Full Time Vs Part Time Villagers

[Annabelle]

My husband and I are seriously considering moving to TV when we retire in 2013. We cannot decide whether it is best to purchase a home for residing there during the late Fall to early Spring (which I'm leaning towards) or buying a home to live there year round (which is what my husband prefers).

We have already visited TV a few times, but never stayed longer than a week at a time and the times we were there it was in the early Spring and quite hot. Is the heat an issue for seniors during the summer? Do many people leave during the hottest months?]

I have been told that the full time residents of TV comprise roughly 70% of the Village population. However, I have noticed that there are a lot of homes for rent in TV on a monthly basis.

I wonder if it presents a problem to full time residents of TV to live next to homes whereby there are renters moving in and out each month?

Any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Annabelle

[mike barkley]

im about to purchase a home this month. but i must say i was a 'renter' in a house on chula vista ave in jan and feb and never had a neighbor speak to me. so i assume people who rent in the so called very friendly villages are not welcome visitors! perhaps the villages further south are more friendly.

[Annabelle]

Mike,

Thank you for the information. I am planning to rent for at least a few months each year before I buy.
I want to buy in a community where most of my neighbors live there all year, so that I can actually get to know my neighbors.

The Villages has so much to offer retirees in terms of activities, but I don't want to buy in a neighborhood that is deserted during several months of the year. Well good luck to you in your new home!

Annabelle

[Donna2]

im about to purchase a home this month. but i must say i was a 'renter' in a house on chula vista ave in jan and feb and never had a neighbor speak to me. so i assume people who rent in the so called very friendly villages are not welcome visitors! perhaps the villages further south are more friendly.

Very interesting as we will be down there late next month and will be renting for a month or two while house hunting.
Maybe they had a particular problem with the people who rented before you? This should be an interesting thread.

[tpop1]

There are several categories of Villagers that I know of:

Frogs – Full timers here til they croak,

Snowbirds – (Often known as Grandparents) – Part timers who spend some Fall, most of Winter and some Spring months in T.V,

Finances and / or family circumstances often dictate a Frog vs. Snowbird decision.

Snowflakes – People who drop in from time to time. Often those still working; sometimes those who rent out their homes to Snowbirds and who use it when they can,

Renters – Snowbirds who rent for a month or more.

Did I miss any, gang?

Much of the social activity that we take part in (we’re Snowbirds / Grandparents) revolves around the neighborhood social groups of which. in reality, renters don’t seem to be a part.

That said, we have socialized with renters that we have met at the neighborhood pool (a great place to socialize – never been there without some new friend to be striking up a conversation) or met in their driveway over a wave and a hello.

Sometimes you just have to get out there and yell, “Hello!”

Also a lot of socialization revolves around activities; golf groups, pickleball groups, dance groups, etc. So the more you do the more there is to do!

Good luck on you decision what you decide, you will enjoy it.:icon_wink:

[BobKat1]

We've rented in TV four or five times and the neighbors of the two different homes that we rented never overly friendly. The only time a neighbor came to the door of one house, was to ask me to call the owner and tell him to run the irrigation more often.

But that's OK with us. We still enjoyed the experience each time.

PS: As tpop said we always meet new people at the town squares, pools, waiting at a restaurant etc. vs. around the neighborhood.

[Boomer]

I am really interested in this thread, too.

We know going in that whatever we would buy would be a second home for us, but we do not want to be landlords. We just want to have it there when we want to show up which, as I understand it, can get to be more and more often until you finally decide to just get rid of the 3BR storage bin up north.

I want to be in a neighborhood with lots of fulltime neighbors, but we would not be there all the time.

This has been one of my main issues. I will keep watching this thread.

Boomer

[campy]

im about to purchase a home this month. but i must say i was a 'renter' in a house on chula vista ave in jan and feb and never had a neighbor speak to me. so i assume people who rent in the so called very friendly villages are not welcome visitors! perhaps the villages further south are more friendly.

We rented for one week in St. Charles (last week). The one neighbor next door made us feel VERY welcomed. We spoke each time we saw one another. When we left we said good bye and felt that we were leaving real friends behind. During another visit we stayed for five days in Summerhill. Multiple neighbors came by during our visit hoping to hear we were moving in. During another one week visit in Springdale, the next door neighbor offered a very friendly good morning the first day she saw us. We�ve always found that if people are around, they are very friendly and we�ve never stayed more than a week during any of our visits. We�ve always found the residence of each village we�ve stayed in to be friendly and we look forward to calling The Villages our year round home town as soon as we retire.

[redwitch]

I think are a lot of factors of whether a renter is accepted -- the type of home rented (CYVs are pretty enclosed and neighbors are less inclined to get to know you; patios have lots of renters and, thus, are pretty much ignored by the residents); how long you are staying (the longer you plan to rent, the more likely the neighbors will talk to you); how friendly you are.

I know of one instance where the renters were extremely unfriendly -- even saying hello seemed to be an effort for them. The neighbors couldn't wait for them to leave. The next couple that rented not only said hello, but held a small Christmas party, helped neighbors as needed, always smiled and were friendly. They're coming back next year and the neighbors can't wait for their return.

It really does seem that what you get from TV is up to you. If you choose to just stay in your house, do your own thing and rarely mingle with the neighbors, you'll be excluded whether you're a renter, a snowbird or a frog. If you smile, say hello, offer to help your neighbor as appropriate, the odds are you will be included and accepted.

[Annabelle]

Thanks to each of you for your inputs. There is a lot to consider before moving to TV. There seem to be so many pluses for moving to TV and whenever we are there and talk with some of the residents, I never hear anything negative about TV.

I am just concerned about investing a lot of money in a home and then find out that most of my neighbors only live here a few months out of the year....if at all.

Annabelle

[Pturner]

Hi Annabelle,

We are snowflakes. We rent our home to snowbirds and we come to TV as often as we can. We plan to live in TV full-time when hubby retires.

As you noted, central Florida is quite hot in the summer and late spring. If you are concerned about your toleration for the heat, you might want to rent for a few weeks or a month July or August before you decide whether to sell your house and move to TV full-time. We live in Atlanta, so we are quite use to hot, muggy summers. You might be less tolerant.

I've been told that the Villas probably have a higher percentage of snowbirds than other neighborhoods. But truthfully, snowbirds are a fact of life in central/ south Florida.

You are likely to find a mix of full-timers and snowbirds in any TV neighborhood. That said, our neighborhood in Springdale, an older community on the North side, seems to have more full-time residents than snowbirds. That might tend to be the case in the older neighborhoods, as many of the residents might have started out as snowbirds and later became FT, although that is just speculation on my part. BTW, I thought it was interesting that you might want to be a snowbird, but you don't want to live in a neighborhood with many snowbirds.

A couple of posters said that as renters, they did not find their neighbors all that friendly. Although we are just snowflakes for now, our experience has been just the opposite. Our neighbors are very friendly and nice to us. We love our neighbors! I think anytime you are the "new kid on the block," you need to be the one to make the effort. If you reach out to your neighbors, don't be surprised if they embrace you! Ours did.

TV is a wonderful, magical place. I think you will love to call TV home whether it's FT or as snowbirds. If you have the time, you might want to rent in different areas of TV, talk to the neighbors, find out about their residency and assess how you think you would fit in.

I wish you all the very best in deciding what is right for you!

[redwitch]

Annabelle, I know some will disagree with me but I really don't think it matters all that much if your neighbors live there full-time or not. Most of your friends will come from your activities, not your neighborhood. Some neighborhoods have weekly get-togethers, some monthly, some seasonly, some never. You'll only find that out by talking to people in the neighborhood before you buy.

Newer developments will bond more because they are new and discovering TV together. Established neighborhoods are a little harder to get "into" but it is done all the time.

Personally, I really don't want to be friends with my neighbors. I want to be able to say hi to them; know that if I need something I can call on them and vice versa. However, I don't want them dropping by and I certainly don't want to just feel free to barge into their homes. Just not my style. I prefer to have my friends have similar interests.

[Annabelle]

Pturner,
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. I think I may have not been clear about my concerns in making a decision about buying in TV.

When I mentioned that I have concerns about buying in a neighborhood with a lot of renters, what I meant was that if I live there "full time," I would prefer to be in a neighborhood where most of my neighbors on the street are also full time residents, so that hubby and I would feel a stronger sense of community.

I have no problem with someone being a renter, and I myself will be one until I find a home to buy. But if you have a lot of renters that only stay a few weeks or a month at a time, it is hard to get to know your neighbors.

I guess this is why some of the posts mentioned that there doesn't seem to be a lot of "interaction" between those who stay briefly and those who stay for longer periods. Not enough time to develop friendships, so both parties may not make the effort.

I personally think though, that the "established neighbors" should make more of an effort to "roll out the welcome mat" to those who are newbies than vice versa.

The very hot summers is the biggest concern for me, in regards to living full time in TV. I have enough problems with the 2 or 3 hots months we get in my mid-Atlantic state, but this is something you just have to deal with if you want to live year round in Florida.

Thanks again to everyone who replied,
Annabelle

[Annabelle]

Red,
I know exactly what you are saying. Even in my current neighborhood, which we built our home almost 25 years ago, most of my closest friends (are not my neighbors), but rather they are friends from work, church, social clubs, etc.

However as for the renting issue in TV.....I would not want to be a full time resident on a street whereby many homes could be vacant during the off season.

It might be a little scary at night....especially if hubby had to take a trip somewhere and I am "home" alone!!!

Thanks for your reply,
Annabelle
PS. They do have alligators in TV don't they?!

[K9-Lovers]

I was told that the Courtyard Villas (CYV) are the type homes that are rented the most. So, if you want more full-time residents, then don't opt for a CYV.

Although we've just moved here as full-time residents only 3 weeks ago, and into a CYV, it has been during the time that most of the snowbirds fly back north, so we are able to see how many houses are now vacant, and which continue to be occupied. In our little villa neighborhood, there are 82 homes and about 25 are still occupied. So that is a large percentage of vacant homes which probably won't be rented over the summer.

But even though the population has decreased, I don't think it will be difficult to make friends in the neighborhood. While there may be several empty houses in a row, and only an occupied home here and there, the neighborhood still feels full of people because the houses are spaced so closely.

Everyone is friendly in our neighborhood, we've met some new friends at the pool, and everyday offers new opportunities for new friendships. We LOVE it here.

[BobKat1]

Annabelle, I know some will disagree with me but I really don't think it matters all that much if your neighbors live there full-time or not. Most of your friends will come from your activities, not your neighborhood. Some neighborhoods have weekly get-togethers, some monthly, some seasonly, some never. You'll only find that out by talking to people in the neighborhood before you buy.

Newer developments will bond more because they are new and discovering TV together. Established neighborhoods are a little harder to get "into" but it is done all the time.

Personally, I really don't want to be friends with my neighbors. I want to be able to say hi to them; know that if I need something I can call on them and vice versa. However, I don't want them dropping by and I certainly don't want to just feel free to barge into their homes. Just not my style. I prefer to have my friends have similar interests.
It's that way where we live now and we enjoy it. That's why it was no big deal for us whether neighbors were overly friendly or not when we rented. I'm sure the majority of homeowners are friendly and good neighbors as we would try to be.

[Annabelle]

K-9 Lovers,

I'm the proud mother of a beautiful little 6 year female Maltese!
Thanks for writing and it's nice to get another perspective. Wherever we decide to buy, I'm sure we will meet many nice people in and out of our village.

With respect to my previous post, I can see why you would not feel too isolated with the homes being so close to one another.

We will most likely being purchasing either a designer or premier home (if we move there full time) and I don't think I would feel very safe if a lot of the homes around me are vacant for months on end.

Based on where I now reside I'm used to having neighbors near-by. I'm not a "scaredy cat" but all the same, I just feel more comfortable knowing that most of the homes on my street are occupied.

I'm learning so much from reading everyone's personal experience in living in TV. Again thanks to all who have replied.

Annabelle

[Rag Bagger]

we live in Amelia about a two year old section. There are about 20 houses on our street. Only three are rentals. It is not a problem to get to know the renters. But only if they are open. We have a house behind us that is a renter. Most of the renters are for one month some for three. They are friendly but they have a different agenda. They are on an extended vacation and tend to spend their time rushing from one thing to the next. They generally do not become involved in the neighborhood stuff. Too busy trying to get all the activities in.

On this street there are about 4 other houses that are snowbirds. They are generally involved in the neighborhood activities as much as the full timers. In fact as they all start migrating back we have welcome home parties. The same applies when they leave. So snow birds can generally are accepted by the neighboorhood. Of course there are some that just don't participate in anything. Their loss.

If you are open and friendly you will be accepted and included by your new neighbors.

Full timers and snow birds, will have no problem making neighborhood friends. This past Easter we had our second annual driveway diner party. The participants were full timers and snowbirds. Thanksgiving we had a hugh diner with one neighbor doing one of those deep fried turkeys in the driveway. Don't knock it till you try it. We have card parties, Launch (as in space schuttle) parties, birthday get togethers it doesn't take much to get us going. Sometimes some one just sticks a sign in the yard that says driveway party tonight.
It is a blast.
This is a neighborhood of Ranch and Designer homes and as you can see most are either full time or snowbirds. Not many renters. Villas may be different.

Don't worry if you have a renter near you the rest of the neighborhood will more than satisfy your neighborly needs. The good thing is if they are noisey they will be gone in a month. For us noisey neighbors have never been a problem. Were not talking about spring breakers or even young adults. Were all usually in our 50s and better.

[Boomer]

I have wondered if the more established neighborhoods have fewer rentals because people have retired and moved into the homes they bought before retirement. That's just a theory. I do not know if that's how things actually trend.

Boomer

[K9-Lovers]

I'm in a CYV neighborhood built 13 years ago, and as I said in a previous post, there are 82 homes and only 25 are occupied over the summer (so far). Can't speak for the premier or designer neighborhoods, however.

[graciegirl]

Annabelle, I know some will disagree with me but I really don't think it matters all that much if your neighbors live there full-time or not. Most of your friends will come from your activities, not your neighborhood. Some neighborhoods have weekly get-togethers, some monthly, some seasonly, some never. You'll only find that out by talking to people in the neighborhood before you buy.

Newer developments will bond more because they are new and discovering TV together. Established neighborhoods are a little harder to get "into" but it is done all the time.

Personally, I really don't want to be friends with my neighbors. I want to be able to say hi to them; know that if I need something I can call on them and vice versa. However, I don't want them dropping by and I certainly don't want to just feel free to barge into their homes. Just not my style. I prefer to have my friends have similar interests.

I love to have my neighbors drop by. I would never barge into their homes and they would never barge into ours. It is just delightful to open the door and see one of my neighbors who has just stopped by to say hi or to tell us some news or better yet share something yummy from the oven. They always have a smile on their face and a hug.

We may not have the same interests or the same background but we were dropped close together on this spot and at a time when we all have more free time to just be friendly.

I love it. .

I have never had the time to enjoy the people who live near us like I do now. I think seniors have learned the rules of life and are very slow to gossip or malign. I love that too.

[Annabelle]

Rag,
That's a very encouraging report with respect to your community. That is the kind we are looking forward to moving into. I don't want neighbors who will be knocking on my door day and night, on the other hand, I like the idea of social gatherings from time to time to become acquainted with our neighbors. My husband and I are definitely not shy and retiring, but nor are we "party" animals.

Not that I have anything against short-term renters, but there is the concern that since they are on vacation, they could be "partying" late at night. Regardless of where you live in the Villages, with the exception of just a few neighborhoods, most of the homes are rather close together. Therefore, if you have noisy neighbors (renters or snowbirds) I would find that a big concern.

Annabelle

[NJblue]

I suspect that our neighborhood of one to two-year old designer homes is not too different than most designer neighborhoods. We have about 80 homes in the neighborhood. Of them I am only aware of 1 rental (and yes, boomer, the owners will be moving here full time when they retire.)

We do have a few snowbirds who tend to be here from 6 to 9 months. These people tend to be included in all the activities that involve the entire neighborhood. When they are gone, there is no noticeable change in the chemistry of the neighborhood. Since by far most of the houses are full timers, the loss of the snowbirds is hardly felt.

Your other issue was one of heat in the summer. If you are from the mid-Atlantic (as were we), you will find that the heat is not worse than the hottest days where you are now ... and in fact may be better than some of the real hot spells that I recall from the New Jersey area. That being said, what differentiates the heat down here is that it is relentless from about June until mid-September or perhaps a bit longer. Not many days deviate from the norm of 90-91 degrees by more than a few degrees plus or minus. Last summer we had one spell where the temperature reached the high 90's, but this seemed very unusual based on the fact that the heat was one of the lead stories on the news. Other than that, the temperatures during the days and nights vary very little from their norms.

[Rag Bagger]

can be a real issue for some. If you have only been here for a week at a time you may find it uncomfortable. Your body will have a hard time regulating to the high heat and humidity.
We are Cincinnatians who have now lived (retired) in warm climates for the past ten years and we much prefer the warm temps over cooler. We usually wear a light jacket to diner even in summer because the resturaunts are cold to us. Our $125.00 electric bills for Florida summers sure trump our $300.00 gas bills up north.

For some they never can get use to the heat. We prefer it and actually enjoy working out or doing the yard work, pickle ball etc. in the am followed by a cool shower then hanging out the rest of the day. It is sort of the reverse of winter up north. In the summer we spend more time indoors in the AC to stay out of the midday heat.

Yes it's hot and humid but only about 3 or 4 degree warmer than the midwest (92 instead of 88) and we have nearly constant wind to help. The biggest difference is that it does not cool off at night like up north.

It really helps to aclimate to the heat. For instance we have our AC set at 80. So far the past few weeks we have only turned the AC on for a few times in the late afternoon leaving the house wide open to the mild weather and very comfortable night time temps. However that will change soon and we will keep the house closed up with the AC going but set at around 80 and ceiling fans running.

I personally wouldn't trade midwest winters for Florida summers not in a New York minute

[Ohiogirl]

We are currently snowflakes (we bought almost 4 years in a new neighborhood), soon to be snowbirds starting this fall. Have a CYV. Next door on one side and two across the street are year-round residents on our end of the street. Snowbirds on the other side. Have met 3 others all on our end of the street who don't rent their places but come and go a lot year round for weeks at a time. Don't know any neighbors yet further down the street or behind us.

Since we have a dog (let's not go to the dog-walking, peeing on shrubs/grass thing again), we casually meet the other dog walkers in the 'hood, seems to be a common meeting ground to have your dogs sniff each other and talk about dogs. CYV neighborhoods attract a lot of dog lovers.

Some tenants have done some golfing with neighbors, but I think usually do their own thing most of the time. I've had a lot of bridge players who have rented, and I think they start going to duplicate bridge groups and meet friends there, or already know some people who live in TV (the long term and repeat tenants) and the others are either vacationing, shopping for homes or both. I know for sure I've had at least 4 short term tenants who bought. I've also been lucky enough to get quite a few summer tenants, several who rented for a month to try out Florida summers, others visiting family or on buying trips.

We haven't socialized much because we haven't been there, but have felt very welcome. I always ask the neighbors if there have been any tenant problems or any issues. In 4 years I don't think there have been any. Have gone out to dinner a couple of times with neighbors when we've been there. Missed 2 driveway parties this past season because we weren't there.

I agree there are more snowbirds/snowflakes in CYV neighborhoods, but also think (correct me if I'm wrong) that most summer socializing is limited to sports activities (golf and pool mostly I would think) and indoor rec center activities and personal get-togethers of social groupings that have developed.

CYV neighborhoods, just because of how they're built, mean you don't see your neighbors on their lanais or in their yards as much, but that can be a good thing if you happen to have annoying neighbors or just neighbors you may not enjoy socializing with as much as others.

I've moved over 22 times since adulthood and agree that if you want to make friends and socialize, you need to get out there and look. Not everyone wants to be social, but I would guess that most Villagers do, and that group activities and social contacts are one of the main reasons people choose the Villages. The great thing about the Villages is that even if you don't socialize within your neighborhood much (by choice of chance) you have more opportunities than anywhere else I can think of to make new friends, both from new activities you may take up in retirement and from old interests or things in common (e.g., state or regional clubs, hobby interest clubs). Don't forget all the volunteer opportunities you may never have had time for before and the chance to meet more people there.

[BobKat1]

My husband and I are seriously considering moving to TV when we retire in 2013. We cannot decide whether it is best to purchase a home for residing there during the late Fall to early Spring (which I'm leaning towards) or buying a home to live there year round (which is what my husband prefers).

We have already visited TV a few times, but never stayed longer than a week at a time and the times we were there it was in the early Spring and quite hot. Is the heat an issue for seniors during the summer? Do many people leave during the hottest months?]

I have been told that the full time residents of TV comprise roughly 70% of the Village population. However, I have noticed that there are a lot of homes for rent in TV on a monthly basis.

I wonder if it presents a problem to full time residents of TV to live next to homes whereby there are renters moving in and out each month?

Any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Annabelle

We're in the same boat. My wife would move to TV in a heartbeat if it was a second home. On the other hand, I'm not too keen on the prospect of owning two homes. The discusion continues....

[graciegirl]

We're in the same boat. My wife would move to TV in a heartbeat if it was a second home. On the other hand, I'm not too keen on the prospect of owning two homes. The discusion continues....

We are going through that (kinda painful) transition now of owning just one home and having it be in The Villages.... We are happy in Ohio and happy in The Villages. I love yard work but the yard in Ohio seems to be getting bigger and bigger and the weeds are out to get me.

I like snow. On Christmas, while we are all together and eating dinner and that is IT for snow.

I think once we get settled in TV, I won't have pangs for Ohio. I hope. I hope.

[Rag Bagger]

We're in the same boat. My wife would move to TV in a heartbeat if it was a second home. On the other hand, I'm not too keen on the prospect of owning two homes. The discusion continues....

One thing to keep in mind, it is very easy and ecomomical to maintain a home in TV while you are back in The North. Services from yard to home watch people are economical and plenty are available.

We still have a duplex back in Northern Ky. (a suburb of Cincinnati) and it is a pain to maintain. But the market is too soft to sell right now and it does provide some income and covers it's expenses.

Another thing to keep in mind if you buy in TV and decide you really don't like having a Florida home selling here has been fast and financially painless. This is one of the few places in the country you can still make money on a recently purchased ( 2 or 3 year old) home.

That's just my observation, no proof available from me.

[Barefoot]

We are seasonal residents. We've owned a courtyard villa, and more recently, a Jasmine. In both neighbourhoods, some residents were full time and others were seasonal. We enjoy spending the winter months in TV, and the summer months at a lake cottage. We have a great homewatch service during the months we're not in residence.

As far as friendliness goes, you get back what you put out. It's that simple. Most Villages or streets have a regularly scheduled neighbourhood party. Often a driveway party. It's a great time to meet your neighbours.

If you want friends, you'll have lots of opportunities. If you take a walk around the block or go to the pool for a swim, you'll probably make a new friend!

[barbjim]

We will be changing from snowflakes to frogs on June 14. We have had the opportunity to meet some of our neighbors, as the house is under construction. Found some to be Frogs, some snowbirds and a few snowflakes. But they all stay at the same place each year as it is their residence. Not sure if any of them rent them when they are not there, guess I will find out. I have found most of the folks I have met during our renting stages to be friendly and helpful. Getting involved has been the best way to meet folks, whether you are involved sitting in a bar or along side a pool. Everyone has a story

[ajbrown]

Another thing to keep in mind if you buy in TV and decide you really don't like having a Florida home selling here has been fast and financially painless. This is one of the few places in the country you can still make money on a recently purchased ( 2 or 3 year old) home.

That's just my observation, no proof available from me.

The street I live on has 16 homes and has no rentals. There are 11 full timers, 2 snowbirds (including us at Oct - June), 2 snow flakes and one for sale. There was one time this year where not a single abutting neighbor was here, including across the street, but the neighbor hood still bustles. Lwns mowed, people walking and talking......

As far as renters? Would I like a new neighbor every week? Hmmmm, I do enjoy meeting folks and would not mind. The down side is you never get to know them. I enjoy knowing someone more than people coming and going, i.e., picking up on a conversation from a week ago, knowing their interests, families, etc is more fun IMO. That said, if I had a nasty neighbor I would change my mind :)

As far as real estate holding its value, I wish that were true and I am sure folks have real data but I can tell you from my direct experience. My neighbor bought a larger home in TV and has his home on the market. Like us they bought in the spring of 07. They paid $257 and added about $16 in enhancements (pavers, closed in lanai, landscape, etc)

It is not selling at $229. I tell people, if you wish to invest well, just watch me and do the opposite! :undecided:

Financial hindsight being what it is, I am still very happy to own my home in TV. IMO now is great time to buy, or upgrade to a larger home. Before you do, please see my comment about about my financial opinion.

[Annabelle]

Thanks again to all who replied. I appreciate all of your comments. They are helping me learn more about TV.
I can see that hubby and I really need to spend more time in TV as well during various seasons of the year.

This way we will be able to decide if we want to live full time in TV or maintain a home there for winter vacations and keep our current home for the summer months.

A big decision especially if we want to live in TV year round. So many things to consider. Glad we have a few years before we make the decision.

I am looking forward to visiting TV this October (2010) for a few weeks and I will be a more frequent visitor on this forum over the coming months.

Annabelle

[sschuler1]

Annabelle - my hubby and I were going through the same decision making process that you are going through about two years ago. We couldn't afford to keep two houses, but we didn't know if we wanted to keep the house in Michigan near our daughter and grandchildren and rent in Florida during the winter months. Or buy in Florida and rent in Michigan during the summer months. We are soooo glad that we decided to sell the house in Michigan and move here full time. (And our summer expedition up to Michigan will probably be for only a couple of weeks instead!) We were bored at our house in Michigan. Everyone around us was working and there was nothing to do. We maybe got to see the grandkids on the weekend if the daughter didn't have something better to do! We were becoming couch potatos! Not here!!!! Our calendar is so full.....we have never been this busy just playing. Now we see the grandkids every week on Skype, and then we can go back to our fun!

[2BNTV]

Annabelle:
I don't believe a saw at thread that mentioned a lucheon held every third Friday of the month at Crispers and people from TOTV meet there.

As usual, you got great advice. I don't think anyone who makes an effort at making friends will ever feel disconnected from their community.

Best of luck.