Why didn't you retire "in place"?

[Gpsma]

Just a question for those that have made a permanent move to TV, why didn't you retire in your former location?

I'm more curious as to why you didn't stay as opposed to what attracted you to TV. Perhaps cost of living, weather, etc.

Personally I moved because of the weather. The winters finally beat me down. If it wasn't for the brutal weather up north there is nothing here, either in Florida or TV, that would have made me move south.

[joldnol]

Lol, I only moved 140 miles. We moved here for the lifestyle

[Rapscallion St Croix]

Demographics.

[dewilson58]

Gracie was not in my home town.

:)

[Miles42]

first move was to be near grandchildren, mistake the grow too fast. second gere mistake numbertwo health problems no support. third back to wher we started soon.

[MikeV]

Because I lived in Upstate NY. Enough said.


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[dillywho]

We moved for several reasons in 2004:

Golf

Many, many activities (forgot to include many doctor
visits in the brochure, though, as the major activity
)
Close to family

Brutal Texas Panhandle winters

Husband's disability

I still love Texas, but have no desire to move back. It was hard leaving friends and the familiarity of "back home" (food, neighbors, etc.) Love to go back to visit occasionally, but here to stay! Love our home here, location, neighbors, and close friendships we have made. It's great to be able to have more close contact with our kids (always be your kids), just not THAT close, though. :1rotfl:.

[gap2415]

Activities and the people. 'Most' close in age and it's more like the world we grew up in...at least inside the bubble.

[Barefoot]

Winters in Canada are cold. :cold:
But summers are great. :MOJE_whot:
By purchasing a modest house in The Villages, we're able to spend time in both locations.

[golfing eagles]

Winters in Canada are cold. :cold:
But summers are great. :MOJE_whot:
By purchasing a modest house in The Villages, we're able to spend time in both locations.


By "summer", I assume you mean the temperature gets up to 12F, the snow is only 3 feet deep, and you can strip down to 6 layers of clothing:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

[skip0358]

Because I lived on Long Island and our pensions didn't provide us any extras. Living here is a breeze and we can travel when we want. Oh yea no SNOW and Cold weather either.

[golfing eagles]

Because I lived in Upstate NY. Enough said.


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Well said.

But I'll add:

648 holes of golf(with more to come) 12 months a year vs. 18 holes for 5 months

No Snow

100+ pools open 12 months a year that someone else maintains, as opposed to my own pool that was open for 3 1/2, spent more time working on it than using it, and cost more to maintain each year than my TOTAL amenity fee here

Winter high temps in the 60's and 70's as opposed to the negative single digits

No Snow

Hundreds of activities year round

Some of the nicest people in the world

No snow

[bluedivergirl]

We lived in high-tax, exceeding liberal Minnesota. Colder than a witch's.

We love it here. Both of us are so much happier. :a040:

[jblum315]

No snow, no ice
Couldn't afford to live in NY in anything approaching the level of comfort I have here.

[ggnlars]

Actually this is our second retirement location. The first was near family & friends. After a few years, family & friends were elsewhere. The people in the neighborhood were 30 years younger with young kids and other factors long out of our focus.
Weather had nothing to do with it. We actually like cold snowy days better than hot muggy days.
The idea of a more active, like stage open environment was the biggest factor for us. Been here less than two months and already met a number of really good people.

[DARFAP]

Not full time yet, but golf is the reason.

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[Bonny]

We're from Michigan. It's a beautiful state and I loved it there, but we were tired of cold weather. Also, we love to cruise. Now we can cruise without paying airfare.
Kept our summer place in Michigan for the first year, but didn't go up cause we were so busy here so we sold it.
If we do go up, it's only for 5 or 6 days. Didn't need a summer place for that. :D Sooooo, in 1999, said see ya Michigan.

[perrjojo]

We are native Texans but the last 10 years before moving here we were in North Georgia.(moved because of husbands work and stayed on 8 more years because it was beautiful and we made great friends) I guess that move made us accustomed to being away from family. We go back to Texas (DFW area) for 6 weeks every year. The traffic is unbearable, things are not close and convient and living in a "normal" neighborhood leaves very little opportunity to socialize. The family is always on the go and we spent all of our time driving up and down the interstate to participate in their activities. Here we have a calm, quiet and active life of our own. And yes, even with Snowbirds here, there is no traffic.

[Kathrynsews]

We're from Michigan. It's a beautiful state and I loved it there, but we were tired of cold weather. Also, we love to cruise. Now we can cruise without paying airfare.
Kept our summer place in Michigan for the first year, but didn't go up cause we were so busy here so we sold it.
If we do go up, it's only for 5 or 6 days. Didn't need a summer place for that. :D Sooooo, in 1999, said see ya Michigan.

Exactly! We too are from Michigan, Clawson, Troy, and Port Sanilac. We are in Port Sanilac now, and it's for sale.

[JoMar]

Weather, year round activities we like, explore a new State, closer to cruises, short plane ride to PA if we need to go there, new friends while keeping old friends (funny how they spend more time in FL these days, more activities for grandkids at the moment. Another factor is where we lived before was all the same, every year activities were determined by dates and weather....got boring. We lived there for 69 years and knew every road, every place to eat, every entertainemt venue. Good weather was from June to mid Sept then sucked the rest of the year. Our friends were friends for the same amount of time and all of us fell into the same routine.....it was time for a change. We have been here for 3 years.

[rubicon]

Weather was not a prime factor for us because what you lose in winter you gain in summer. Both in my home town in Central New York and my adopted town southwest of the Twin cities living was easy from May through October.
We the Twin Cities and loved loved their Winter Carnival

We began looking for a retirement community in 1999. I had settled on living in Charelston SC until I researched their tax situation. Never gave Florida a glance until I researched taxes.

[ajbrown]

I will let you know when/if I actually retire. Why am I here?


I was able to keep a job I enjoy and work remote
My Dad was here
I hate temporary greens during Massachusetts winters
Stacking 2+ cords of wood was getting old (or was that me)
I could not do the things I enjoy in the cold/sleet/snow. I can do those things in the summer heat.


I likely forgot others...

Will I retire here? Time will tell...

[ditka41]

Weather here is definitely better than most months in the far, northwest Suburbs of Chicago. Our taxes were quadruple the amount here. Covenants in our (originally) very nice neighborhood were not being enforced and it became so lax that we had above-ground swimming pools being built in violation. The violent crime rate in the whole area is still increasing rapidly, in spite of the very strict "gun control" laws. Final straw was the ever-increasing flow of illegal immigrants. Most of the complaints about The Villages are petty in comparison to what we endured while watching Illinois property values erode. We had never considered The Villages, or any place in Florida for retirement, but in 2009 we happened to hear about TV and came for the "lifestyle" program. After one more visit we were hooked. We miss the closer proximity to our families, but find that the great people here compensate for that. Now, visits with family are more special to us and it seems that we have the best of both worlds.

[golf2140]

Demographics- Certain areas were being destroyed.
Snow
Golf all year
nice people

[Buffalo Jim]

Because I lived in Upstate NY. Enough said.


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Same here and the taxes and fees were even more fun than the weather and the heating bills [ 9 months of the year ] !

And the above was only exceeded by the privilege of living in a
totalitarian Nanny -State run by communists who prey on those few who actually work .

[kodykakes]

Lived in Sarasota for 25 years. It is a beautiful area with beaches and shopping but I was looking for an active adult community. I moved to The Villages 2 years ago and absolutely love the choices of activities and the wonderful people we have here. I feel very safe here and appreciate how well the grounds are taken care of. Love the Bubble!

[patfla06]

We moved to Tampa in a corporate move 20 yrs. ago.

Moved out of Tampa because:
Traffic
Crowding
High taxes
Families, not many retirees
Not as much to do

Would never go back to NY or NJ.

[kcrazorbackfan]

The snow/ice/cold of the winters and the volatile springtime weather with the threat of tornadoes. Besides, both of us love to play golf.

[Toymeister]

Well it cannot be taxes, they are higher. It can't be weather, it's worse. It isn't cost of living - it's more. It's not geographical considerations, FL is flat, and well, boring.

Demographics, not being marginalized. Activities trump everything.

[texasfal]

I moved because the pollution in Houston was effecting my health. Still really miss Texas.

[JerryLBell]

The wife and I have wanted to live in an active retirement community since visiting her mother in Sun City West (outside of Phoenix), Arizona 25 years ago. So even if we'd stayed in North Carolina, we would have moved. However, we weren't finding anything in the Carolinas that matched the scale of Sun City West. Everything we found had one small rec center with perhaps a pool table and a couple of meeting rooms, one small pool, maybe a 9-hole golf course and not much else. The list of activities for the month could usually fit on a single page that was tacked up to a bulletin board. We considered moving to Arizona for about a nano-second but both of us hate staying in the desert; it's just to hard on our sinuses, eyes and skin. We weren't sure where we'd end up until a friend told us of visiting a former neighbor who had moved to this crazy place called The Villages. We stopped in during our next Florida vacation (a place we'd vacationed many times but somehow never considered retiring to) and fell in love with the place almost instantly. We researched and visited several other active retirement communities in north central Florida and nobody came close to what we found here that matched our desires. Sure, we could have gotten a slightly bigger house and/or yard for perhaps less money elsewhere, but these were barely-active retirement communities where The Villages is a hyper-active mega-community. It's not for everybody, but it's sure for us!

[Happinow]

I came from Upstate NY....close to the Adirondacks. It was cold, rainy, run down and a Democratic state. Need I say more??

We knew we wanted warm and to live in Florida. Never dreamed it would be The Villages but so glad we live here. Truly blessed.

[golfing eagles]

I came from Upstate NY....close to the Adirondacks. It was cold, rainy, run down and a Democratic state. Need I say more??

We knew we wanted warm and to live in Florida. Never dreamed it would be The Villages but so glad we live here. Truly blessed.

Same here, but 180 miles west on the thruway from you.

Also someone mentioned "high" taxes here, I hope they were being sarcastic. My NY property taxes were just under $15,000. My home here is assessed more than twice as much as NY, but taxes are $4,400 PLUS a 4% discount for paying in Nov. NY income tax, up to 9.5%, here, 0. Then there are so many more "hidden" taxes in NY, like $15 to cross the Verrazano bridge. I WIKE it here.

[Chatbrat]

If I could have still been able to maintain our boat we would still be living & cruising on it, there is a drop dead beautiful Hatteras 58' LRC, for sale--starting to have second thoughts--in the old days 1 day in the engine room 2 days on my back, now it would be a week on my back

[lake5798]

Hi Kathy, my wife and I grew up in Clawson and raised our 2 daughters there, retired to Lewiston but after 1 winter started in the Villages. in 2010. Just sold our home in Lewiston. Closing on Juy 31. :) Good luck with your sale!!

[Chi-Town]

The Chicago area is alive the end of May
until the beginning of September. The Lakefront, neighborhood festivals, art fairs, the Cubs (and Sox), and the suburbs mirroring the city with a number of events. Never a dull moment....until the end of September. The tables come in and the entertainment stops, and then it's time to enter the winter doldrums.

When working you get through this and hope for an early Spring. There was no way we were going through that period retired. My wife and I retired the middle of November 2009 and were here before December. Never a dull moment.

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[Mikeod]

We moved here from San Diego. Yep, San Diego. Might have the best weather in the country. Old joke is the best job in the world is a weatherman in San Diego. Every day is "Nice".

However, between taxes, cost of living, traffic, strident "immigrant" rights advocates and gang activity, it was time to leave. A former neighbor of mine said he could exist in San Diego in retirement, but moving allows him to really live in retirement.

We looked a several places, but most had a golf course and a rec center only. Once we saw TV, the choice was easy.

[dave from deland]

I grew up, lived and worked in Miami, need I say more?.

[rjm1cc]

Income and real estate taxes on the financial side. Cold winter months on the weather side (hot months are better than cold). Old home basement and two stories. Thus probably would move at some point even if just down the street.

[scottiee]

We are from Miami. We move for lower property taxes, lower homeowners insurance, and no traffic. Taxes and insurance were together was about 1000.00 dollars a month some of you paid a lot more but that's to much. Also golf, pickle ball, and softball what more could you want?

[BK001]

1. Our home was over 100 years old and beginning to show it's age in terms of structure, plumbing, electricity, etc. etc. -- it was a never-ending fixer upper better suited for younger people.

2. We had a two family home and were sick and tired of being the good, kind and understanding landlords. ("Can't pay the rent? Here have something to eat.") An exaggeration but not by much.

3. We wanted to tap into the HUGE appreciation in our home value.

4. Most of our family and friends had already left New York City.

5. Shoveling the snow around our double corner lot home with 4 garages was becoming a marathon event that we no longer enjoyed.

6. Two of our favorite local restaurants (Indian and Chinese) changed hands and we were unhappy with new chef's cuisine.

7. The local senior citizens center was a depressing room in the basement of a church that offered a weekly movie, bingo game, chair yoga class, and a bus trip to the Staten Island Mall. Oh what joy -- Macy's.

[golfing eagles]

If I could have still been able to maintain our boat we would still be living & cruising on it, there is a drop dead beautiful Hatteras 58' LRC, for sale--starting to have second thoughts--in the old days 1 day in the engine room 2 days on my back, now it would be a week on my back

Did you see "The Money Pit" with Tom Hanks and Shelley Long? IMHO, a boat is 100x worse:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

[golfing eagles]

1. Our home was over 100 years old and beginning to show it's age in terms of structure, plumbing, electricity, etc. etc. -- it was a never-ending fixer upper better suited for younger people.

2. We had a two family home and were sick and tired of being the good, kind and understanding landlords. ("Can't pay the rent? Here have something to eat.") An exaggeration but not by much.

3. We wanted to tap into the HUGE appreciation in our home value.

4. Most of our family and friends had already left New York City.

5. Shoveling the snow around our double corner lot home with 4 garages was becoming a marathon event that we no longer enjoyed.

6. Two of our favorite local restaurants (Indian and Chinese) changed hands and we were unhappy with new chef's cuisine.

7. The local senior citizens center was a depressing room in the basement of a church that offered a weekly movie, bingo game, chair yoga class, and a bus trip to the Staten Island Mall. Oh what joy -- Macy's.

But you lost that great view of the Verrazano Narrows bridge----you know, the one you can look at but can't afford to cross at $15/pop:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

And the Staten Island Mall---yuk. I actually did moonlighting at the urgent care center there--what a nightmare, takes 20 minutes just to get into the parking lot at holiday time. I once had to resuscitate a shopper in the parking lot 2 days before Christmas, and it took the ambulance 25 minutes to get from Richmond Ave into the parking lot. It would have been an easier bus ride to Roosevelt Field!

[Gpsma]

1. Our home was over 100 years old and beginning to show it's age in terms of structure, plumbing, electricity, etc. etc. -- it was a never-ending fixer upper better suited for younger people.

2. We had a two family home and were sick and tired of being the good, kind and understanding landlords. ("Can't pay the rent? Here have something to eat.") An exaggeration but not by much.

3. We wanted to tap into the HUGE appreciation in our home value.

4. Most of our family and friends had already left New York City.

5. Shoveling the snow around our double corner lot home with 4 garages was becoming a marathon event that we no longer enjoyed.

6. Two of our favorite local restaurants (Indian and Chinese) changed hands and we were unhappy with new chef's cuisine.

7. The local senior citizens center was a depressing room in the basement of a church that offered a weekly movie, bingo game, chair yoga class, and a bus trip to the Staten Island Mall. Oh what joy -- Macy's.

All understandable except 6 & 7. Who would move from Brooklyn for the ooohh so fine exceptional dining in TV.

And if you wanted recreation, a quick ride on the R train would bring you right to Manhattan for world class entertainment.

[2BNTV]

For three reasons:
1. Weather.
2. Weather.
3. Weather.
I hated the cold and snow, having to deal with it!

Seriously.
1. Weather.
2. Taxes in CT, (a good state to be from).
3. Much closer to son and granddaughter.

After visiting TV, the decision was a no brainer for me!

[golfing eagles]

We moved here from San Diego. Yep, San Diego.
We looked a several places, but most had a golf course and a rec center only. Once we saw TV, the choice was easy.

I so agree. I did a year of research before our LSP, and found that most Florida 55+ "golfing" communities were a single 18 hole course and a single clubhouse. All activities were at that clubhouse, so a limited selection. There would be one pool, one restaurant, a few tennis courts and shuffleboard. Anything else you needed---grocery store, bank, pharmacy etc. you had to get in your car and drive 5 miles in traffic, which could be quite heavy in Naples or Lauderdale area.

Like I said above, I WIKE it here:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

[DigitalGranny]

TV might not be right for everyone. If you want a big house, or lots of land, or no neighbors, this isn't for you. It definitely IS right for us. We have a modest house but it's on a golf course. Our Lanai and Florida room both face a beautiful green. We love the easy, breezy lifestyle here. We travel almost exclusively by golf cart. Go to the squares only for our favorite bands and festivals. Love the golf, landscaping, and pools. But the people are the best part. Such nice people!

[Topspinmo]

Been here about 3 years, hindsight, probably would of stayed put for 5 to 8 years. miss tinkering around acreage, fruit tree, (especially the Rainer cherries, pear, peach, apples, and grapes) garden, purple Martin colony, OU tennis, great grocery prices and restaurants. I could do everything there I do here, but just not daily. Adjusted well over the years was forced to move several time being retired military's. But, you alway miss anywhere you been for 5 to 20 years or more after ththe fact.

[NotGolfer]

But you lost that great view of the Verrazano Narrows bridge----you know, the one you can look at but can't afford to cross at $15/pop:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

And the Staten Island Mall---yuk. I actually did moonlighting at the urgent care center there--what a nightmare, takes 20 minutes just to get into the parking lot at holiday time. I once had to resuscitate a shopper in the parking lot 2 days before Christmas, and it took the ambulance 25 minutes to get from Richmond Ave into the parking lot. It would have been an easier bus ride to Roosevelt Field!

And folks complain about our ER/health-care here!!!

[Kevin and Luci]

One word: Illinois

[vintageogauge]

We are one of the oldest or the oldest couple in our neighborhood, we have seen many of our friends fall Ill over the last few years, our grandchildren are getting older and are more involved with their activities now, rarely are we needed for baby sitting anymore, the weather in Northeast Ohio in the winter is really bad (most years), there is very little to do here with people our age, and after spending winter vacations in TV for 5 or 6 years and staying all around Florida for several other years trying to decide where to end up, TV was by far #1. We have always had large lots or views from our homes so we chose to get into Fenney while there were affordable water front homes available and that is where we ended up buying. Can't wait to get everything down there and start enjoying the lifestyle. We have two more runs back and forth and should be settled in by summers end.

[golfing eagles]

We are one of the oldest or the oldest couple in our neighborhood, we have seen many of our friends fall Ill over the last few years, our grandchildren are getting older and are more involved with their activities now, rarely are we needed for baby sitting anymore, the weather in Northeast Ohio in the winter is really bad (most years), there is very little to do here with people our age, and after spending winter vacations in TV for 5 or 6 years and staying all around Florida for several other years trying to decide where to end up, TV was by far #1. We have always had large lots or views from our homes so we chose to get into Fenney while there were affordable water front homes available and that is where we ended up buying. Can't wait to get everything down there and start enjoying the lifestyle. We have two more runs back and forth and should be settled in by summers end.


Welcome to your new home!!!:pepper2::pepper2::pepper2:

PS---What was Abraham Lincoln like in high school???:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

[golfing eagles]

And folks complain about our ER/health-care here!!!

In all fairness to those that complain, TVRH is far from perfect, and I'm sure they all had some sort of bad experience to one degree or another. It is also fair to say that Villagers are not dropping like flies at TVRH. Their mortality and readmission data for heart attack, heart failure and stroke (the conditions that the state health dept. monitors) are all within Florida averages

[bagboy]

We are one of the oldest or the oldest couple in our neighborhood, we have seen many of our friends fall Ill over the last few years, our grandchildren are getting older and are more involved with their activities now, rarely are we needed for baby sitting anymore, the weather in Northeast Ohio in the winter is really bad (most years), there is very little to do here with people our age, and after spending winter vacations in TV for 5 or 6 years and staying all around Florida for several other years trying to decide where to end up, TV was by far #1. We have always had large lots or views from our homes so we chose to get into Fenney while there were affordable water front homes available and that is where we ended up buying. Can't wait to get everything down there and start enjoying the lifestyle. We have two more runs back and forth and should be settled in by summers end.

Once you get settled, concentrate on having fun and doing the things that you enjoy. This is your time, relax and make the most of it. Welcome to The Villages.

[Nucky]

I get a real kick out of telling the people we left behind in NJ about the taxes. The last house we were in was on a 50' x 100' lot. Taxes $9,600 a year or $800 a month. Here the taxes are about $1000 a year and no snow and I donated my recliner to my son. I have no time to use it. The Villages is what you make of it. We love it here. People here are mainly considerate other than the occasional blip! We don't miss the NJ/NY traffic either.

[jnieman]

We moved here for the 1) weather 2) activities (there was nothing to do back home)

[patfla06]

Most of us from the North don't miss the taxes, the traffic and the bad weather.

When we describe how much we love The Villages I think we're all describing a QUALITY OF LIFE that is hard to find elsewhere.

[raynan]

SNOW and pensions go a lot further here than in Massachusetts.

[SALYBOW]

We visited and my hubby played 4 games of golf in a week. We came!

[ColdNoMore]

Winters too long and snowy...summer and golf season too short.

[DonH57]

The state of Massachusetts asked me to leave!

[dbussone]

The state of Massachusetts asked me to leave!



The State of Massachusetts didn't have to ask me. The Blizzard of '78 was all the push I needed.


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[DonH57]

The State of Massachusetts didn't have to ask me. The Blizzard of '78 was all the push I needed.


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I didn't move there till 1995 and my wife was born and raised there. Besides the snow, ice, and cold it made best sense to come here and leave taxachusetts.

[dbussone]

I didn't move there till 1995 and my wife was born and raised there. Besides the snow, ice, and snow it made best sense to come here and leave taxachusetts.



[emoji41][emoji106]


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[Barboza]

Just a question for those that have made a permanent move to TV, why didn't you retire in your former location?

I'm more curious as to why you didn't stay as opposed to what attracted you to TV. Perhaps cost of living, weather, etc.

Personally I moved because of the weather. The winters finally beat me down. If it wasn't for the brutal weather up north there is nothing here, either in Florida or TV, that would have made me move south.

We found the Villages more than 26 yrs ago when we were still in our 40's. So impressed by the people & lifestyle, and the weather :planned on move, ASAP ( in fact 10yrs of checking everything ? too good to be true too many "smiley "people ) but bought @ 57 & now 19yrs on still love the people & place , even all the changes! Only downside (as we moved more than 4500 mils from UK) America does not permit us to live here full time, however we continue to enjoy the time we spend here and many times when we are back in UK find ourselves wishing we were back at our "home in the sun"

[rjn5656]

Year round sunshine. Plenty of golf. And low taxes.

[Barefoot]

Only downside (as we moved more than 4500 mils from UK) America does not permit us to live here full time, Same for Canadians, unfortunately we are only allowed to spend 182 days in a calendar year in our home in The Villages.
However we treasure every day we spend in TV, and always look forward to the winter season.
Yes, I am one of the dreaded seasonal residents.:throwtomatoes:

[golfing eagles]

Same for Canadians, unfortunately we are only allowed to spend 182 days in a calendar year in our home in The Villages.
However we treasure every day we spend in TV, and always look forward to the winter season.
Yes, I am one of the dreaded seasonal residents.:throwtomatoes:


I feel your pain----it must be horrible to be banished to the frozen tundra 183 days a year. (Do you get an extra day here in leap year???) Maybe you could find the satellite camera at Ice Station Zebra. Better yet, maybe you could find THE LOBSTER you owe me:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

[NotGolfer]

Here's the short list....the weather, the weather, the weather!!! Add to that NOT enough to do, especially in the winter THEN add taxes to these and that's our reason(s) for coming here!!! Plus the cost of living in FL is cheaper!! Yes, we're full time!!

[Buffalo Jim]

I see a hefty " Exit Tax " ahead for those who are pulling up stakes from one of the Northern Heavy-Tax Dependent States .

[Bavarian]

I liked where we were, but my wife wanted one story house. She wanted warm temps. We don't play Golf, but I like the ethnic and location social clubs. Seh wanted to move here because some old neighbors way back lived here and she wanted to work on Shoebox.

Have our own pool, none nearby. Nice to walk out an into pool, can grill most any day and can eat out with birdcage keeping out the bugs.

A big advantage is no State and County Income Taxes, but Property taxes higher then our two story plus basement in MD. Another bad feature is having to pay water, (well), swer (septic tank) and trash, took ours to the dump or transfer station, so those are added costs.

Like Golf cart transportation though!

I do miss doing my own garden work though.

[JourneyOfLife]

Just a question for those that have made a permanent move to TV, why didn't you retire in your former location?

I'm more curious as to why you didn't stay as opposed to what attracted you to TV. Perhaps cost of living, weather, etc.

Personally I moved because of the weather. The winters finally beat me down. If it wasn't for the brutal weather up north there is nothing here, either in Florida or TV, that would have made me move south.


If winter weather was the only/main reason you moved to TV, why didn't you just "Stayput & Snowbird"?

[Gpsma]

No reason to keep a house up north when we could snowbird with family. Didnt only move because of the weather but also because there is no reason to pay high taxes to educate the snowflakes anymore.

TV has its benefits but it cant shine a light to the activities, culture, dining and real entertainment you can find in the northern urban areas.
Its nothing more than a clean, well managed city....with lousy pizza and terrible bagels and few people who know what a knish is.

[Aw Man]

The Chicago area is alive the end of May until the beginning of September.
The Lakefront, neighborhood festivals, art fairs, the Cubs (and Sox), and the suburbs mirroring the city with a number of events. Never a dull moment....until the end of September. The tables come in and the entertainment stops, and then it's time to enter the winter doldrums.
When working you get through this and hope for an early Spring. There was no way we were going through that period retired.

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We loved Chicago but our reasons for moving are as stated in the partial post above. Plus year round golf!

[SCasey]

My wife got tired of shoveling snow!

[Allegiance]

My wife got tired of shoveling snow!
That was funny!

[thelegges]

still have our home up north. use it for summers and holidays. Plus other half still works full time and maintains it alone for the rest of the year. Its about being active here, golf, friends, not so much of the food. taxes are more for us and do miss the change of seasons, fall is just beautiful. In a few years will make the move to sell up north and stay put in TV

[TomOB]

Moved from Hawaii because of expense. Moving out of TV because of overcrowding.

[JP]

Not the swinging lifestyle of the villages

[MSGirl]

We moved for the lifestyle!

[Gpsma]

No "lifestyle" where you lived before?

[mellincf]

I'm trying to decide to move at all. I live just outside Atlanta. We have great weather with four moderate seasons (today, late June, 82 at noon, 62 at midnight). We don't have hurricanes, earthquakes, blizzards, etc. But what we do have is traffic and it's a million miles to get anywhere. What do you guys do about general shopping: Target, Walmart, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Publix, used book stores, dentists, and fun things outside of organized activities?

[Allegiance]

I'm trying to decide to move at all. I live just outside Atlanta. We have great weather with four moderate seasons (today, late June, 82 at noon, 62 at midnight). We don't have hurricanes, earthquakes, blizzards, etc. But what we do have is traffic and it's a million miles to get anywhere. What do you guys do about general shopping: Target, Walmart, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Publix, used book stores, dentists, and fun things outside of organized activities?

Imo, if you buy in the north east of the villages, near Spanish Springs you can be at "Target, Walmart, Publix, lowes, winn Dixie, aldi, dentists, etc, etc, and fun things outside of organized activities in a few minutes by golf cart. Zero traffic to deal with most of the time.

[Lbmb24101]

I'm trying to decide to move at all. I live just outside Atlanta. We have great weather with four moderate seasons (today, late June, 82 at noon, 62 at midnight). We don't have hurricanes, earthquakes, blizzards, etc. But what we do have is traffic and it's a million miles to get anywhere. What do you guys do about general shopping: Target, Walmart, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Publix, used book stores, dentists, and fun things outside of organized activities?

We lived in Johns Creek, yes the traffic in Atlanta has gotten out of hand.
We moved here in 2013 and THE reason was infrastructre; being able to get around in golf cart EVERYWHERE ( not like Peachtree City south of Atl)
The multi modal paths was the reason for our move.
I can not drive an automobile.
Shopping?
There is Amazon and walmart.com I do not miss the malls.
Good luck with yoyr decision making!

[SALYBOW]

when Gracie moved so did I.. LOL
Free golf
Many activities
Too expensive to live on the Coasts

[CFrance]

When I was in high school and walking to school in weather so cold the snot froze the insides of my nostrils together, I promised myself that one day--ONE DAY--I would never do winter again. It took a while.

[DeeNJerry]

We moved from MN to get away from Old Man Winter! We go up every summer for a couple of weeks to see the kids and grandkids. Video calling makes it easy to see and talk to them the rest of the year. We started out in Lehigh Acres, near Fort Myers, but there isnt anything to do there, unless you like the beach. I have relatives here and loved it more every time we came up to visit them. I'm learning how to golf, and I get plenty of exercise with Walk Away the Pounds and Cardio drumming!! My husband is in a couple of music groups the he loves! Lots to do!.

[banjobob]

Summers too short winter temperatures up and down too often , nice days in Ohio but sooo many more nice days in Florida unlimited things to do year around

[GypsyBuddy]

We had no intention of leaving Virginia Beach; had built a new home 2 years before the visit here to just spend a week in FL and visit an old friend. I never dreamed of leaving VA but was so impressed with this place that we decided to come again for 2 winter months to see if we really liked it enough to move here. And we did. Bought a lot, went home to sell our nearly new home, and here we are. Where we lived in VA Beach had plenty of activities but not much in the daytime. Lot of summer entertainment but it usually started at 9 PM. In our neighborhood we were the only retired couple. Here there is activity all day long and entertainment ends at 9 PM...this is why we are here. Plenty of people around to do things with and enough activity to suit us every single day.

[OhioBuckeye]

Just a question for those that have made a permanent move to TV, why didn't you retire in your former location?

I'm more curious as to why you didn't stay as opposed to what attracted you to TV. Perhaps cost of living, weather, etc.

Personally I moved because of the weather. The winters finally beat me down. If it wasn't for the brutal weather up north there is nothing here, either in Florida or TV, that would have made me move south.
Actually we bought a new courtyard villa thinking we were going to rent it out & be snow birds. So when we went back to Ohio for some reason I told my wife, lets try & sell our house & by something smaller since we're only going to be in Ohio for 6 months. We told one neighbor he he bought it right away, so not having a home to go to, I asked my wife do you want to just move to Florida, so that's what we did. When we got here we found out this courtyard wasn't going to be big enough so we bought a Lilac designer home in the village of Charolette. Now were debating what to do next .

[hulahips]

Over 2,000 clubs!

[l2ridehd]

Traffic and weather in that order. We moved from Northern Virginia and the traffic there is worse than anyplace in the US. Have lived in Boston, LA, New York, Dallas and there is nothing to compare to the traffic in the DC area. It is brutal. And yes, but you would be retired so you don't have to deal with it. Wrong. You can't even go to the Home Depot on a Saturday morning without a traffic plan.