Too Many Rentals in The Villages?

[Taj44]

I just took a quick peek at rentals available at TheVillages4Rent.com and saw that there were quite a few rentals available for the prime months of January, February, and March 2011. I remember it used to be you had to book your rental a year ahead of time or you wouldn't get one. Are any of you landlords out there, particularly those of you with newer rentals not having an established client base, having trouble finding renters? We used to have a rental here and toyed with the idea of getting another one, but now I'm not sure. Thanks in advance..

[disney07]

I'm assuming you are using the Search option which is so nice a feature of Villages4rent. What you'll really find is that the greater part of these homes that have Available Dates for Jan-March using the Search option will show in another part of their listing, Booked, Not Available, Rented for those months. Then there are those that don't even show that, only to have you inquire and find out it is taken. Just click on Feb only and you'll find 15 pages of listings available, only to open the listing and find out NOT. It is apparent these home owners do it just to draw persons looking for a rental to their property listing. If I were a person interested is renting, I would certainly be annoyed by this practice., because somewhere in all those available homes is really a home that is available.:grumpy:

[l2ridehd]

We must be looking at different listings. I just went to that site, opened the first 3 pages of listings for CYV, Ranches, and Designers and found only one that was available for the 3 prime months and two others that had January only open. That's a total of 45 listings, 135 possible months and 5 months available. About a 96.6% rate of occupancy which is outstanding for any prime time vacation rental market. And of the one available for all 3 prime months it appeared there was something wrong with the listing. Missing information and items that didn't make sense. The two that had January open were both very new listings as you can tell by the listing number. And most were rented for April and other months as well.

So it appears with decent marketing and competitive rates you can still be successful. I own one rental and will close on another Friday. I need to rent it for 6 months to break even. So far on the first rental I have had a single tenant for the 6 months of November through April every year and been able to pick up one or two other months. Just starting out with the second so no track record yet but February and March are already booked and lots of interest in January, April and November.

[Halle]

I'm assuming you are using the Search option which is so nice a feature of Villages4rent. What you'll really find is that the greater part of these homes that have Available Dates for Jan-March using the Search option will show in another part of their listing, Booked, Not Available, Rented for those months. Then there are those that don't even show that, only to have you inquire and find out it is taken. Just click on Feb only and you'll find 15 pages of listings available, only to open the listing and find out NOT. It is apparent these home owners do it just to draw persons looking for a rental to their property listing. If I were a person interested is renting, I would certainly be annoyed by this practice., because somewhere in all those available homes is really a home that is available.:grumpy:

I agree it is very frustrating to go to a listing that shows it is available only to find out that it not available. I believe that many of the homeowners just forget to go back and uncheck the box for the months that are rented and that is why they show they are still available.

[Larry Wilson]

Taj44, All the responses are right. I have friends who spent days trying to find an opening in winter. Yes, most they call are already booked.

[another Linda]

I've heard that there have been more cancellations this year due to the economy. Our January renters had to cancel. I got calls from many people wanting a cheaper rate, but ended up renting for what we usually get. I still think January, February, and March are pretty sure bets for finding renters. There rest of the months there is more competition (i.e. lots of places available) so being able to keep your place full can be a problem.

[Pturner]

Our January renter canceled too.

[another Linda]

Have you re-rented yet?

[tkret]

Yes, many owners are not updating the site to show that the unit has been rented.
I know of a friend who posted her patio villa on November 30 and the next day she had a renter for Jan, Feb, and Mar. There is a shortage of availability for the prime months.

[Schaumburger]

Since I'm a wannabee/worker bee who can only rent for a week or two at a time, it sounds like off seasons rentals are the way to go for me to experience TV. It seems like summer weekly rentals are pretty easy to come by -- is that correct? I've checked the Villages for Rent web site, and it seems like summer rentals are pretty plentiful and at a good rate.

How easy are weekly rentals in October to come by?

Snow in Chicagoland this weekend :(

[Bill-n-Brillo]

Since I'm a wannabee/worker bee who can only rent for a week or two at a time, it sounds like off seasons rentals are the way to go for me to experience TV. It seems like summer weekly rentals are pretty easy to come by -- is that correct? I've checked the Villages for Rent web site, and it seems like summer rentals are pretty plentiful and at a good rate.

How easy are weekly rentals in October to come by?

Snow in Chicagoland this weekend :(


Yep, summertime weekly rentals are defintely easy to come by!

Bill

[Bill-n-Brillo]

Our January renter canceled too. So that makes your place available for YOU to come to TV then! :)

Bill

[disney07]

Yes, many owners are not updating the site to show that the unit has been rented.
I know of a friend who posted her patio villa on November 30 and the next day she had a renter for Jan, Feb, and Mar. There is a shortage of availability for the prime months.

As I've pointed out just for February there is 15 pages, that's 75 rental properties available for 2011 on Villages4rent. Yeah Right! Out of the 75 there may be a few truly available, but these home owners that do not update purposely make it very difficult and frustrating to find. "They just forgot" One time you may have forgotten. After the first inquiry as to the availability and not changing it you're just being deceptive. Good luck Pturner. Hope you are able to find a renter. Those self interested home owners are making it hard to find your home. January of 2011. 37 pages, 185 Rental properties available. Clean it up!

[Taj44]

You probably wouldn't have any trouble finding an October or even November rental, and those are lovely times of year here in central Florida.

[BobKat1]

Do some rentals appear in multiple listing services? Such as Villages4Rent, **** etc.

[Larryandlinda]

Do some rentals appear in multiple listing services? Such as Villages4Rent, **** etc.

Wouldn't that be nice.
TOTV has its reasons, maybe to keep the clog down, but because ours are listed in Thevillages4rent.com,(paid listing) we can't mention them in TOTV.
This seemed backwards to us, as since we assumed Thevillages4rent.com was a sponsor, it should be the other way.
TH said that they are not a paid sponsor, just a courtesy listing.
We tried a month in Ocala4sale (another sponsor) and later found out if you are in Thevillages4rent.com, that is the only place you can list.
Now that to us seems like a gag order. Any experts?
We thought of listing in some northern markets, something that would not only help us, but also promote TV.
There were just a couple times when we had surprise cancellations that we wanted to put a small tickler in TOTV with special distressed pricing for TOTV partcipants, a service to this site and its readers.
Murphy's law just went into play - on the one December week we are visiting, we just got a renter for the home where we were planning to do some improvements, so we'll either stay with friends or pitch the pup tent in the town square.


L and L

[another Linda]

... if you are in Thevillages4rent.com, that is the only place you can list. ...

L and L
L and L -- I just reread the terms and I don't believe that is true. You can list other places but can't put a link in that will take people to some other web site. We list on 2 other sites, but almost all our renters have come from thevillages4rent. (Everything is up-to-date! I just checked that too!)

BTW, we are L and L too!

[Larryandlinda]

L and L -- I just reread the terms and I don't believe that is true. You can list other places but can't put a link in that will take people to some other web site. We list on 2 other sites, but almost all our renters have come from thevillages4rent. (Everything is up-to-date! I just checked that too!)

BTW, we are L and L too!

Thanks for the update
Here's the response from one of the Administrators

Thevillages4rent isn't a sponsor. We make no money from them at all. We post their ad as a service to our members who have rentals available. That's why we have a rule that if you pay for an ad anywhere else (with thevillages4rent) we can't give you a free ad here. And are you aware that thevillages4rent has a rule that if you list with them, you can't list anywhere else?

Now, if you don't mention in your notice here that you are listed with them, we would never know, would we? But, now we do know.

TOTV is very close to making an announcement that will settle this issue for you. Please stay tuned. However, in the meantime, we must stand by our condition that if you pay elsewhere, you must pay here.


see that bold line?

L and L

[another Linda]

Hm-m-m. I certainly wasn't aware of that rule, and their terms and rules listed on their web site don't mention it. I guess I will call. Thanks for the heads-up.

[Russ_Boston]

Wouldn't that be nice.
TOTV has its reasons, maybe to keep the clog down, but because ours are listed in Thevillages4rent.com,(paid listing) we can't mention them in TOTV.


Seems like you just did?

[graciegirl]

Larry and Linda? You have an opening for your beautiful and large Premier home in Harmeswood? When?

:crap2::a20::confused:

[Irish Rover]

I have been renting in TV for ten years and always had trouble in the past getting a place if I didn't book a year in advance. Just two days ago my agent emailed and said she had a January open asked if knew anyone who might be interested. Keep in mind the market at TV has really opened up Ten years ago there were 25M to 30M residents. Now you are int he 70M range - a lot of rentals are available. It's a renters market now. I'm just saying.....
Irish Rover:thumbup:

[Ohiogirl]

Hm-m-m. I certainly wasn't aware of that rule, and their terms and rules listed on their web site don't mention it. I guess I will call. Thanks for the heads-up.

I listed for 4 years on vacationrentals.com and for the last year also (at the same time) on thevillages4rent.com. I was never aware that it was an exclusive listing, and find that odd (if it's true) as the homeowner is doing all of the work, just paying for the listing. I already had it rented for the season (jan-March) when I put it on thevillages4rent.com, but got about an equal amount of renters from each site. I felt it worthwhile to pay for both. Felt that lots of people just check ****.com and vacationrentals.com, especially if they have never been here before.

I felt that thevillages4rent site was not very user friendly, especially for the tenant wanna be - all that paging thru takes way too much time.

[Pturner]

Have you re-rented yet?

Hi Linda,
No, she cancelled just a few days ago!

[rhsgypsylady]

I'm here to say yes, I have had trouble renting; but I have a unique situation. I have been trying to rent my unfurnished 2 bedroom, 1 bath, courtyard villa with its own swimming pool since August 1 with no luck at all.

Because it is unfurnished, it would be ideal for someone who is moving to TV but don't know where yet or is having a home built. They could rent for 6-12 months while waiting on a home of their own.

I didn't think I would have much of a problem because there are so few unfurnished rentals available. Most rentals are furnished. However, my villa remains empty and lonely.

If anyone can help or offer advice on how to get it rented, please advise. Thanks so much.

[ijusluvit]

So the villages4rent website is not renter friendly?

If you want to rent a place even during prime months, try:

thevillagesforrentbyowner.com


(ok, I admit my property is exclusively listed here, a company called JD Management, but I don't understand why folks would be frustrated about finding a place to rent when this really professional company will almost certainly have something available, at competitive prices. And what is advertised is guaranteed. The staff inspects everything. There are no exaggerations and no "I forgots".

[Russ_Boston]

I'm here to say yes, I have had trouble renting; but I have a unique situation. I have been trying to rent my unfurnished 2 bedroom, 1 bath, courtyard villa with its own swimming pool since August 1 with no luck at all.

Because it is unfurnished, it would be ideal for someone who is moving to TV but don't know where yet or is having a home built. They could rent for 6-12 months while waiting on a home of their own.

I didn't think I would have much of a problem because there are so few unfurnished rentals available. Most rentals are furnished. However, my villa remains empty and lonely.

If anyone can help or offer advice on how to get it rented, please advise. Thanks so much.

Not to be funny but why not furnish it? If you plan to hold this property for any length of time it would seem to make good business sense to spend a little up front to make the rental more viable long term. A 2 bed, 1 bath furnish wouldn't take much more than a couple of months rent to furnish.

[rhsgypsylady]

In answer to Russ's question "why not furnish", there are several reasons.

1. I bought it unfurnished. I do not live close by where I can take the time nor do I want to spend the money to furnish it. And because my husband is very, very ill I don't anticipate being able to go there (even for visits) until after he is gone.
2. I don't want in/out renters which is what I would probably get if furnished. I want a long term lease.
3. There are fewer unfurnished properties for lease than there are furnished properties. Seems like there is an over abundance of furnished properties. Because of this, I would think there would be less competition for unfurnished than furnished.
4. I don't plan to hold it as lease property for a very long time, perhaps 2 years at the most. As I said earlier, my husband is very, very ill and I'm not sure how much longer he will be around. Once he is gone, I will be too - gone to TV.
5. I did not buy it as an investment property; I bought it as my retirement home. My plan is not to lease from a business stand point. I understand what Russ is saying but I only want to lease until such time as I can move there, which is why I don't want to invest time/money on rental furnishings.

In answer to the comments of ijusluvit.

1. As far as I can tell, yes, the websites you mentioned are rental friendly.
2. I have had the property listed with JD Property Management since July with no luck.
3. I knew the summer was not a good rental time but was hoping that once the cold months started setting in, I would have better luck with renting it.

The reason I posted on this thread is to find out if there is a trick or something I am missing or need to do that JD is not doing to get it rented.

Thanks so much for any help. I can't wait to move there. I love TV!

[bike42]

People who use the usual rental sites (villages4rent.com, etc.) are almost all looking for short-term, furnished homes. People looking for long-term, unfurnished rentals are more likely to go through a broker, or to use the classifieds in an area paper. Since you are not in the area you might want to try several brokers; you will need to pay a commission (one or two month's rent), but it would be worth it.

[laryb]

In answer to the comments of ijusluvit.

1. As far as I can tell, yes, the websites you mentioned are rental friendly.
2. I have had the property listed with JD Property Management since July with no luck.
3. I knew the summer was not a good rental time but was hoping that once the cold months started setting in, I would have better luck with renting it.

The reason I posted on this thread is to find out if there is a trick or something I am missing or need to do that JD is not doing to get it rented.

Thanks so much for any help. I can't wait to move there. I love TV![/QUOTE]


I also have my property listed and have it rented for Feb. & March, of which Feb. was to someone supplied by me. When we first decided to rent it and contacted several rental management companies (including TV's), they all said that renting it out in high season was a slam dunk and that they usually don't have enough inventory,and this was back in April. So I believe that what they told me was true at the time, and the market has changed. Now if by chance we should get Jan & April rented, then I'll probably change my mind.

[obxgal]

I've tried to "google" JD Property Management and can't find a site for central florida.

[Bill-n-Brillo]

I've tried to "google" JD Property Management and can't find a site for central florida.

Here you go! http://jdpropertymgmt.com/

That should do the trick! :)

Bill

[gongoozler]

If the weather stays like this, who will want to spend big bucks to come to the Villages for just one to three months? Also the is more competition from the developer himself with the opening of all the new units at Sumter Landing.

:cold: :cold: :cold:


Rhode Island/AL/TX/CA/AK/Massachusetts and Rhode Island again!

[Russ_Boston]

If the weather stays like this, who will want to spend big bucks to come to the Villages :cold: :cold: :cold:


Rhode Island/AL/TX/CA/AK/Massachusetts and Rhode Island again!

Big deal - a few days of 55! I'd pay big money for that temp around here:)

It will be 70 on Friday.

[obxgal]

Thank you Bill. That did the trick for me. I would have never thought to run the name all together.

[Bill-n-Brillo]

Thank you Bill. That did the trick for me. I would have never thought to run the name all together.
You're welcome - no problem-o. :)

Bill

[another Linda]

Thanks for the update
Here's the response from one of the Administrators

Thevillages4rent isn't a sponsor. We make no money from them at all. We post their ad as a service to our members who have rentals available. That's why we have a rule that if you pay for an ad anywhere else (with thevillages4rent) we can't give you a free ad here. And are you aware that thevillages4rent has a rule that if you list with them, you can't list anywhere else?




L and L
I just talked to Don from thevillages4rent again today. Just to be sure I asked again about their policy and was told you can list where ever you want. We are listed on 3 sites and he said that was fine.

I also asked about their ad on TOTV and he said they both run each other's ads. Makes sense to me!

[imbrennan]

We just signed up with JD Management to rent out our Anna Marie Courtyard Villa in Sabal Chase. We've managed (hopefully) to get a renter for March from a website I created for myself. We're still hoping to get February booked up too but still want to be here ourselves for January.

To get extra customers I thought I could also pay to go on the site Villages4rent but when I spoke to Don one of the things he pointed out was that the paperwork had to be completed between myself as owner and any future renter. In fact everything had to be done between me and a renter.

When I pointed out that I couldn't do that as JD Management would be preparing all the necessary paperwork he immediately told me that I could not, in that case, advertise with him.

I can only do this if I don't have anyone else looking after our home and bookings for us. Hope this helps anyone else.

[VT2TV]

Since the original question was about too many rentals in TV, I would like to answer that. Please remember that it is just my opinion, so there is no reason to flame me. :duck: My opinion will not change anything, so no personal attacks. I understand that everyone here certainly has the right to have rentals, and if that is what you want from TV that is up to you. But we were talking to a sales person at a furniture store today who has been in the area for 50 years. She does not live in the villages so I am not sure of her information. She was telling us that at first you could only have 1 extra house per person-that was when the houses were selling quickly. Then when the market slowed down, TV started heavily marketing in Europe and Canada, and very soon there were people who had up to 10 houses that they purchased and rented. We were shocked!!!!!:shocked:
So hearing that (don't know if it is true, but doesn't matter with my concerns) these are my thoughts about rentals-again just my opinion. If more and more people start purchasing houses for rentals-and again, I was shocked to hear ( from this thread, this woman, and our realtor), how many rentals there are, that this place is becoming more and more like a vacation resort or even a sort of timeshare instead of a home and neighborhoods with long time friends and family. And I am not implying it is like that now-I love TV, and all the neighbors I have met. Our next door neighbor (who seems extremely nice) is using his house for a rental for possibly 2 years. With that comes the possibility that after moving here to be in a retirement facility, we could wind up with children of all ages living full time beside us. DEFINIATLY not what we expected when we bought our land. Plus when people are renting in TV, they aren't vested in keeping the house or villages as wonderful as people who actually live here. This is our home for us, but just vacation for them. Even more accidents may occur because drivers are not familiar with the rules of the road, or round-a-bouts-==certainly don't need any more problems with those!! Plus-when the house is occupied by a owner, there is a possibility that they will not go to the squares every night but maybe only 3-4 times a week. But if people are here on vacation they will certainly want to get their monies worth and will be there every time. Because of that, it gets so very crowded when the majority of renters are here. I have actually had LONG TIME owners of TV say they hate it when the renters are here because they don't go to a lot of things because it is too crowded and hard to find parking. So a lot of residents are missing out on activities they pay for-and I know that this may be their own choice, but a lot of owners have some physical restriction that may prevent them walking long distances to park, or stand if it is crowded.
Like I said --- this is just an opinion. I realize that it may be just my opinion, and not shared by anyone. I understand everyone is within their rights to buy and rent out their house(s)-I just can't help wishing this was "just" a place to live with only some rentals for people who come to pick out their house.
Sorry this is so long-I get very windy this time of night. Again, no flames for just expressing my opinion:)

[Taj44]

No flames - thanks for your opinion VT2TV. It does appear that a lot of the rentals aren't as well kept up at least from the outside as those of someone who lives here full time, although that isn't always the case. And as someone else mentioned, the Villages will be dipping into the rental pool with the new rentals they are building. My sense is that the private rental business for new rentals won't be as good in the next few years as it might have been in the past, due to competition, but I can't really quantify that assumption. If you have already been renting and have a returning clientele, it might not be a problem.

[Bill-n-Brillo]

I believe the days of individuals snapping up several TV homes to use for rentals has subsided a good bit. Not saying there aren't people currently owning multiple homes in TV, but I feel the economy and the real estate market have put a real big damper on the concept. Plus, as also stated, I think there are more and more homes available for rent, if for no reason other than the developer continuing to build. The economy's also impacted the number of people coming down to TV to rent to at least some degree, I'm sure.

vt - You need to start going to bed earlier!! :icon_wink: Hee-hee!

Bill

[l2ridehd]

Think strategic. Buy low sell high. Right now Real Estate is at an all time low. Will it go lower? Maybe, but only a % or 2. Interest rates are about as low as we will ever see them. So IMHO this is one of the best investment buying opportunities that we will ever see. Better then stocks, gold, or any other investment you can make. Is the rental market the best? Probably not, but it is still good. So everyone can dither and hope for a slightly better price or better interest rate or better rental market , but you may very well miss one of the best times you will ever see in your lifetime.

[BobKat1]

I agree. If one can swing it financially without assuming too much personal risk, it is a great time to buy.

[downeaster]

We just signed up with JD Management to rent out our Anna Marie Courtyard Villa in Sabal Chase. We've managed (hopefully) to get a renter for March from a website I created for myself. We're still hoping to get February booked up too but still want to be here ourselves for January.

To get extra customers I thought I could also pay to go on the site Villages4rent but when I spoke to Don one of the things he pointed out was that the paperwork had to be completed between myself as owner and any future renter. In fact everything had to be done between me and a renter.

When I pointed out that I couldn't do that as JD Management would be preparing all the necessary paperwork he immediately told me that I could not, in that case, advertise with him.

I can only do this if I don't have anyone else looking after our home and bookings for us. Hope this helps anyone else.

And Another linda said "I just talked to Don from thevillages4rent again today. Just to be sure I asked again about their policy and was told you can list where ever you want. We are listed on 3 sites and he said that was fine."

It sounds like a conflict but I don't think it is.

Anotherlinda listed with other sites. imbrennan used a management firm. Could that account for the difference in the response by Don at Villages4rent?

[hdh1470]

Closed in november,gave to a agent and have rented feb.and march.I didn't think we would rent jan.because most people have made plans earlier then a month ahead of time.We hope to be down by next winter so no plans to rent again.But if we are not down we will try to rent again,no sense letting house just sit, a few months of rent will pay most of the bills for the year when you have no mortgage.Only bought now because the price was right and i doubt i could have found one later even close to price we paid.

[imbrennan]

Hi,

You're right - it was because I was using a management company and not dealing with the possible renters myself that Don wouldn't let me list with his site.

[bike42]

Anotherlinda listed with other sites. imbrennan used a management firm. Could that account for the difference in the response by Don at Villages4rent?

Yes -- you can't list on villages4rent if anyone else MANAGES your property or the rental process. You can list on as many sites as you wish as long as you do your own management.

[another Linda]

Since the original question was about too many rentals in TV, I would like to answer that. Please remember that it is just my opinion, so there is no reason to flame me. :duck: My opinion will not change anything, so no personal attacks. I understand that everyone here certainly has the right to have rentals, and if that is what you want from TV that is up to you. But we were talking to a sales person at a furniture store today who has been in the area for 50 years. She does not live in the villages so I am not sure of her information. She was telling us that at first you could only have 1 extra house per person-that was when the houses were selling quickly. Then when the market slowed down, TV started heavily marketing in Europe and Canada, and very soon there were people who had up to 10 houses that they purchased and rented. We were shocked!!!!!:shocked:
So hearing that (don't know if it is true, but doesn't matter with my concerns) these are my thoughts about rentals-again just my opinion. If more and more people start purchasing houses for rentals-and again, I was shocked to hear ( from this thread, this woman, and our realtor), how many rentals there are, that this place is becoming more and more like a vacation resort or even a sort of timeshare instead of a home and neighborhoods with long time friends and family. And I am not implying it is like that now-I love TV, and all the neighbors I have met. Our next door neighbor (who seems extremely nice) is using his house for a rental for possibly 2 years. With that comes the possibility that after moving here to be in a retirement facility, we could wind up with children of all ages living full time beside us. DEFINIATLY not what we expected when we bought our land. Plus when people are renting in TV, they aren't vested in keeping the house or villages as wonderful as people who actually live here. This is our home for us, but just vacation for them. Even more accidents may occur because drivers are not familiar with the rules of the road, or round-a-bouts-==certainly don't need any more problems with those!! Plus-when the house is occupied by a owner, there is a possibility that they will not go to the squares every night but maybe only 3-4 times a week. But if people are here on vacation they will certainly want to get their monies worth and will be there every time. Because of that, it gets so very crowded when the majority of renters are here. I have actually had LONG TIME owners of TV say they hate it when the renters are here because they don't go to a lot of things because it is too crowded and hard to find parking. So a lot of residents are missing out on activities they pay for-and I know that this may be their own choice, but a lot of owners have some physical restriction that may prevent them walking long distances to park, or stand if it is crowded.
Like I said --- this is just an opinion. I realize that it may be just my opinion, and not shared by anyone. I understand everyone is within their rights to buy and rent out their house(s)-I just can't help wishing this was "just" a place to live with only some rentals for people who come to pick out their house.
Sorry this is so long-I get very windy this time of night. Again, no flames for just expressing my opinion:)
I do understand your complaint, VT2TV. Unfortunately many of us are not yet retired, or can't be here full time. For us, renting part of the time works well. But I do understand how you feel.

[VT2TV]

Thanks for the calm replies. I think my thoughts are also swayed because we are now in a rental near Spanish Springs. It is a nice house, and a nice neighborhood. But the house has NOT been well maintained!!!!! The owner actually had it listed for sale, and took it off for us to rent it. I can't begin to mention all the thimgs that have gone wrong during our stay from numerous bulbs burning out in a few days of each other-yard not being mowed freq., to not being able to feel good about using the golf cart-electric-it has only been used sporadically at best. We have been afraid to even take it to Spanish Springs-it jumps, and does several other things we didn't feel like it should do. The towels are very worn, and seemed to be odds and ends. The BIG blinds in the Florida room don't close all the way, and the house backs up to El Camino. We have made numerous calls to the owner, who has been very nice, but when she brought blinds over (she happened to be staying in one of her other houses) she made the comment that she didn't want to put any more money into the house because she wants to sell it-boy will it need work!
Back to the light bulbs-my husband happened to have a currency tester with him, and when he checked the wall sockets, he said the wattage? or something was very high. When we called the owner she took care of things that she could while she was in TV, but she soon went back to her home. There was also a big rip or cut across the bathroom floor. So we are eager to leave when our house is ready-we will have been here for 2 months. BTW-the owner has NEVER stayed in the house. She was nice, and did what she could when we asked, but we had to take care of a few things ourselves.
So all this contributes to my feelings about rentals and being poorly upkept. I am NOT implying that all rentals are not maintained well, but it does concern me that as the owners age, a lot of rentals will go the same way as this one. I also wonder about if the market goes more south, if these houses will go "underwater"
I guess that is all. I promise I won't keep writing these chapters about my feelings!!!:o I just love the Villages, and don't want "the friendliest HOMETOWN" to turn into anything even remotely ressembling a timeshare. Again all this is JMHO :), and I won't keep subjecting all of you to it. :)
BTW--Bill, you are def. right about needing to go to bed earlier!!!!!!!!

[Taj44]

Sorry to hear about your rental. I think there are a lot of rentals on the market, in part because people are trying to sell homes and are unable to so they try to rent them out. And these people may not be professional landlords, so the quality may not be there. That's not always the case. We used to have a rental ourselves. We got a list from the Villages as to what items were required for properties that were in The Villages rental program, so we made sure everything was right up to snuff. And we wanted repeat customers so we made sure that everything was clean, in working order, etc. But we had been experienced with renting out previously, so we had a pretty good feel for what to do. If someone is trying to sell their home they may not take as much care with their rentals. Anyways, VT2TV, good luck with your new home!

[Sweetgirl]

Thanks for the calm replies.

Your notes are well written, gentle and thought out. You describe your situation and that helps to explain your feelings and concerns. I'm hoping your rental is just a tiny faction of the rentals available in TV. Unlike the home you are staying in we purchased ours as a second home, not an investment property. Until we are able to move to TV renting it when we are not there is a necessity for us to pay the bills. Every home is an investment. It baffles me as to why a person would not maintain and keep it up to grow that investment. You must of been to The Villages previously? as you are having a home built or has all that been done during your current stay? As Another Linda pointed out, many of us are Wannabes who are getting a head start as part time villagers. In your previous note you mentioned children living full time next to you. Can help you out there, the minimum age to live in TV is 19yrs old. We have been extremely fortunate to have wonderful, responsible, considerate folks renting with us. So our impression is that everyone who comes to TV is generally of the same character. Rental properties are a stepping stone for folks looking to become full time. I have to believe the majority of people living in TV used rentals as a preliminary to buying. We know 9 couples that have stayed with us and have purchased their own homes. The crowds during the winter season are a necessity that pay the bills for a large portion of The Villages businesses, especial the restaurant business. VT2TV you'll be having your home built in what Village and how long before completion? Wish you the best.;)

[Larry Wilson]

VT2TV,
I'm so glad you posted. We have lived here for many years and love it. We started looking for a home that is a little bigger. What a shock to learn of so many foreclosures. Every size and location.
Then next is the shock of finding the true owners of many homes are companies who bought whole streets as investments. On the tax rolls ,there are names of owners, but when you track back you find this is just a front for an investment company.
And last but not least, is how many homes have never been anything but rentals by absentee landlords. Its sad to see a young home falling apart with a yard full of weeds. It is also unfair to people who want this to be there home, not a revolving door for people who have no interest in the neighborhood.
I hope the developer isn't letting The Villages become a vacation spot for renters. Apparently there was a time when people could buy as many homes as they wanted and maybe that is still true. We are going to be very careful into what neighborhood we buy. The good news is there are wonderful neighborhoods. This time of years it is easy to see the dark streets versus those who have coordinated whole streets of matching decorations.
Thanks again VT2VT for letting me share what we are finding as we look at pre-owned homes for sale.

[VT2TV]

Thanks again for the replies. If all the owners were as thoughtful as you guys,a lot of my concerns would be gone.

To Sweetgirl: My husband and I had never even heard of The Villages until this past May. We were thinking about moving to Florida-spent many, many vacations in Ocala as a child,and many vacations in Orlando as an adult child. :) We were visiting a friend we had met on a Disney cruise who lives in Orlando. (also works for Disney Cruise Line). She brought us here one day and we came back a few days later to look at some model homes, and came back 2 days later and bought a house. Our home in VA was not even ready to put on the market yet, but we fell in love with this place immediately!!!! We did not even do the LSP. On the issue of children in TV, I understand that children can only visit TV 30 days a year, but our next door neighbor (again, he really seems so very nice we wish he was going to be living there instead of renting) has already rented his brand new home out to 3 different people for a month. So IF all of these renters had children, theoretically we could have children living beside us much of the year. And that is one of the MAIN reasons we moved here-to be around adults only. It also could not happen that way, but with sooooo many people homeschooling their children these days, it would be nothing for them to come to Florida and be schooled here. We actually close in a few ays in Pennecamp.


To Larry: YIKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had NO IDEA that companies had bought entire streets of houses. That tells me that TV probably doesn't care about our "HOMETOWN" feelings as long as they sell the houses. That really concerns and bothers me. I understand that TV eventually turns control of the neighborhoods over to a council or something. (I really don't understand the flow of that so I shouldn't comment on that) so I wonder what might happen when large companies have "voting or decision" powers. Man, that could really stir up problems. They could start using homes here for bonuses or rewards, or even start having conventions and such here. I need to stop there because my thought could really wander. But Larry, that is shocking and unwelcome news.


Thanks again to everyone for letting me relieve some stress. Since rentals are allowed, I truely hope that you all have good renters, and your houses only be happy places.

[Russ_Boston]

To Larry: YIKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had NO IDEA that companies had bought entire streets of houses. That tells me that TV probably doesn't care about our "HOMETOWN" feelings as long as they sell the houses. That really concerns and bothers me. I understand that TV eventually turns control of the neighborhoods over to a council or something. (I really don't understand the flow of that so I shouldn't comment on that) so I wonder what might happen when large companies have "voting or decision" powers. Man, that could really stir up problems. They could start using homes here for bonuses or rewards, or even start having conventions and such here. I need to stop there because my thought could really wander. But Larry, that is shocking and unwelcome news.

VT2TV,
I'm so glad you posted. We have lived here for many years and love it. We started looking for a home that is a little bigger. What a shock to learn of so many foreclosures. Every size and location.
Then next is the shock of finding the true owners of many homes are companies who bought whole streets as investments. On the tax rolls ,there are names of owners, but when you track back you find this is just a front for an investment company.



While some people do own a few homes for investment reasons it is not the rule.

To my knowledge there are no whole streets that lay dormant because of investor owned homes. There are no 'large companies' that will have voting powers. There are no "young homes falling apart with a yard full of weeds". There are very few foreclosures when you consider the entire size of TV.

If you could provide some statistics to state your claim that would be helpful. Perhaps list some streets that are falling apart or lay dormant?

[graciegirl]

While some people do own a few homes for investment reasons it is not the rule.

To my knowledge there are no whole streets that lay dormant because of investor owned homes. There are no 'large companies' that will have voting powers. There are no "young homes falling apart with a yard full of weeds". There are very few foreclosures when you consider the entire size of TV.

Not sure if you two have ever actually been here. If you have you must have different glasses than I do!!

Russ is COMPLETELY right as usual.

I think someone is posting erroneous information....and I am not sure why.

One must keep up ones home or face penalties.

[Larry Wilson]

Merry Christmas! We are in the Christmas parade! Sorry you don't believe me and sorry to think you know everything!!!!!!!!!!
Some of us have lived full time in the Villages way before TOTV. Believe what you want. When you finally do live here full time, go around and look at rentals and pre sales and foreclosures. Talk to people in the know.
One hidden company is NRJ LLC and that company owns whole streets purchased in 2003-2004.
How many years have you lived here full time and how many years have you looked at foreclosures and rentals????????????

[BobKat1]

A couple of years ago while trying find a short term rental on short notice, I came across home, after home, after home on **** that were owned and rented out by the same company. I was surprised at how many there were, but didn't think much of it at the time.

[spk7951]

Out of curiosity I did a search of Sumter County land records for NRJ LLC and the search came back with one property currently listed to that name.

[Russ_Boston]

Merry Christmas! We are in the Christmas parade! Sorry you don't believe me and sorry to think you know everything!!!!!!!!!!
Some of us have lived full time in the Villages way before TOTV. Believe what you want. When you finally do live here full time, go around and look at rentals and pre sales and foreclosures. Talk to people in the know.
One hidden company is NRJ LLC and that company owns whole streets purchased in 2003-2004.
How many years have you lived here full time and how many years have you looked at foreclosures and rentals????????????

You're correct I don't live there yet. But I have visited many, many times and sometimes during the 'off' season. I've looked at every area of TV when we decided to purchase earlier this year (ended up with a new home in Buttonwood).

You many be correct that I don't know everything (but my ego won't let me believe that :) ). So why don't you point me to the exact locations you are referring to: whole streets that have gone vacant, young homes that are now full of weeds, vast amount of foreclosures (there are exactly 72 according to a recent state count in Sumter county). I'll be there in January and I'll investigate what you are saying. If you're right I'll be the first to issue a written apology or even in person if you'd like.

Yes some investors, for a time, were allowed to buy homes for rent. My agent was very clear about that. And yes investors can still by pre-owned homes for rentals. But isn't it in the best interests of these investors to keep up their homes to invite potential renters? I just don't see the blight that you are referring to. Maybe my glasses are too rose-colored so please give me specifics so I can clear them up.

[Taj44]

While some people do own a few homes for investment reasons it is not the rule.... There are no "young homes falling apart with a yard full of weeds"...


Russ, we live here full time and have been here since 2004 and have seen a lot of The Villages.The house next door to me is almost completely weeds, very little grass, and it is what I consider a "young" home, built in 2006. The air conditioner has never been maintained to my knowledge, it was power washed once in 4 years, etc., etc. They only recently hired pest control people. I've been to neighborhoods in various villages and you can always tell who the absentee landlords are. If the homes are vinyl, they aren't power washed on a regular schedule. They have the minimum amount of landscaping, and often times, not all the time of course, but often enough you see that they get the minimum amount of maintenance and upkeep. We have acquaintences who are going thru foreclosure, and the house is in limbo between them and the bank. They aren't doing anything to the house in the way of lawn care, pest control, etc. My cousin rented when she first came down about 5 years ago, and even then, she was in a rental near Spanish Springs that was crawling with cockroaches. These conditions are not the norm, but they do exist. I personally think it is a better idea to get in a neighborhood where most of the people live there year round and do not rent their home out. I'm not going to "diss" anyone's Village or street or neighborhood, but some are nicer than others, and oftentimes the rentals are not very well kept up. I remember when we purchased back in 2002 during the housing boom, the real estate agent told me people were buying villas for example, like hotcakes; they might by 5 or 10 at a time, rent them out for awhile, then try to flip them. Some were bought new over the phone, sight unseen. Even the real estate people were buying them. Then the housing market dropped and a lot of people got caught in the bust.

[Russ_Boston]

Good explanation Taj. Thanks.

I have seen some of this and if that is what the others were referring to then I apologize for my posts.

I was just railing against any notion that TV is going downhill fast because of corporate investment ownership etc. As homeowners we need to do our best to work with deed compliance to rectify these situations as they come up. Can't solve everything but we can try.

Thanks again for the reasonable post.

[ljones190]

Buying a property on speculation, renting it and flipping it back in the boom times is very different then buying a home today and renting it out for a few years and then retiring to The Villages full time. The 2nd property will be maintained far better then the first example. Other then keeping my landscaping very basic due to not being full time all other maintenance items such as power washing, weed control,etc is being done like it is our full time home. House flipping and buying many properties in my opinion is over and may be a deciding factor in buying in new Villages instead of buying in a Village with homes that are maintained in a poor condition,although I have not seen this with my own eyes.

[mgm4444]

CRAWLING WITH COCKROACHES??????? That is something I just could not, would not live with or around.. If one house has them, so do both sides of that house, and on and on and on....

As a potential buyer, this thread is certainly an eye-opener. I've been around alot of neighborhoods there and maybe once in a while I saw an unkept yard, but that was it.....homes falling apart?

Again as a potential buyer....like Russ asked: list some streets (or neighborhoods) that are falling apart or lay dormant. Go take pictures. I need to know WHERE. I'm not daring anyone, I'm not doubting anyone... I just want to see what I'm getting into if this is the case...... I have alot vested in my future in The Villages.

Scarey information here.........

[l2ridehd]

I guess seeing is believing, so tell us where. I have not been thru every neighborhood in TV, but most of them. Yes I have seen maybe 3 or 4 homes where things look a little unkempt. I have seen a couple really bad lawns. However 99.9% or higher look very well taken care of.

I own two rental properties and the only way you keep them rented and have repeat tenants is to keep them really nice. I power wash them at least once a year, have the landscape taken care of, the lawns mowed, the shrubs pruned, and the interior is always spotless. And I keep them rented 75% of the time. I guess there may be a limited few who don't do that and let them get run down. They are only hurting themselves and the value of their investment. Sometimes a home gets in disrepair because the owner has become to old or incapacitated and can no longer manage to handle the rigors of ownership. I will take the Villages any day over most communities as it is always significantly better in cleanliness, pride of ownership and general appearance than any other town of 80,000 that I have seen.

So please tell us where all these run down slum houses are? Sorry, but so far I am not convinced.

[Taj44]

I did not mean to give the impression that a lot of homes are falling apart, or there is a cockroach problem! Far from it. Just that there are some rental properties out there that have maintenance issues (for a variety of reasons) that can detract from an otherwise nice neighborhood. If you ride around a neighborhood, they should be easy to spot. As Russ said, homeowners need to work with Deed Compliance and make complaints where appropriate, to insure these properties are maintained as they should be. ljones190, I don't know what to think about house flipping. With prices so low now, maybe people are thinking they can buy cheap and make a profit on the upswing. The problem with that reasoning is, we don't know if prices will ever get back to what they used to be. L2ride, we were like you - professional landlords who wanted to keep things nice to get repeat business. I know some of these people never planned to be in the landlord business, but find themselves with a house they can't sell, so try to make the best of it, and don't do a good job.

[graciegirl]

Merry Christmas! We are in the Christmas parade! Sorry you don't believe me and sorry to think you know everything!!!!!!!!!!
Some of us have lived full time in the Villages way before TOTV. Believe what you want. When you finally do live here full time, go around and look at rentals and pre sales and foreclosures. Talk to people in the know.
One hidden company is NRJ LLC and that company owns whole streets purchased in 2003-2004.
How many years have you lived here full time and how many years have you looked at foreclosures and rentals????????????

Larry...I think you meant me.:wave:

I am a retired teacher and everyone knows a lot of us are know it alls. Sorry.

I have NOT looked at foreclosures and rentals.

I bow to your greater knowlege but please name the area, the village, and/or the street.

One company renting out a lot of houses is probably a rental agent.

It isn't fair for ME to make general broad statements in favor just because I think this place is wonderful and it isn't fair for other people to say things about cockroaches and allowing people who have never been here think that it is a general problem.

We TOTV'rs are scattered all over the villages and we have great reporting skills. Now that doesn't mean that there aren't some homes that have them, but I haven't heard of any myself.

Older, sicker, people may be slipping enough to let things slide and allow thing to look bad and not be as clean as they once were and keep up their bug contracts etc. but I don't think it is a general problem at all.

Gracie, the uninformed.

[downeaster]

Merry Christmas! We are in the Christmas parade! Sorry you don't believe me and sorry to think you know everything!!!!!!!!!!
Some of us have lived full time in the Villages way before TOTV. Believe what you want. When you finally do live here full time, go around and look at rentals and pre sales and foreclosures. Talk to people in the know.
One hidden company is NRJ LLC and that company owns whole streets purchased in 2003-2004.
How many years have you lived here full time and how many years have you looked at foreclosures and rentals????????????

I Googled NRJ LLC and here is all I got.



NRJ LLCnrjllc.com
Experts at home rehabilitation
Quality Service


Contact Us
An impressive team
Our team consists of contractors, engineers, and lawyers with over 15 years of experience in home rehabilitation.
We do our best to provide you with high quality service on and off the jobsite.
Please contact us with any questions:

Email
cummins_ron@yahoo.com

[Pturner]

Since the original question was about too many rentals in TV, I would like to answer that. Please remember that it is just my opinion, so there is no reason to flame me. :duck: My opinion will not change anything, so no personal attacks. I understand that everyone here certainly has the right to have rentals, and if that is what you want from TV that is up to you. But we were talking to a sales person at a furniture store today who has been in the area for 50 years. She does not live in the villages so I am not sure of her information. She was telling us that at first you could only have 1 extra house per person-that was when the houses were selling quickly. Then when the market slowed down, TV started heavily marketing in Europe and Canada, and very soon there were people who had up to 10 houses that they purchased and rented. We were shocked!!!!!:shocked:
So hearing that (don't know if it is true, but doesn't matter with my concerns) these are my thoughts about rentals-again just my opinion. If more and more people start purchasing houses for rentals-and again, I was shocked to hear ( from this thread, this woman, and our realtor), how many rentals there are, that this place is becoming more and more like a vacation resort or even a sort of timeshare instead of a home and neighborhoods with long time friends and family. And I am not implying it is like that now-I love TV, and all the neighbors I have met. Our next door neighbor (who seems extremely nice) is using his house for a rental for possibly 2 years. With that comes the possibility that after moving here to be in a retirement facility, we could wind up with children of all ages living full time beside us. DEFINIATLY not what we expected when we bought our land. Plus when people are renting in TV, they aren't vested in keeping the house or villages as wonderful as people who actually live here. This is our home for us, but just vacation for them. Even more accidents may occur because drivers are not familiar with the rules of the road, or round-a-bouts-==certainly don't need any more problems with those!! Plus-when the house is occupied by a owner, there is a possibility that they will not go to the squares every night but maybe only 3-4 times a week. But if people are here on vacation they will certainly want to get their monies worth and will be there every time. Because of that, it gets so very crowded when the majority of renters are here. I have actually had LONG TIME owners of TV say they hate it when the renters are here because they don't go to a lot of things because it is too crowded and hard to find parking. So a lot of residents are missing out on activities they pay for-and I know that this may be their own choice, but a lot of owners have some physical restriction that may prevent them walking long distances to park, or stand if it is crowded.
Like I said --- this is just an opinion. I realize that it may be just my opinion, and not shared by anyone. I understand everyone is within their rights to buy and rent out their house(s)-I just can't help wishing this was "just" a place to live with only some rentals for people who come to pick out their house.
Sorry this is so long-I get very windy this time of night. Again, no flames for just expressing my opinion:)

Hi VT2TV,

First, full disclosure: we are part-time residents who rent our TV home out during the winter, until my husband retires and we become frogs. We keep our home immaculate for renters and our yard well-maintained.

It's a shame that you got a rental that was not well maintained. With supply finally catching up with demand for winter rentals, I suspect and hope that the bad apples will be forced to clean up their act or find themselves unable to get any renters at all and be forced to sell.

Far from flaming you, I commend you for your concern about keeping TV a fabulous retirement community. I think we all need to be advocates for our community.

I don't think the problem is that many, many TV owners are part-time residents who rent their homes when they are away. That has always been the case. The problem is owners-- whether full-time, part-time or fully absentee-- who do not take care of their homes and grounds!

If we see a home that is perpetually out of compliance with deed restrictions, we should ask community watch to intervene. As Russ said, if someone witnesses whole streets in disarray, it seems wrong to not disclose the location and to report any code violations. We as homeowners need to be proactive in maintaining the quality of life of our community. It doesn't happen by accident anywhere.

[Bogie Shooter]

Seems pretty simple to me.
Just tell us where all these deplorable areas are.....
Is the sky really falling??????

[VT2TV]

While some people do own a few homes for investment reasons it is not the rule.

To my knowledge there are no whole streets that lay dormant because of investor owned homes. There are no 'large companies' that will have voting powers. There are no "young homes falling apart with a yard full of weeds". There are very few foreclosures when you consider the entire size of TV.

If you could provide some statistics to state your claim that would be helpful. Perhaps list some streets that are falling apart or lay dormant?


When I posted my comment, I made it very. very, clear that I was ONLY posting MY OPINION, and NOT making claims or any such thing. I also never said anything in my post about houses currently falling apart, nor yards full of weeds. So if your comments were directed at me, they are unfounded. I did not want any comments to be confrontation, but since it is turning out that way, I will happily leave this thread, although sad because I cannot even express my opinion without someone striking back without fully reading my posts. I have posted very seldom on this board, because about half the time I try to enter a conversation, or give an opinion, it winds up getting very confrontation, so maybe it is best I forgo posts for a while. I have had enough stress in the past 3 months to last a lifetime, and certainly don't need more. That is why I firmly posted that my comments were ONLY MY OPINION. This will be all.





Russ is COMPLETELY right as usual.

I think someone is posting erroneous information....and I am not sure why.

One must keep up ones home or face penalties.


Gracie girl: I have the utmost respect for you, you are such a nice person, and I have always enjoyed your posts. I wish I were as nice a person as you, and I mean that sincerely. But, I also am saddened that you immediately sided with Russ without understanding that my post was ONLY my opinion and my observations about the inside of our rental would not be obvious to anyone on the outside. I guess I should have added that the owner finally got it straightened out with the mowers, who FINALLY came and mowed, but not before the grass was longer than ever should be. I really enjoyed meeting you and your daughter at Crispers last month.

[VT2TV]

Hi VT2TV,

First, full disclosure: we are part-time residents who rent our TV home out during the winter, until my husband retires and we become frogs. We keep our home immaculate for renters and our yard well-maintained.

It's a shame that you got a rental that was not well maintained. With supply finally catching up with demand for winter rentals, I suspect and hope that the bad apples will be forced to clean up their act or find themselves unable to get any renters at all and be forced to sell.

Far from flaming you, I commend you for your concern about keeping TV a fabulous retirement community. I think we all need to be advocates for our community.

I don't think the problem is that many, many TV owners are part-time residents who rent their homes when they are away. That has always been the case. The problem is owners-- whether full-time, part-time or fully absentee-- who do not take care of their homes and grounds!

If we see a home that is perpetually out of compliance with deed restrictions, we should ask community watch to intervene. As Russ said, if someone witnesses whole streets in disarray, it seems wrong to not disclose the location and to report any code violations. We as homeowners need to be proactive in maintaining the quality of life of our community. It doesn't happen by accident anywhere.


Thank you for understanding!:mademyday: Some people tend not to believe anything not generated by them. I feel like you would certainly keep your property in good repair.!

[l2ridehd]

Eight pages of posts with point and counter point, and NO ONE has told any of us where these poorly maintained run down streets are located. I am now a dis-believer. Several of us have asked to tell us where these are and no one seems to be willing to share that information. For now I will file this under hearsay and rumor.

[graciegirl]

When I posted my comment, I made it very. very, clear that I was ONLY posting MY OPINION, and NOT making claims or any such thing. I also never said anything in my post about houses currently falling apart, nor yards full of weeds. So if your comments were directed at me, they are unfounded. I did not want any comments to be confrontation, but since it is turning out that way, I will happily leave this thread, although sad because I cannot even express my opinion without someone striking back without fully reading my posts. I have posted very seldom on this board, because about half the time I try to enter a conversation, or give an opinion, it winds up getting very confrontation, so maybe it is best I forgo posts for a while. I have had enough stress in the past 3 months to last a lifetime, and certainly don't need more. That is why I firmly posted that my comments were ONLY MY OPINION. This will






Gracie girl: I have the utmost respect for you, you are such a nice person, and I have always enjoyed your posts. I wish I were as nice a person as you, and I mean that sincerely. But, I also am saddened that you immediately sided with Russ without understanding that my post was ONLY my opinion and my observations about the inside of our rental would not be obvious to anyone on the outside. I guess I should have added that the owner finally got it straightened out with the mowers, who FINALLY came and mowed, but not before the grass was longer than ever should be. I really enjoyed meeting you and your daughter at Crispers last month.

Dear one.

I absolutely did not see anything you said to take issue with! You have had a huge pile of stress. I understand your concerns. I didn't mean my comments toward you at all!!!

I was more concerned with what others had to say. Typing is JUST not the same as speaking and we often sound different than what we mean.

I did want the poster who said a whole street of houses was in blight to tell us WHERE IT IS!!! And I blindly did agree with Russ. Russ is another sweet soul who usually gets it right and says it more forcefully than timid me. Russ is a clear thinker and someone I respect.

No harm meant to YOU at all. I love this place, TV. It is more than an investment, it is a home, my town, my place of joy, a beautiful place peopled with many people I love.

I get too defensive about it toooooo quickly.

But Sweetie, I didn't mean to be mean to YOU. Please forgive my insensitivity. I am so sorry that you thought I was directing my thoughts toward you.

Please feel this hug.

[Larry Wilson]

Eight pages of posts with point and counter point, and NO ONE has told any of us where these poorly maintained run down streets are located. I am now a dis-believer. Several of us have asked to tell us where these are and no one seems to be willing to share that information. For now I will file this under hearsay and rumor.

NO ONE ever said there was a street of run down houses! TV2TV made it clear she didn't want to start a flame but apparently some do!!! Believe what you want. I know what I know and what you think doesn't affect me a bit. By the way, the Christmas parade was great, my wife and I are going to Church, then to the Polo matches. Then basketball. Hope you know in Senior Games, our team won the GOLD!!

[Russ_Boston]

NO ONE ever said there was a street of run down houses! TV2TV made it clear she didn't want to start a flame but apparently some do!!! Believe what you want. I know what I know and what you think doesn't affect me a bit. By the way, the Christmas parade was great, my wife and I are going to Church, then to the Polo matches. Then basketball. Hope you know in Senior Games, our team won the GOLD!!

Agreed - perhaps somethings were read wrong or interrupted wrong or just opinions that seemed like statements. Enough said, no hard feelings on my part or I hope on yours. Let's all be vigilant and report any issues to deed compliance to see if things can be done.

Kudos on the GOLD medal!

[Pturner]

When I posted my comment, I made it very. very, clear that I was ONLY posting MY OPINION, and NOT making claims or any such thing. I also never said anything in my post about houses currently falling apart, nor yards full of weeds. So if your comments were directed at me, they are unfounded. I did not want any comments to be confrontation, but since it is turning out that way, I will happily leave this thread, although sad because I cannot even express my opinion without someone striking back without fully reading my posts. I have posted very seldom on this board, because about half the time I try to enter a conversation, or give an opinion, it winds up getting very confrontation, so maybe it is best I forgo posts for a while. I have had enough stress in the past 3 months to last a lifetime, and certainly don't need more. That is why I firmly posted that my comments were ONLY MY OPINION. This will be all.

Gracie girl: I have the utmost respect for you, you are such a nice person, and I have always enjoyed your posts. I wish I were as nice a person as you, and I mean that sincerely. But, I also am saddened that you immediately sided with Russ without understanding that my post was ONLY my opinion and my observations about the inside of our rental would not be obvious to anyone on the outside. I guess I should have added that the owner finally got it straightened out with the mowers, who FINALLY came and mowed, but not before the grass was longer than ever should be. I really enjoyed meeting you and your daughter at Crispers last month.

Hi VT2TV,
I hope that you will continue posting and sharing in this wonderful TOTV community. Don't worry. The comments you quoted that saddened you were not directed toward you nor toward your posts. Another poster referenced "whole streets" left darkened by absentee investors, and homes "falling apart" on weed-infested lots. I agree with Russ, Gracie and others who have asked this poster (Larry Wilson, not you) where the conditions he described are located.

I hope that your new home in TV is ready soon and that the stress you have been under will soon be replaced by peace and joy.

PT

[Bill-n-Brillo]

O.K. everybody, let's all take a deeeeeep breath, relax........there you go......woosah......woosah..... :)

Smile! Be happy. Sooooo easy to misinterpret one's intentions via the written (typed?) word.

Bill

[Irish Rover]

As a ten year renter, I can only say that I have been disappointed only once and that was a minor problem. When we started renting in 2001, ther were only about 25,000 residents in TV. The market favored the owner not the renter. The population increase now favors the renter. TV Rental Group generally has the upper hand because they have more restictions on their rentals but the price is higher - a fair trade off. We have always rented from people who gave us value for our dollars. Keep the place clean, up to date with cable, internet, golf cart, and utensils and you will make money and keep the place rented. Years ago there were people who owned three or four units which were bought only to rent - now the brakes have been put on by the restrictions in place. There wasn't a TOTV to voice complaints so things got a little out of hand. Now we have all the local watchdogs to let us know what's happening so renting is easier and caveats are issued by the good members of TOTV. Thanks:a040: