buying a designer home

[tommy steam]

Which designer home do you think is the most popular? If you bought a designer home, which one did you buy and why, and what add ons did you do, if any when you had your home built. Did you buy a prebuilt home ,and did it meet your expectations. Thank you for looking at this post. There are so many models, its a bit hard to make a choice. just looknig to see what others are thinking. :popcorn:

[KathyW]

We are meeting with the design center on April 11. We originally were going to build the Lily or Iris, but then changed our minds and will probably build the Aspen (adding on a golf cart garage). I started thinking that we didn't need a dining room, nook, kitchen counter chairs, and a lanai table--for only two people! Seems like overkill. Another thread reads that a lot of people are not using their dining room table. Would be interested in what others think about this. I have until April 11 to change my mind.

[Happinow]

The choice can be overwhelming. We were down in October to buy our lot and at that time picked out the Gardenia. We liked the huge sliders to the lanai since we are having a pool, and we also liked the breakfast nook in the front of the house. We will be there again on the 12th to re tour the models because after looking at them online a million times we see others we like too. I think it's a choice each individual has to make based on your lifestyle. Some like open kitchen, some like larger lanai, others may like the bedroom size better. We also like the 2 large master closets in the Gardenia. I don't think I've ever had my own walk in closet! The overall consensus is stretch where ever you can. You can't change the square footage once it's done. I would also say tour your model several times with a detailed eye. Look to see if the kitchen layout works for you, the general flow of the house, where the outlets are, the layout of the bathrooms. Try to picture yourself in the home on a daily basis to see if all works for your. Best of luck picking out your home.

[Tom Hannon]

Which designer home do you think is the most popular? If you bought a designer home, which one did you buy and why, and what add ons did you do, if any when you had your home built. Did you buy a prebuilt home ,and did it meet your expectations. Thank you for looking at this post. There are so many models, its a bit hard to make a choice. just looknig to see what others are thinking. :popcorn:

FRom hearing what others say about designer homes, The Gardenia appears to be very popular (or a Begonia, which is a Gardenia w/ gold cart garage on the inside) I myself have an Iris

[graciegirl]

If you used it a lot before, the dining room table, you will use it a lot again.

We did and we do. It all depends if you like to cook and have folks over to share.

Our new house which isn't a designer only has a dining room table and no kitchen table. We have a table on the lanai and bar stools and trays in the den in front of the TV.

Before the recent additions of new model names I could tell you that the designers that were the largest, were close to 2000 square feet were the Camellia/Gardenia, and the Lantana. Now I know Angie Fox has a Begonia which is about the same size. Please add the other larger designers. The designers range from about 1500 square feet to slightly over 2000. That is UNDER HEAT and AIR. The garage and lanai are not added in to that.

You still have to live here, not just exist here and a lot of us have hobbies such as art, woodworking, sewing, collections and tinkering with cars. Plus many of us still do our own cleaning and maintainance. All of those things still take space.

Remember your garage is now your garage, your storage and your basement.

[tommy steam]

We are meeting with the design center on April 11. We originally were going to build the Lily or Iris, but then changed our minds and will probably build the Aspen (adding on a golf cart garage). I started thinking that we didn't need a dining room, nook, kitchen counter chairs, and a lanai table--for only two people! Seems like overkill. Another thread reads that a lot of people are not using their dining room table. Would be interested in what others think about this. I have until April 11 to change my mind.

There are so many things to think about , lol . I didnt think we needed a dining room also.

[tommy steam]

FRom hearing what others say about designer homes, The Gardenia appears to be very popular (or a Begonia, which is a Gardenia w/ gold cart garage on the inside) I myself have an Iris

Thanks for the info tom. Buy the way I went to high school in Lake ronkonkoma, sachem high, 1964.:clap2:

[784caroline]

You hear about these people who have bought 2 or 3 homes in The Villages?? From people I know, alot of the recent "internal" moves were because they actually bought toooo small to begin with.....because they were downsizing. Downsize yes ...but believe me, the people in TV are still alive, you will still get the kids, grandkids and friends from up north. Hopefully you will socialize in your home more with your neighbors so having a kitchen nook, lanai table or kitchen counter chairs may come in handy. You will truly appreciate a golf cart garage and you most likely will be involved in some hobbies that require extra space. Storage is always at a premium even with the bigger 2000sf designers.

Everyone is differnet and the smaller 1400-1600 sq designers are beautiful homes, but whatever home you decide upon has to fit your lifestyle (and budget) not only today but hopefully also in 2-3 years....or else you to may be a statistic moving shortly after trying to get established in your new home.

[Tom Hannon]

Tommy Steam. Whatever you buy, make sure it has a golf cart garage. It may not sound too important to you now, but you will kick yourself in the (you know what) later if you don't have a GCG. Trust the other TOMMY. A golf cart is a definite.

[buggyone]

We bought a resale home which is a Lantana. Lots of extras already built in and the house was "stretched", too. It has a wonderful glassed in lanai that has heat and a/c vents. It has a separate golf cart garage that is walled off and also air conditioned. It is our exercise room. Great golf course frontage, too. Best of all, bond was just about all paid off ($1500 remains). I was able to negotiate with the seller as he was very anxious to move.

I checked at Bridgeport at Laurel Manor last week on a Premier home. Bond was $49,000.

[aljetmet]

We've change our minds a lot too. So have many others who have posted on TOTV.
We liked the Gardenia, then the Begonia, then the Holly.

Looks like we'll get a Lantana.

We all have priorities. Ours have changed slightly in the past two years that made us review all the floor plans again and again. For us there were compromises made originally which caused us to change our mind.
If a priority changes, you should review all the plans again. You never know.

I would be very diasappointed if we had to decide to move again...

Good Luck

Allan

[l2ridehd]

One thing we all seem to forget. When you move to the Villages, your lifestyle changes. You dine out more, have friends in more, spend less time working and more time golfing or what ever activity you do. Your garage needs to be bigger then any you have ever owned. These things have an impact on your home selection. You may be great with a smaller kitchen, no dining room and a large outside space.

However at some point you will want two golf carts and you will always have a car and your garage will need to hold golf clubs and swim chairs and pickleball paddles and bicycles and any tools you use and storage for those things you only use once or twice a year and several other things I have missed. It is not possible to make your garage to big. Stretch it in every direction your lot will allow. Make it a 3 car garage with an added golf cart garage if possible. Make it longer, make it wider, make the attic ceiling higher, make it bigger in every direction. Make it double the size of your house if possible. Do all this and it might be large enough.

[getdul981]

Initially, we had a Begonia and it was not stretched an inch. Lot would not stand it. We loved the idea of separate closets and loved the floor plan. However, after living there for several months, we could not get everything to "fit". We started looking around and found this Lily. It only has one closet off the master bedroom, but we think it has more usable space than the two in the Begonia. Something that most people don't consider is that the 2 closets have 8 corners that are pretty much dead space. The single closet only has 4 corners. That cuts the dead space down considerably. As I said, we loved the floor plan of the Begonia, but really think the Lily fits our needs much better. We also have a golf cart garage added onto the side of the Lily.

[aljetmet]

One thing we all seem to forget. When you move to the Villages, your lifestyle changes. You dine out more, have friends in more, spend less time working and more time golfing or what ever activity you do. Your garage needs to be bigger then any you have ever owned. These things have an impact on your home selection. You may be great with a smaller kitchen, no dining room and a large outside space.

However at some point you will want two golf carts and you will always have a car and your garage will need to hold golf clubs and swim chairs and pickleball paddles and bicycles and any tools you use and storage for those things you only use once or twice a year and several other things I have missed. It is not possible to make your garage to big. Stretch it in every direction your lot will allow. Make it a 3 car garage with an added golf cart garage if possible. Make it longer, make it wider, make the attic ceiling higher, make it bigger in every direction. Make it double the size of your house if possible. Do all this and it might be large enough.

Please, please provide us with investment advice to make this happen!

If you have a plan that will make an average of 6% over the next twenty years
I am all in.

[Carla B]

It is not possible to make your garage to big. Stretch it in every direction your lot will allow. Make it a 3 car garage with an added golf cart garage if possible. Make it longer, make it wider, make the attic ceiling higher, make it bigger in every direction. Make it double the size of your house if possible. Do all this and it might be large enough.

I2ridehd speaks the truth!

As for floor plans we chose a Lantana to maximize the view out back. The L-shaped great room looks spacious when you enter, but arranging seating in the small living area is difficult. At least we were smart enough to buy scaled down furniture.

At the time we were not offered the option of stretching the house two feet. This one change would probably have solved the problem and provided a roomier breakfast area and larger master bedroom as a bonus. It would have been cheap square footage to add.

[B. Johnson]

We purchased new pre-built stretched Bridgeport about two months ago, with a GCG and upgraded kitchen appliances and are so happy with the home. We liked that the kitchen was absolutely huge with an island and that the dinning area (just one) was elegant yet practical enough to be utilized for both formal and informal meals. Although I feel the Lantana is the most beautiful of frontal designs (entry doors are spectacular), we did not care for the space taken away from the living room by the formal dinning area of the Lantana; nor for the smaller kitchens of some designs.
In closing the Bridgeport's tray cealings in the living area, master and dinning areas are also magnificent; can you tell we love it! Hope I did not offend anyone; eye of the beholder as it were.

[tommy steam]

Tommy Steam. Whatever you buy, make sure it has a golf cart garage. It may not sound too important to you now, but you will kick yourself in the (you know what) later if you don't have a GCG. Trust the other TOMMY. A golf cart is a definite.

LOL, Tommy, the golf cart garage is one of the things I am going to get. Also thinking about one of those walk in showers ...

[tommy steam]

We bought a resale home which is a Lantana. Lots of extras already built in and the house was "stretched", too. It has a wonderful glassed in lanai that has heat and a/c vents. It has a separate golf cart garage that is walled off and also air conditioned. It is our exercise room. Great golf course frontage, too. Best of all, bond was just about all paid off ($1500 remains). I was able to negotiate with the seller as he was very anxious to move.

I checked at Bridgeport at Laurel Manor last week on a Premier home. Bond was $49,000.

sounds like you found what you were looking for..I also like the Bridgeport,but am thing its maby a touch too big, we will see...

[Tom Hannon]

LOL, Tommy, the golf cart garage is one of the things I am going to get. Also thinking about one of those walk in showers ...

You sound like me. I drew up a list of things I had to have when looking for a house.
1) Golf cart garage, 2) Walk in shower, 3)Corner or culd-a-sac 4) Tile, 5) heavy landscape.

I got everything but #5, which I had dome for a reasonable cost later on.

When I returned for NY for the Christmas Holidays, it felt so strange using a regular shower. Good luck with your purchase.