repairs, doubled the amount and then backed that from the price or had that amount remain in the escrow account that they don’t get till the repairs are done. It is amazing how fast the repairs get done when they don’t get their money, especially if you write in that the commission to the realtor isn’t paid until after the repairs hold is cleared.
Unless TV is very different, you do not have to sign the contract as written by the sales person, insert and amend it, to fit your needs.

I went through a copy of the Sun and listed all the groups we might be interested in and then mapped their locations on a TV map to narrow in the zone.

If you figure out something else that would be good in the analysis let me know.

Best of luck.

[BobKat1]

the hits people are taking are also because new homes are so cheap in price. the days of selling pre-owned homes in days are gone. now months and months are the norm.

It's definitely a buyers market for pre-owned homes. There are some good values out there - Some with bond paid.

The competition with new construction makes it more difficult to sell a pre-owned home in the current economic environment, as there are some great prices on new homes too.

[l2ridehd]

Trudy is right on target. I also crunched information for 2 years before buying. I built spread sheets with a long line for each home I was interested in. Used new construction upgrades for cost factors(reduced by 25%on resales). Like lot premiums and granite and tile and birdcages and sq footage and garage size, and every other upgrade possible. Did a comments section for things that were a challenge to value. Took the price down to cost per sq ft for living area, garage and lot. Covered that information as accurate as I could for recent sales. Determined the area I wanted to live and started shopping. Use the Sumter and Marion county sites to see tax valuation and purchase prices. Use google earth and mapquest to see aerial views of the house. You can get it to the actual home 99% of the time. Look at the pictures and see which side the drive way is on, which type roof the home next door has, what the foot print looks like and you can get it down to the exact home. That way you can see how close streets, traffic circles, other homes behind yours are and other valuable information. Get a Villages map and put in the train tracks and power lines, sewage plants and any thing else that may bother you. That way when you visit, of the 100 homes that fit your size, style and price range, you know the 3 to 5 you really want to see. You know which is the best value and why. And you can do ALL this before you ever get there.

[Yoda]

Trudy is right on target. I also crunched information for 2 years before buying. I built spread sheets with a long line for each home I was interested in. Used new construction upgrades for cost factors(reduced by 25%on resales). Like lot premiums and granite and tile and birdcages and sq footage and garage size, and every other upgrade possible. Did a comments section for things that were a challenge to value. Took the price down to cost per sq ft for living area, garage and lot. Covered that information as accurate as I could for recent sales. Determined the area I wanted to live and started shopping. Use the Sumter and Marion county sites to see tax valuation and purchase prices. Use google earth and mapquest to see aerial views of the house. You can get it to the actual home 99% of the time. Look at the pictures and see which side the drive way is on, which type roof the home next door has, what the foot print looks like and you can get it down to the exact home. That way you can see how close streets, traffic circles, other homes behind yours are and other valuable information. Get a Villages map and put in the train tracks and power lines, sewage plants and any thing else that may bother you. That way when you visit, of the 100 homes that fit your size, style and price range, you know the 3 to 5 you really want to see. You know which is the best value and why. And you can do ALL this before you ever get there.

I know where the RR tracks are. I can see the power lines. Where are the sewage plants?

:shrug:

Yoda

[l2ridehd]

There is one on Buena Vista just North of St Charles Place. Also one North of 466 but not sure where. As that was the area I wanted to live, I made sure I was upwind of it. I have never noticed a problem, but have had others mention it.

The power lines were a significant issue for me as my better half would not consider anything where they could even be seen. I personally would not want to be under or real close to them but she didn't even want to be able to see them. Doubt we are alone on that issue as homes close to them tend to have a significantly lower per sq ft price. Both lot and home.

If you analyze several hundred homes as I did, you start to see trends that impact value. Backing to streets, traffic circles, power lines, all have a negative impact. Cul-de-sacs, quiet areas, open space, town squares seems to all have a positive impact. There are many other more subtle items as well. Every buyer needs to decide what is important to them and build a profile of homes that meet that goal.

[JeanneBeannie]

This is all very helpful information for those of us looking at homes, thank you all for pointing out excellent points.
It reminded me of the home I looked at here in NY before this one, the house was beautiful and perfect for me, till we walked outside in the back yard and it was loaded with power lines, I was so disappointed. My realtor said "cant you over look that"? I said "Ummm....let me think....NO" lol. So very glad you brought up those points. JMO :thumbup:

[katezbox]

I do not believe the Villages Sales Reps only push new homes - at least not in my experience. Many of the folks selling their homes as resales bought when prices were higher - even in "the bubble" there is a recession going on. Some also added additional features to their homes - that had a cost of $X- but that may not be of interest to the buyer. For example - driveway pavers. I love them but they are an absolute NO for my cuter half who wants no driveway maintenance. They would like to not lose money on that investment - so the prices are sometimes high in comparison to new - where the developer is offering "deals."

The resales that we looked at with the bond paid were about $20K+ higher than those without it paid. You can do the math and see that was no bargain.

Resales priced right are selling - and some quickly. Our new neighbors sold a CYV in a few weeks.

l2ridehd had a good post a few months back on all the factors he considered pluses and minuses - I would search for that thread.

[Army Guy]

Totally agree with I2ridehd. When we were there in Feb, our Rep showed us this 2 bd Breaureguard (sp?) which is what we wanted. But we really didn't like it. It sat at the dead end of a street so had more yard, which we really didn't want, and inside it didn't have some of the upgrades we wanted. Of course we saw others too. Upon coming home, I started to do more research of the homes we had saw, I used the Sat. images avalible on-line. And by doing that I discovered that the location was ideal! Dead end meant NO traffic at all in front of me unless you are coming to my house, it was also an end unit, which for a 2 bed is rare. Instead of having the normal what I call "alley" between CYVs, I have a short plastic fence and since I am sitting high in Bonita I actually can see the ranch homes and palms in their backyards instead of a cement wall of the next CYV. Then right behind me is the neighborhood ADULT pool horseshoe and schuffleboard courts, so no houses even behind me. So we prayed that it would see be avail when we could go down again in May to confirm it. It was, so we checked times, you can actually walk to the pool, but it is a 4 min golf cart ride. The new Sea Breeze Rec Center will be a 9 min golf cart ride and LSL is 16 min! So it is Location, Location, Location, and RESEARCH! By the way we close 18 June!!

Army Guy

[graciegirl]

I totally agree with Kate. Some older homes were bought at the peak of the boom and they were a lot more expensive. That is true of all houses all over the U.S. AND I think that the sales reps who work for The Villages are very fair and honest and NOT at all pushy. They don't have to be.

We had Jim McLaughlin. A very good rep and a nice gentleman.

[deano_hoosier]

Some things you can do on this site is look at home sales rates, e.g., Q109 the home sales were only 45% of sales Q107. Takes a little digging and parsing the sales report generator, but the data are there. Also easy to see the hits home owners are taking on sales of homes purchased since early '06.

Another thing to check out is "which lots are in the 100year flood zone". Was surprised to see the home lots around the preserves in de la Vista are such properties, for example.

[Keedy]

Totally agree with I2ridehd. When we were there in Feb, our Rep showed us this 2 bd Breaureguard (sp?) which is what we wanted. But we really didn't like it. It sat at the dead end of a street so had more yard, which we really didn't want, and inside it didn't have some of the upgrades we wanted. Of course we saw others too. Upon coming home, I started to do more research of the homes we had saw, I used the Sat. images avalible on-line. And by doing that I discovered that the location was ideal! Dead end meant NO traffic at all in front of me unless you are coming to my house, it was also an end unit, which for a 2 bed is rare. Instead of having the normal what I call "alley" between CYVs, I have a short plastic fence and since I am sitting high in Bonita I actually can see the ranch homes and palms in their backyards instead of a cement wall of the next CYV. Then right behind me is the neighborhood ADULT pool horseshoe and schuffleboard courts, so no houses even behind me. So we prayed that it would see be avail when we could go down again in May to confirm it. It was, so we checked times, you can actually walk to the pool, but it is a 4 min golf cart ride. The new Sea Breeze Rec Center will be a 9 min golf cart ride and LSL is 16 min! So it is Location, Location, Location, and RESEARCH! By the way we close 18 June!!

Army Guy

CYV ...Can somebody tell me what this means. I have done a search and cannot find it. I'm a newbie here..(can you guess?)
Keedy

[graciegirl]

Sometimes we speak in code. TV=The Villages, but I imagine you figured THAT out. CYV is Courtyard Villa.

[Keedy]

Sometimes we speak in code. TV=The Villages, but I imagine you figured THAT out. CYV is Courtyard Villa.

Great!!! Thank-you graciegirl....When I found TV forum I thought I was going to read up on widescreen plasma's. hehehe:confused:

Keedy

[Army Guy]

Thanks Gracie for helping Keedy. I guess we in TV are like the Army, we have our own "slang" terms!

Keedy, welcome, any help you need just ask.

Army Guy

[tankdvr1950]

as others have said...take your time before you make your decision

we just moved here from NNy and are in a rental for a month....we close on our new home on June 10th and will take our time moving in to the new place

we did 3 lifestyle visits before deciding to move here....we looked at endless model homes each time we visited and got to know TV pretty well before deciding where we wanted to be located....we even picked home with the lanai facing just the right direction (not sunny in the afternoon/evening)....all the time you spend is well worth it

buying a home in TV is like no place else....we bought new, and if thats your direction....u can just about forget everything you know about purchasing a home.....there is no negotiation here....unless u pick a designer or premier home....the home you like is what it is....no upgrading etc....u take it as is or u don't take it.....be prepared to put 20% down when you sign the contract and you have to close in 30 days

when you come here in June...rent a golf cart and get lost a few times and explore the place....you won't regret it...and IMHO, there is no better place to get your questions answered than right here on TOTV

[Bryan]

As someone pointed out, TV is hugh. We are in portions of three counties and one city/town - Lake County, Marion County, Sumter County and the town of Lady Lake. All have their own tax rates so if that is a concern, check on the rate that applies to the home you want.

Bonds is another issue. Every home had one at one time. Over time the cost of the bonds had gone up so homes in older sections of TV had less of a bond to start with and more is paid off by now. Newer homes have a higher bond to start with and less had been paid off. I am not sure about interest rates on the various bonds. Sometimes a "selling point" on a resale home is that the bond had already been paid off. At a minimum, on nay resale home you consider, make sure you know the balance of the bond payment before you close - that is not part of the purchase price.

The bond we are talking about here for each home is for the infrastructure that was put in place (underground utilities, roads, sewers, etc.). You will see a lot of chatter about an unrealted bond issue with the Center District and the IRS. Although an important issue, it does not factor into home purchase prices or the bond on your home.

[Army Guy]

tankdrver, I agree 100%. As we have all said taking the time to look research, is what it is all about.
I agree also on the new home price, that is why while we looked I automatically figured in 10000-15000 to the price in my mind for upgrades!

Army Guy

[Keedy]

Thanks Gracie for helping Keedy. I guess we in TV are like the Army, we have our own "slang" terms!

Keedy, welcome, any help you need just ask.

Army Guy

Thanks for the welcome, Army Guy. I did 2 stints in the Army...the first one was a tour (love that word) of Southeast Asia. (Viet nam).
I just discovered this great site recently. We have been exploring the 55+ communities for a few years but only got serious the last year.
We went to Hilton Head in March and visited Sun City, SC. We were impressed and they have a nice woodworking shop that I toured.:coolsmiley:

A visit to LV and maybe one to Arizona before we decide on retirement location. We are open-minded but we are more serious about the east coast.
Have a great day,
Keedy ("Doc" to my old army buddies)

[Russ_Boston]

We were impressed and they have a nice woodworking shop that I toured.:coolsmiley:

I assume you mean TV's woodshop? I hear that it is very impressive!

[Keedy]

I assume you mean TV's woodshop? I hear that it is very impressive!

No, I haven't been to TV yet. ( Maybe in the Fall) I wasn't aware that LV had a woodshop. Sun City SC. has a beautiful (in my eyes) woodworking shop. Now that I'm aware....that brings LV further up our go-to list.:2excited:
Keedy

[Army Guy]

Keedy, we also looked at HH, but TV is so much better and the woodshop at TV makes Sun City look like High School.

We looked for 5 years up and down the coast from Williamsburg, Kingsgate down. Glad we saved this for last!

I am still in 30 years and counting.....

Army Guy

[Russ_Boston]

Keedy - You keep typing LV. Do you mean TV or are you intending something else?

Just wondering.

[Keedy]

Keedy - You keep typing LV. Do you mean TV or are you intending something else?

Just wondering.

You are correct Russ...I do mean TV...sorry...a typo.

[Keedy]

Keedy, we also looked at HH, but TV is so much better and the woodshop at TV makes Sun City look like High School.

We looked for 5 years up and down the coast from Williamsburg, Kingsgate down. Glad we saved this for last!

I am still in 30 years and counting.....

Army Guy

Army Guy...Maybe it is smaller because the population is much smaller. Only around 12,000 to TV's 75,000? I'm sure that TV has a bigger budget, maybe?

Keedy

[champion6]

No, I haven't been to TV yet. ( Maybe in the Fall) I wasn't aware that LV had a woodshop. Sun City SC. has a beautiful (in my eyes) woodworking shop. Now that I'm aware....that brings LV further up our go-to list.
Keedy
Here is a link to The Villages Woodworkers Club http://www.vwc704.com/ I had a chance to visit it - incredible! I believe it's about 10,000 sq. ft. Very active membership.

[Keedy]

Here is a link to The Villages Woodworkers Club http://www.vwc704.com/ I had a chance to visit it - incredible! I believe it's about 10,000 sq. ft. Very active membership.

Thank-you..very impressive...indeed!!!

Keedy