Court Yard Villas

[Mark1130]

My wife and I have begun the process of moving to TV and will be buying a CYV in the future.

For those who have or had one, which models do you like the best? We want a 3 bed or 2 bed with a study. I see many for sale pre-owned and of course the new ones.

What are the pluses and minuses that you all have experienced? Also, does anyone know the current bond amount on the new ones?

[whartonjelly]

We were just told that a new cottage would be 20000. We think we want a pre loved CYV because of dogs and visiting dogs! We love our dogs!

[katezbox]

Mark,

We were on the fence between a CYV and a Designer. Mr Katezbox won the toss, so we compromised on a designer backing up to a villa wall for privacy...

I know the bonds on the CYVs in Bonita were around $12-$12,500. My favorite model is the Stonybrook (3BR). I like the stucco look and I loved the center island in the kitchen. People always congregate in the kitchen and the island and the open design make entertaining so much easier....

Friends of ours have one this model and they installed plantation shutters for the sliders to the lanai - absolutely gorgeous.

Good luck - I am sure you will find the perfect home for you!

[eweissenbach]

I like the CYV's for the privacy and for pets, but have a couple of questions for current owners: Is the garage really big enough for a car AND a cart? I don't like the CYV driveways - what do you do for parking for visitors?

[Bob45]

I like the CYV's for the privacy and for pets, but have a couple of questions for current owners: Is the garage really big enough for a car AND a cart? I don't like the CYV driveways - what do you do for parking for visitors?

We have an Anna Marie CYV. In the garage is a GMC Yukon XL, a Harley, 2 bicycles, a golf cart, a tool chest, and some shelves. And a sink and a washer and dryer.
For guests that are staying a couple days, we use the overflow parking.
It is working for us.
Bob

[obxgal]

We have the Bonita(frame)..Foxglove(stucco) floor plan which is the 3 bedroom and love it. Large kitchen and the laundry is inside. Some of the
3 bedroom CYV's have the laundry in the garage. Gets hot in the garage in the summer and chilly in the winter. Just something to keep in mind. Plus having the laundy inside gives you more area in your garage. We have hung cabinets above the washer and dryer and put in shelves next to the utility sink for extra storage.

[eweissenbach]

We have an Anna Marie CYV. In the garage is a GMC Yukon XL, a Harley, 2 bicycles, a golf cart, a tool chest, and some shelves. And a sink and a washer and dryer.
For guests that are staying a couple days, we use the overflow parking.
It is working for us.
Bob

Please explain the "overflow parking". Thnx

[obxgal]

"Overflow parking" = There is an area in every courtyard neighborhood, that has approximately 8 parking spaces for visitors if they can not park in your driveway.

We can fit one car and 2 golfcarts in the garage, plus my hubby has 2 tool chest and 2 shelving units.

[ladydoc]

We just bought an Anna Maria CYV. When I walked into the house we had for our Life Style Preview, I told our sales person...this is it...I want THIS house. And we looked at several preowned and a few new and darn it, I loved the Anna Maria and that is what we bought. We have the house second to the end from a dead end street so it will be a quiet street. The garage seems plenty roomy to us even with the laundry outside. I figure I can stand the 3 minutes it takes to shove a load into the washer and then into the dryer in the garage. We loved the large bedrooms and the walk in closet in the master bedroom could be a fourth bedroom! It is gigantic. The walk in shower is also huge and has a built in seat. I have a bad leg and not having to step into the shower is a huge plus. There is also a pantry that I did not see in other models. At least I think it is a pantry. There is a closet across from the kitchen with angled shelves and to me, thats a pantry. The kitchen has loads of counterspace and more outlets then even I think I can use and I am the kitchen gadget queen. The island is very large and also has electric outlets and can accommodate stools to use it as a breakfast bar. The cabinets are large and very well arranged. There are built in pull outs on the lower cabinets. I don't know if this is in all the models or not. We are going to use one bedroom as a guestroom and the other will be a combination den/craftroom.

[whartonjelly]

Thank you for telling us about how much you can get inside a courtyard garage and the overflow parking. :BigApplause:

[LisaJ]

We have the Cumberland model and love it because of the flow of traffic in the great room/dining room/open kitchen. Like Ladydoc we stayed in this model during the lifestyle preview plan. I knew this was the model I wanted when we walked in the door. Laundry is inside, garage is big enough for us and our bond is $15,000. Good luck with your "villa hunting" and welcome to TV.

[Ohiogirl]

like all house plans everywhere, there are pluses and minuses to each. We have the Bonita (Foxglove in the Stucco).

Pluses:
- deep garage, we keep a Honda Fit, 2 golf carts (one a 4-seater), a workbench (holds one of the golf cart chargers) - have to move the carts out to use it the workbench but not to plug in the charger, 3 bicycles, a rolling tool cart about 3 feet high (keep one of the golf cart chargers on top)

- inside laundry with cabinets above the washer/dryer and a small (about 10-12 inches) wire shelf with place for hanging clothes on hangers. Also a laundry sink, a 2nd fridge, another shelf across the top and still room on both sides of the door for hooks for dog leash, jackets, etc. Oh yes, we also keep the dog's food/water dish and a wire dog cage in front of the sink - still room to do the laundry.

- dining room sliders provide easy and close access to the grill on the side patio - and a huge plus for Ohioboy is that he can see the 46" TV in the living room when he's outside grilling. I also like that you don't have to trek thru the lanai and living room to get to the grill, but if you want to take the food directly to the lanai, you can do that too.

- large, open kitchen.

- large closet in 3rd bedroom

- lower price than the Anna Maria/Stoneybrook or Cumberland/Grantham Similar to the new Siesta model (which has a nicer master bedroom/bath but smaller kitchen and smaller laundry room)

- large pantry plus a large linen closet

Minuses:

- smallish master bedroom/bath

- as far as I know, there isn't really a true split floor plan available in the CYVs, with guest room AND bath on the other side of the house. The 3rd bedroom is split, but no bathroom nearby. Some have a pocket door to the guest/bath. Ours doesn't, wish it did - kind of expensive to add as we have vaulted ceilings.

[Barefoot]

We sold our CYV after three years and bought a house with a large garage. (Fireboy's idea, not mine, I loved our CYV. And I thought I didn't care about garage space). Now we have a large garage plus double parking in the driveway. Even though CYVs have a guest parking lot, we found we were always juggling cars. And I must confess that I love having more garage space .... we found the 1 1/2 car garage in our CYV to be too cramped for our SUV, golf cart, motorcycle, bikes, golf clubs, yard tools, etc. We felt we were always tripping over something.

I do love the fact that the house has a split-plan which offers more privacy, with the master bedroom on one side and the two guest bedrooms on the opposite side.

We have a 10 lb dog and a 70 lb dog, and the safety of our animals is always a primary concern of mine. However we resolved the issue by invisible fencing (which I always thought was inhumane, but that was because I didn't understand that it works primarily by beeps and not corrections). We back on a golf course, our dogs stay within our lot boundaries, even when they're not wearing their collars. And even when the ducks come waddling up the hill and tease them.

I do love CYVs, but I think a house offers more flexibility and advantages.

[Ohiogirl]

I forgot to say that the main reason we love the CYV is the privacy - we have the high villa wall. In spring and fall, and as many nice days of the winter as we can, we are eating/living on the lanai.

Neighbor behind has an enclosed lanai, have never heard/seen them, and on one side the neighbor's lanai opens off the far side. Never hear them either.

Next door on the other side we can see the top 18 inches of the lanai screening, and occasionally hear a voice or a yip or two if their dog wants in, as I'm sure they can hear ours. Seems much more private than my sister's designer "kissing lanai," which is about the same distance apart in the back yard as the CYV behind us.

Perhaps because they are close together, everyone is very respectful, or else we just got lucky. Neighbors are, however, quite friendly - quite easy to start a conversation when coming back from somewhere or gardening in the small front yards. And, since I'm an avid gardener, I can enjoy my plants/hard work while also enjoying the lanai and patio area instead of most of the landscaping being in front or on the sides where you really don't look at it without effort.

They are very cookie-cutter looking, and that I don't really like, but they are so unique inside and in back after they've been personalized and landscaped so differently. Fun to see.

[KatzPajamas]

My husband, Jay and I are in the early stages of planning to move to The Villages. Today is the first day in NW Ohio that I am able to hang some laundry on the line outside...it has been a long cold winter up til now! I love the smell of the laundry that has dried outside, but will I be able to do this in The Villages?

[tudacee]

Last year, we bought a Bonita, CYV...new. I loved it, but hubby wants something a bit larger (even though the Bonita is 3 bedrooms, go figure!) It's within walking distance to the pool, and great neighbors.
We are therefore selling the Bonita (sigh) fully furnished, and once sold, we'll look at the Designer homes.

The bond was $13,000 (I think), and now, one year is paid on it. I think there's an open house on Tuesday, the 12th.

Here is a link to look at the place.
http://www.thevillages.com/homes/vls/detail4.asp?vls=208918

(you may have to copy and paste the link)

Any questions, PM me..
Donna

[JohnM]

I love the smell of the laundry that has dried outside, but will I be able to do this in The Villages?
In our Covenants (which vary by district), Sec. 2.25 provides: "The hanging of clothes or clotheslines or poles is prohibited to the extent allowed by law." I do not know about other districts or whether this Covenant is strictly enforced. I have not seen any clotheslines in our neighborhood.

[mulligan]

Hanging laundry is permitted by florida state law. Supercedes covenants and restrictions, just like outside antennas and satelite dishes.

[Barefoot]

My husband, Jay and I are in the early stages of planning to move to The Villages. Today is the first day in NW Ohio that I am able to hang some laundry on the line outside...it has been a long cold winter up til now! I love the smell of the laundry that has dried outside, but will I be able to do this in The Villages?

If you're in a courtyard villa without a view lot (short fence), then no-one will be able to see what you do in your back yard.

I also love laundry drying on a line outside, but I don't do it here in TV. If you buy a house, and want to be friendly with your neighbours, I'd suggest that following the covenants would be a good idea, i.e., no laundry hanging outside.

[KatzPajamas]

Thanks for the information. After I posted my question, my hubby said..."we're not going to have much laundry anyway!"...? Sounds like a perfect solution.