Is this info correct??

[faithfulfrank]

I was under the impression that in any 55+ community, you could have like 15 to 20% of owners under 55 years old.
When I bought my house in The Plantation, my age was not even asked. I was in my 40's.

A person I know was seriously considering moving to The Villages. He is under 55 and single.

He called The Villages and was told no....that the rules are that one person in the house MUST be 55 or older. Since he was single he would not be allowed to own or rent there. If that is true, that's fine....I was just surprised.

My wife and I are now 53. It appears that if I did want to move there, I guess we would not be allowed to. Is that true, or was he given wrong info......

Frank

[mulligan]

I believe the 80% over 55 allows for inheritance by underage owners, and trophy wives under 55.

[Halle]

I was under the impression that in any 55+ community, you could have like 15 to 20% of owners under 55 years old.
When I bought my house in The Plantation, my age was not even asked. I was in my 40's.

A person I know was seriously considering moving to The Villages. He is under 55 and single.

He called The Villages and was told no....that the rules are that one person in the house MUST be 55 or older. Since he was single he would not be allowed to own or rent there. If that is true, that's fine....I was just surprised.

My wife and I are now 53. It appears that if I did want to move there, I guess we would not be allowed to. Is that true, or was he given wrong info......

Frank


We were both under 55 when we bought our home in TV and were also told that Florida law allows for up to 20% of an over 55 community to be under 55.

I don't believe that has changed.

[ajbrown]

Read item one from this URL:

http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/FHLaws/yourrights

Unless things have changed, TV will accept folks under 55 as they did for us and we appreciated it. We are now legal :wave:.....

I posted the following attempt at humor many moons ago on a different thread

I think TV use this formula for age to determine if you are 55.

age + credit rating - 660. If it is greater than 55 you are all set :jester:.
This formula can also be applied to number of dogs....

[Pturner]

Federal law requires 55+ communities to allow 20 percent of the residence to be under 55. What we don't know is whether The Villages currently meets that requirement. Although TV is still growing, perhaps it has enough under 55 owners (people listed as an owner on the deeds) to justify not accepting more. I don't know that, just saying it's possible.

If TV had to accept all prospective homeowners under 55, how could it remain a 55+ community?

[Halle]

Thanks for the link AJ! Nice to know it is a federal not state law.

[Gerald]

We are in the process of closing on a new house in the Villages. The contract says very clearly that one person in the household must be 55 or older. If there is a law that says something else I don't know about it.

[ajbrown]

Federal law requires 55+ communities to allow 20 percent of the residence to be under 55.

This gets stated this way often and I think it is backwards. As always I could be wrong.

The law states that 80% of households MUST have one owner that is 55+ to get whatever benefit the over 55 commiunity gets. It does NOT say the community must allow 20% of the household that are under 55. It is the communities choice as I read it.

To back this up, "My lovely wife" and I were denied buying a foreclosure in an over 55 in Norton, MA as neither of us were 55. This was after we were owners in TV

[Skybo]

This gets stated this way often and I think it is backwards. As always I could be wrong.

The law states that 80% of households MUST have one owner that is 55+ to get whatever benefit the over 55 commiunity gets. It does NOT say the community must allow 20% of the household that are under 55. It is the communities choice as I read it.

To back this up, "My lovely wife" and I were denied buying a foreclosure in an over 55 in Norton, MA as neither of us were 55. This was after we were owners in TV

I believe you are correct aj. Here is a link which says bascially the same thing you said.

http://www.floridacondohoalawblog.com/2010/04/articles/fair-housing/housing-for-older-persons/55-over-housing-what-is-the-8020-rule/

[skip0358]

Wife and I met a couple under the age of 50 just bought about 3 months ago I believe it was Buttonwood and are loving life. I'd check with someone else if I were you.

[StarbuckSammy]

As long as the community is in compliance then the 80/20 rule is correct. When my wife and I moved to The Villages we were 50. The Villages was in compliance and therefore we were allowed to move in.

[ericstar2k]

I called The Villages today, May 18, 2011 and was told I couldn't move there because I'm under 55 and have no one 55 and above to live with. I called a realtor there and was told I could live there, so which is it? Can I or can't I move there?

[swimdawg]

I called The Villages today, May 18, 2011 and was told I couldn't move there because I'm under 55 and have no one 55 and above to live with. I called a realtor there and was told I could live there, so which is it? Can I or can't I move there?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was just reviewing my Offering Plan for TV.
#4 states:
"Age-Restricted Community"
The Villages is intended as a housing community for persons fifty-five years of age and older. At least one resident within the household must be fifty-five years of age or older......"
They do make it clear. This was as of this past January.

[rubicon]

I am sorry to learn about this 80/20 formula because I don't trust anyone under age 60:1rotfl:

[faithfulfrank]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was just reviewing my Offering Plan for TV.
#4 states:
"Age-Restricted Community"
The Villages is intended as a housing community for persons fifty-five years of age and older. At least one resident within the household must be fifty-five years of age or older......"
They do make it clear. This was as of this past January.

If that is the rule, it does not seem to be followed or enforced well. Interesting that we would not be able to buy there being both 53....but others clearly have.....:confused:

Wonder what would happen if a Realtor sold a house to someone < 55, then that new owner would not be allowed to move in......

Frank

[carm310]

We bought three years ago. Ages 51 and 48, had visited three times and bought right after the third visit. We went out three times with the same Villages sales rep each time to look at homes. When she knew we were serious about buying she got "permission" from the powers that be to allow us to purchase. We do not live there full time yet but will in two years. Still, I never got the impression we could not live there sooner if we wanted to.

[redwitch]

Could be that the 20% federal requirement has been met. If it hasn't it would be illegal to bar someone under 55. Once met, it is the builder's option. When it looked like there might be issues with people being able to qualify (like 2 years ago), TV pretty much was taking anyone who could pay. Now, it seems to be getting fussy again -- they've found people are willing to buy here regardless of the market nationwide.

Guess you could find someone you trust to put on the deed over 55 and then remove them after you hit 55? Or did they say they had to live in the house? Also wonder if things are as stringent for pre-owned homes? Hmmm .... time to do some checking.

[bkcunningham1]

The Villages isn't a 55 plus community. Look at the main website. We are "Florida's Friendliest Retirement Hometown...The Villages is an active retirement community located in sunny central Florida."

http://www.thevillages.com/AboutUs/aboutus.htm

[Carla B]

Some years ago a private development, such as an apartment complex, could limit the residents to "adult only," to keep out families with children. Then Congress passed the Fair Housing Act that provided that families with children could not be barred from renting. The only exemption was for "over 55" communities. In order for over-55 developments to be in compliance with the law no more than 20% of the residents may be under the age of 55.

[Pturner]

The Villages isn't a 55 plus community. Look at the main website. We are "Florida's Friendliest Retirement Hometown...The Villages is an active retirement community located in sunny central Florida."

http://www.thevillages.com/AboutUs/aboutus.htm

The Fair Housing Act requires a seniors development to "publish and follow policies and procedures that demonstrate an intent to be housing for persons 55 and older". However, does it specifically require that the "55+" designation be stated on the development's website? Our TV Salesperson told us it was a 55+ community.

If it is, and if TV is near the legal age restriction, that would explain why TV would turn away sales at this time for households not meeting the age criteria, even while having allowing some such sales when TV's age ratio was different.

If TV were not a 55+ community, I don't know why the sales staff would say it is or why TV would turn down sales for households not meeting the age criteria. Would TV even legally be able to turn down <55 age households if it were not? :confused:

[Schaumburger]

When I visited TV for the first time last year in July 3 months before I turned 50, I was accompanying 2 over age 55 friends who were looking at pre-owned homes for sale. We attended several open houses conducted by TV sales reps. and MLS real estate agents. I asked both the TV sales reps. and the MLS real estate agents if a single person with no kids under 55 could buy in TV -- all agents said no problem, just realize no one under the age of 19 can live in your house (but visits of less than 30 days are fine for those under 19). Maybe things have changed since last summer for buyers under 55?

This July I'm renting in the Village of Chatham. I told the owner than I'm 50, will that be a problem? Not a problem for him. The other 2 owners I contacted about their rentals for July also told me that a renter aged 50 was not a problem for them either. If do reach a point before I turn 55 that I'm ready to open up the checkbook and buy in TV, I will have to see what happens. May have to stop coloring my hair... :smiley:

[Schaumburger]

Could be that the 20% federal requirement has been met. If it hasn't it would be illegal to bar someone under 55. Once met, it is the builder's option. When it looked like there might be issues with people being able to qualify (like 2 years ago), TV pretty much was taking anyone who could pay. Now, it seems to be getting fussy again -- they've found people are willing to buy here regardless of the market nationwide.

Guess you could find someone you trust to put on the deed over 55 and then remove them after you hit 55? Or did they say they had to live in the house? Also wonder if things are as stringent for pre-owned homes? Hmmm .... time to do some checking.


Redwitch,

You may be correct -- perhaps TV is being stringent with the age 55 rule for new construction and not being stringent with selling pre-owned homes to those under 55. What if an under 55 buyer put an elderly parent(s) or an over age 55 sibling on the deed, but the parent(s)/sibling never actually moved into the house? After the deal closed, would TV do a home inspection to see if the over 55 person was actually residing in the home?

[Ken24]

I'm well under the 55 age requirement, we had to buy a pre-owned house. No new house was part of the requirement. No one under 19 years of age can stay longer then 30 days a year. We also had to sign a lot of paper work stating we were under 55 years old, I already knew that. Love coming to my villa about three to four weeks a year.

[Schaumburger]

I'm well under the 55 age requirement, we had to buy a pre-owned house. No new house was part of the requirement. No one under 19 years of age can stay longer then 30 days a year. We also had to sign a lot of paper work stating we were under 55 years old, I already knew that. Love coming to my villa about three to four weeks a year.

Ken24, When I visited TV last year, 2 agents, one from TV and the other an MLS agent, also said I would have to sign extra paperwork if I were to buy in TV before I turned 55.

[Indy-Guy]

Below is a link to the March 2010 POA Bulletin. Go to page 10 and read the Editors Note it explains the over 55 Federal regulations. On page 10 it is in the upper right hand corner labeled Editors Note. The POA is The Villages Property Owners Association.


http://www.poa4us.org/bulletins_files/bulletin201003.pdf

[Ooper]

Just FYI... My wife and I were both 49 when we bought with no problems. We moved in later in the year.

[swimdawg]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was just reviewing my Offering Plan for TV.
#4 states:
"Age-Restricted Community"
The Villages is intended as a housing community for persons fifty-five years of age and older. At least one resident within the household must be fifty-five years of age or older......"
They do make it clear. This was as of this past January.

And this was in the Villages Of Sumter Purchase Agreement:
#18 "Buyer understands that Seller provides a housing community intended for persons 55 years of age and over. Buyer certifies that at least one resident within the household will be at least 55 years of age, and that the information concerning the resident's date of birth previously given is accurate."

That's the scoop. All I know.....I am eligible....turned 55 how many years ago? I'll never tell! :)

[ajbrown]

Could be that the 20% federal requirement has been met. If it hasn't it would be illegal to bar someone under 55.

I believe this is misstated and can cause confusion. An over 55 community has no requirement to fill 20% of the households with folks under 55. A previous post from Skybo has a link for more information.

Reading all of this, I am not sure we can take as fact that anything has changed since we bought our home. When we were looking for a home in 2007, we were told by our agent from TV that we would not be able to buy a new home as we were under 55. We would have to buy used, why the distinction makes no sense to me?

When we found our new home that we wanted to buy and got serious about the purchase, the agent was still not clear if this was OK. He thought we may have to sign some extra paperwork, etc.

In the end there was no issue, there was no extra paperwork and we have been loving our home since. At the time we were 52 and 53.

Does anyone know of any person who was serious about buying and not allowed to because they were under 55? I have never heard of a story like that, but it may have happened.....

[KYTeacher]

We came and visited when we were approximately 48-49...just came to check out the place as the DVD just had to be exaggerating - right!?

Anyway, told the sales rep that met us our intentions that day and our ages. She took half a day knowing we had no purchasing plans. Long story short, we loved it and started stopping by on each of our trips to visit family further south...when we decided we would ultimately buy, asked if we would be able to go ahead and purchase since we wouldn't be 55 at that time (also not retiring for few years). Our agent came back several weeks later with the permission for us to buy before turning 55.

We ended up purchasing a model home in St. Charles last April at 52. I know we were signing lots of papers, but don't think any more than other house purchases...I have been told about the 80/20 rule as well. Something to do with tax dollars - if a community completely restricts according to age then no tax dollars will be used for any of the infrastructure (hope I got that right - or at least close)...maybe someone can clarify.

If people are being turned down now, maybe the community is falling below the 80/20 threshold.

[villages07]

I doubt that the Villages is anywhere near 20% occupied by under 55. Somewhere recently I recall reading that the average (or was it median?) age was 67.

Certainly for new homes the average purchase age is lower than the overall average age of Villagers but I believe we are well under 20% Village-wide.

Frank....perhaps your friend might try a call to the closing department or McLin Burnsed legal folks. Sounds like he got garbled info from the sales rep.

[cabo35]

The "spirit of the law" vs the "letter of the law" debate is possibly applicable once again. Could it be that the issue of school age children in the household is the real test for selectively "permitting" purchases by those under 55? It would seem to be a plausible but unspoken rational for establishing an arbitrary age of 55.

[Skybo]

Is it possible that the conflicting information is simply a matter of some people (realtors, village reps, etc.) just not knowing what they’re talking about?

I’m in the process of closing on my home so that we can move to TV. I’ve been amazed (and angered) at how much incorrect information I’ve been given (at my current home, not in TV). I’ve gotten completely opposite answers from different reps from the USPS, the cable company, and PODS.

With regard to the 80/20 rule, I currently live in a 55+ community. When a potential buyer who was slightly under 55 expressed interest in my house, the HOA management company said no. When I asked about the 80/20 rule, they said they had never heard of it. Now I realize that the 20% is up to each individual HOA, but for a (national) management company to be completely unaware of a Federal housing law? That makes no sense. As it turned out, all I had to do was get a waiver signed by the HOA Board of Directors, and I was able to sell my house to those folks. But the management company almost cost me that sale. If I hadn’t pursued the issue, I’d still be sitting here hosting open houses.

I guess my point is, you just have to be diligent in digging for the information and you shouldn’t necessarily take a representative’s word on something without verifying it with another source.

[John]

T.V. would not have to check up on you. Neighbors will do it for them at no charge, and call The Villages to let them know. All neighbors? No, but be assured it would be the buzz of the street. Regarding purchasing is your parent's name, and then just moving in and occupying, the rule that would be quoted is the 30 day guest pass rule. As for the 20% real estate rule, that states that the developer MAY have up to 20% under 55, not that they MUST have 20%. Just an FYI. I hope this helped.

[Trish Crocker]

When selling a home, it is against the federal law to discriminate against anyone based on age...the exception is when it is a senior community. In order to keep this exception viable they must keep the population of 'senior' home owners at 80% or more. If the number of senior owners drops below 80% the exception would be lost...and the community could be sued for violating federal housing laws. I'm not sure, but I'm guessing that this is why there is additional paperwork for purchasers under the age of 55 in order for the community leaders to keep track and to keep the over/under ratio at a legal level.

[Deerfly]

My understanding is that some loans like FHA, etc can only be made if the community is non-discriminating and restricting the age to be more than 55 is discriminatory. Apparently there is a percentage of the population that would have to be less than 55. May not be correct but sorta makes some sense.

[JeffAVEWS]

Still processing that "Trophy Wife" info!

[Figmo Bohica]

I have a "Trophy Wife" same one that I have had since before rocks turned into dirt.

[Taltarzac725]

With the number of cougars in the Villages, I suppose there are some "trophy husbands" around too.

[2-crazy]

Here is a portion from an article in the Tampa Bay Times from a year ago.

“The primary reason for Congress to create the Housing for Older Persons Act of 1995, HR 660, was to allow an exemption from age discrimination laws for such communities. It modifies the Fair Housing Act to allow age limits for those communities that comply with the adult community laws. It says that the community can limit residents under the age of 18. If your documents say 16, federal laws would take priority and your lower age for a resident would be 18. One of the requirements is that the board must take a census every two years that requires one person 55 or older in each home to register and show proof of age. In Florida, the board must register with the state Commission On Human Relations (fchr.state.fl.us) every two years. If the board does not follow the federal and state laws, it cannot limit any resident because of age.”

[Bogie Shooter]

Here is a portion from an article in the Tampa Bay Times from a year ago.“The primary reason for Congress to create the Housing for Older Persons Act of 1995, HR 660, was to allow an exemption from age discrimination laws for such communities. It modifies the Fair Housing Act to allow age limits for those communities that comply with the adult community laws. It says that the community can limit residents under the age of 18. If your documents say 16, federal laws would take priority and your lower age for a resident would be 18. One of the requirements is that the board must take a census every two years that requires one person 55 or older in each home to register and show proof of age. In Florida, the board must register with the state Commission On Human Relations (fchr.state.fl.us) every two years. If the board does not follow the federal and state laws, it cannot limit any resident because of age.”

A year ago, thats about the time this thread was started.
I guess the above 39 posts would not change in a year.

[Schaumburger]

I'm just a wannabee, and I'm over 50 but under 55 with no kids. I have been to quite a few open houses (both new and preowned) during my four visits to TV.

Buying a new homes through TV: TV sales reps. said that being between 50 and 55 with no kids -- I would have to get "permission/approval" from TV sales management to buy new construction but probably not an issue especially since I have no kids.

Buying a pre-owned home through a TV agent or an MLS agent: No problem since I am buying from a previous owner and not directly through TV. All agents have told me that TV is not at the 20% mark for the under 55 age group -- hopefully they are correct on that.

This is just what I have been told. Unless I win the lottery soon, I will be 55 or older when I purchase.