the expected cost of living in tv.?

[RayinPenn]

A friend asked for the expected cost of living in tv. I know Ive seen that in a post. Can someone please direct me.

[graciegirl]

When we got our "packet" from The Villages, with the CD, there was an estimated cost of living. We thought it was pretty accurate...with fluctuations for going out to dinner with drinks, more or less and size of home. We had a Designer at that time and felt it was close to the mark.

There have been discussions on this forum about it and most posts agreed that it was a fair estimate.

[Bill-n-Brillo]

From TV's web site:

Cost of Living (http://nullrefer.com/?http://www.thevillages.com/images/CostofLiving.pdf)

Bill :)

[champion6]

At the bottom of TOTV, is the Nuts and Bolts section. At the top of that section are three messages that will help you a lot. Good luck!

[Villageshooter]

take that info from the TV with a grain of salt,they are here to give the most biased info to get you sign on the line, these are the same folks who dont even mention the HUGE expense of a bond that developers should absorb as a cost of doing bussiness, the cost of food here is out the roof, just go to the local WINNDIXIE or PUBLIX. Aldi and Walmart are you best deals. This is wonderful place, there is NO WHERE any where in the world like it! Just ask LOTS of questions. Unless you have a ton of $$$ be careful when you get your cup of KOOLAIDE, know what you are drinking.

[CMANN]

take that info from the TV with a grain of salt,they are here to give the most biased info to get you sign on the line, these are the same folks who dont even mention the HUGE expense of a bond that developers should absorb as a cost of doing bussiness, the cost of food here is out the roof, just go to the local WINNDIXIE or PUBLIX. Aldi and Walmart are you best deals. This is wonderful place, there is NO WHERE any where in the world like it! Just ask LOTS of questions. Unless you have a ton of $$$ be careful when you get your cup of KOOLAIDE, know what you are drinking.

I just finished working on our expenses and projections. I don't find anything wrong with the projections of TV, for what they cite. There are other expenses that are expected. Entertaining, food, car, etc. These are expenses that will be no matter where you live. Prices do go up in snowbird season and then go down in the summer. For most people, I would venture to say that you could not live the life back home for the price of lining it here; if you could live it back home at all.

[graciegirl]

take that info from the TV with a grain of salt,they are here to give the most biased info to get you sign on the line, these are the same folks who dont even mention the HUGE expense of a bond that developers should absorb as a cost of doing bussiness, the cost of food here is out the roof, just go to the local WINNDIXIE or PUBLIX. Aldi and Walmart are you best deals. This is wonderful place, there is NO WHERE any where in the world like it! Just ask LOTS of questions. Unless you have a ton of $$$ be careful when you get your cup of KOOLAIDE, know what you are drinking.

I respectfully disagree. The bond is factored into homes sold elsewhere as part of the expense of the infrastructure. If you add 25K to most homes for the "real" price you will have a good idea of the homes price.

As for the cost of living estimate given out by The Villages, I still say it is a reasonable estimate.

[elevatorman]

The bond paid over 30 years with intrest is about $1500.00 / year. If you get a mortgage it can be escrowed each month along with taxes and insurance. Go here to see the bond amortization for the district you will buy in. (note Unit 226 is a Premier section) http://www.districtgov.org/departments/Finance/amortization_sumter.aspx If you don't know your district choose something at the end of the list. I think TV estimate is close, and the "Nuts and Bolts" has some other items that help with a budget.

[keithwand]

Bonds are very common especially in new developments. We have a 30 year bond on our home on Orlando which was built in 2004.
We listed our home for sale; got a fair offer in which the house probably would not have appraised and the "buyer" was assuming the bond.
We turned them down and decided it made more sense for us to do a long term lease.
The Villages bond was "normal" for us and did not factor in to the equation when building our home in TV.
Don't get me wrong; it would be nice not to have to pay it but it is not uncommon today in newer developments.

[eweissenbach]

Bonds are very common especially in new developments. We have a 30 year bond on our home on Orlando which was built in 2004.
We listed our home for sale; got a fair offer in which the house probably would not have appraised and the "buyer" was assuming the bond.
We turned them down and decided it made more sense for us to do a long term lease.
The Villages bond was "normal" for us and did not factor in to the equation when building our home in TV.
Don't get me wrong; it would be nice not to have to pay it but it is not uncommon today in newer developments.

I have no problem with the bond, and I understand the purpose. Gracie is right, in that if the bond was not an option, that money would likely be added to the sales price. The thing that bugs me is that SOME Villages real estate people try to minimize the effect of the bond, and even misrepresent it. When I told one Villages saleswoman that I simply added the amount of the bond to the selling price to ascertain my overall purchase price, her reaction was "Oh no, you can't do that - the bond is paid with the taxes and most people hardly even notice it." I wanted to say - That's the stupidest thing I have ever heard; not notice an extra $1,500 or so a year????? But I just moved on making a mental note that I would never buy anything from her. As a buyer the bond is not a great deal. The interest is higher than todays mortgage interest, and if you pay it off you are unlikely to recoup the majority of it in the event you resell the home.

[rjm1cc]

A friend asked for the expected cost of living in tv. I know Ive seen that in a post. Can someone please direct me.

Search this site and you will find a lot of information. I do not live in TV but the positing I saw seemed reasonable. Of course size of home and your preferences will affect the bills. The major "item" for your to concentrate on is identifying expenses that are not listed. In the area of insurance you might have golf cart insurance, sink hole insurance, flood insurance etc. Also termite treatments, water treatment etc. Not everyone will consider all of these as needed.

In 2010 I came up with a budget of 12,000. I think insurance related to the home has increased since then. The 12,000 was what I would spend on housing, no food, medical etc. I assume no mortgage and bond payments. I figured I would cut my own grass and do some other things. I tended to budget on the high side.

[JimPete]

The bond is factored into homes sold elsewhere as part of the expense of the infrastructure. If you add 25K to most homes for the "real" price you will have a good idea of the homes price.


You are absolutely right Gracie. In the Spotsylvania county (Fredericksburg, Va.) area the county charges the developer $20k to $30K or more per home to build a new community. This helps offset the cost of road improvements, new schools and services incurred because of the expected increase in population. In VA the developer pays that directly to the county. That cost is passed along in the price of the new house. If it weren't the builder would probably go out of business.

The only difference is in TV that cost is paid directly to the county by the homeowner and most other places it is paid by the homeowner through the developer as part of the price of the house.

Jim

[l2ridehd]

Plan on $1000 a month for all living in TV cost. Add to that food, entertainment, insurance, health care, taxes, clothing, etc. those things that you will spend no matter where you live. Add a golf cart. Purchase 5K plus $50 a month to operate. The $1000 should cover all utilities including cable, lawn service, pest service, property taxes on a 250K home, amenity fee, trash, water, and a few annual repairs. Property taxes can be more or less depending on your home. You can exist OK here if you home is owned outright on 30K a year. You can live on 50K a year, very nice on 75K a year, and really enjoy life on 100K a year.

[2 Oldcrabs]

I think the developer's estimates are close except for insurance for us. With home. auto. umbrella, flood and golf cart insurance we are about $300 a month. But I am sure I am way over insured, especially if we never use it. If you are looking at expenses Vs income, please make sure the income is sufficient if one the the spouses dies.

[jblum315]

I think the developer's estimates are close except for insurance for us. With home. auto. umbrella, flood and golf cart insurance we are about $300 a month. But I am sure I am way over insured, especially if we never use it. If you are looking at expenses Vs income, please make sure the income is sufficient if one the the spouses dies.

Everybody is over-insured, until something bad happens, right?

[Badminton]

Search this site and you will find a lot of information. I do not live in TV but the positing I saw seemed reasonable. Of course size of home and your preferences will affect the bills. The major "item" for your to concentrate on is identifying expenses that are not listed. In the area of insurance you might have golf cart insurance, sink hole insurance, flood insurance etc. Also termite treatments, water treatment etc. Not everyone will consider all of these as needed.

In 2010 I came up with a budget of 12,000. I think insurance related to the home has increased since then. The 12,000 was what I would spend on housing, no food, medical etc. I assume no mortgage and bond payments. I figured I would cut my own grass and do some other things. I tended to budget on the high side.

Can folk please share with us what your average monthly food budget for 2 is ? We still have kids at home so can’t get a #.

[pooh]

Can folk please share with us what your average monthly food budget for 2 is ? We still have kids at home so can’t get a #.

That may be difficult to determine. Some who live here dine out quite a bit. Some eat at home and shop sales, others shop at Costco or Sam's Club. Some grocery store are a bit more expensive than others. You may come with an idea of doing one thing and suddenly decide to do another....plan on only eating out every once in a while and well, life gets busy and eating out is easier and more fun than cooking.

Sorry I can't give you a definitive answer, it's going to vary from household to household. If you still are feeding teens, well, your food expenses even eating out often could be less than they are now.... ;)

[2 Oldcrabs]

While the developer estimates are close we do spend more money here than in De. Living the "lifestyle" can be costly. Golf carts cost about 10k at the TV store. A used one can be bought for as little as 2k, but "buyer beware". When you buy a house there seems to be things you want do or change to make it your home. We have spent about 10% of the cost of our house making it our home and there are still things to do. Food cost for us is more in TV but we have my 85 yo father living with us. We do eat out 1x a week. We are in a low inflation period right now but, history tells us that things "double" in 10-15 years. That can be hard on a fixed income. :$:

[John_W]

We moved here last July into a new 2 BR masonry CYV in Tamarind Grove off St. Charles. Last month our electric bill was $93, the previous month it was $92, we run our A/C all the time and my wife is always washing clothes. Our sewage, garbage, irrigation water, drinking water and amenity fee totaled $210. Our internet with 10 MB speed and home phone with unlimited long distance, caller ID and call block with Century Link with tax was $75. Our cellphone with Verizon senior plan with tax is $34. My Directv bill is $105, we have 2 TV boxes with HD, HBO/Cinemax.

I think that's about it. Our yearly insurance with sink hole and wind damage through Villages Insurance was $503. Our last tax bill was not a complete bill since the home was new and we just paid for the lot, this November we'll find out what it will be.

[Dancing Queen]

Thank you John W.,
For the actual expences you pay, very helpful.

[Sameri]

Is the BOND a one time fee? so I pay 15k and once it is paid off I am done?

[Sameri]

Development District Assessment is this the bond I hear about? I guess I should buy a resale that has the bond paid off..........

[e-flyer]

Is the BOND a one time fee? so I pay 15k and once it is paid off I am done?

Yes, but be aware that they typically group the bond and the maintenance fee together when you pay it over 30yrs. If you pay off the bond, you still owe the annual maintenance fee along with the monthly amenity fee.

[Count'n the days]

I have had no surprises, but I am a planner and projected our retirement budget in great detail starting with the numbers provided by TV. What's difficult to project is how different your lifestyle will be from how you live now. We retired, downsized and moved at the same time so we're still adjusting. We've spent a lot more than we expected after we moved into our new home, but everything else seems to be on track. It helps that we now only have one car and no mortgage. Our utilities (except for water) are lower because our house is so much smaller. If we wanted, we could really cut down on our food budget since we now have time to plan ahead, but I'm not that organized.

[keithwand]

You are right.
It does add up after moving in. Golf cart, solar for the pool, window coverings, lanai furniture, backsplash, landscaping, lanai and driveway pavers adds about 75-100K to the initial price.

[keithwand]

I forget to add its entirely worth it!

[JPC55]

Development District Assessment is this the bond I hear about? I guess I should buy a resale that has the bond paid off..........

No doubt you would be ahead of the game if you can find a home with the bond fully paid.. I just called and they are charging me 6.9% on my new home , which is HIGH!

[gpirate]

No doubt you would be ahead of the game if you can find a home with the bond fully paid.. I just called and they are charging me 6.9% on my new home , which is HIGH!

At 6.9% rate I would go get an equity loan and payoff the bond. You should be able to get a loan in the 3.5 to 4 percent range and it will be tax deductible.

[Ohiogirl]

You are right.
It does add up after moving in. Golf cart, solar for the pool, window coverings, lanai furniture, backsplash, landscaping, lanai and driveway pavers adds about 75-100K to the initial price.

this would be (IMO) way on the high side for most of us. The vast majority of Villagers do NOT have their own pool, which is a big expense, worth it to some but certainly not necessary. Neither are lanai or driveway pavers.

You can do as much or as little landscaping as you want - new houses come with basic landscaping in the front. Some do their own in bits and pieces, some hire landscapers to do a bunch at once, or a little now and then, or they just add mulch now and then and depending on their interest and abilities, add more plants and beds and trees to it.

I don't know if spec houses and villas still come with basic window treatments or not, but that is worth looking into as well.

In 7 years, we've probably spent about $4,000-5,000 on upgrades, and not all at once. This is to a CYV.

[tommy steam]

We moved here last July into a new 2 BR masonry CYV in Tamarind Grove off St. Charles. Last month our electric bill was $93, the previous month it was $92, we run our A/C all the time and my wife is always washing clothes. Our sewage, garbage, irrigation water, drinking water and amenity fee totaled $210. Our internet with 10 MB speed and home phone with unlimited long distance, caller ID and call block with Century Link with tax was $75. Our cellphone with Verizon senior plan with tax is $34. My Directv bill is $105, we have 2 TV boxes with HD, HBO/Cinemax.

I think that's about it. Our yearly insurance with sink hole and wind damage through Villages Insurance was $503. Our last tax bill was not a complete bill since the home was new and we just paid for the lot, this November we'll find out what it will be.

John are you correct with the insurance? 503 includes sink hole? Thanks

[Carla B]

Our premium, for a designer, started out five years ago in the $750 range with $500 deductible sinkhole coverage. Now it is $1130 with 10% sinkhole deductible. No claims history. We did add $30K in improvements in Year Two, and these had to be documented.
We escaped the 10% sinkhole deductible until this year.

In my opinion, insurance companies entice customers with low rates and then begin increasing them. There's always a "new" peril they can use to adjust rates.

[bfdretired]

thanks john for sharing....i just copied your post for my wife....she cant seem to get into the TOTV...yet......i smiled when you said she is always washing clothes and the a/c is running all the time........thats my wife to a T

[murray607]

Our premium, for a designer, started out five years ago in the $750 range with $500 deductible sinkhole coverage. Now it is $1130 with 10% sinkhole deductible. No claims history. We did add $30K in improvements in Year Two, and these had to be documented.
We escaped the 10% sinkhole deductible until this year.

In my opinion, insurance companies entice customers with low rates and then begin increasing them. There's always a "new" peril they can use to adjust rates.

We have had the Patio Villa for the past 7 months. Looking at the Villages web-site figures for monthly expenses at $1039 for a $250,000 property and comparing our actual costs on a Patio Villa, I am seeing a monthly expense of just under $750 when everything is factored in.
But with the insurance, bond and property tax being paid annually, we see a month to month operating expense expense of about $500-550. Our insurance is averaging less than $60 per month and our property tax averages to about $90 per month. Bond is about $100 a month
I have not included some extra, smaller expenses but they should not change the figures by much. Total lawn care works out to be about $75 a month (paid annually). Also things like power washing and incidental repairs and replacement. would add up the total to be a bit higher. Also you should factor in additional insurances on A/C and heat pump unlesss you choose not to add additional insurance s on these.

[mixsonci]

I have a question on the bond, I was told my bond was about 24,000 give or take a hundred, BUT, if I pay about $1500 for 30 years, that 45,000? How can that be?

[graciegirl]

I have a question on the bond, I was told my bond was about 24,000 give or take a hundred, BUT, if I pay about $1500 for 30 years, that 45,000? How can that be?

It's the same for a home mortgage. It costs more if you don't pay for it up front.

[senior citizen]

Yes, but be aware that they typically group the bond and the maintenance fee together when you pay it over 30yrs. If you pay off the bond, you still owe the annual maintenance fee along with the monthly amenity fee.


I'm puzzled. How many retired people really take out 30 year mortgages?
In Vermont they only used to give 20 year mortgages. We paid ours off in our early 40's.
We plan to pay cash for our home in THE VILLAGES.

Thus, this "bond" would be paid at that time, correct??? Meaning time of sale/closing. Not in installments.
Thanks in advance.

P.S. If one is approaching 70 years old (68/69) they would be 100 years old by the time the mortgage is paid off.

[rubicon]

The amounts The Villages provides are guides only. Just as each of us can have a different effective tax rate so too will there be differences in those guides. The same for instance applies for gas mileage say for people driving their Ford it depends on several factors.

The reason for itemizing the cost of the bond , land and housing unit can be viewed as giving the buyer a detailed account or it can be viewed to make the cost of a house seem more reasonable. I was informed that homes in Lake county have no bonds? Mt preference would have ben for one price only because I believe it prevents the tendency toward redundancy.

Those of us who have lived here for some time have noticed increases in fees, a reduction in taxes, increase in bond costs

I live in a designer keep my AC at 78 and average about $220

[graciegirl]

I'm puzzled. How many retired people really take out 30 year mortgages?
In Vermont they only used to give 20 year mortgages. We paid ours off in our early 40's.
We plan to pay cash for our home in THE VILLAGES.

Thus, this "bond" would be paid at that time, correct??? Meaning time of sale/closing. Not in installments.
Thanks in advance.

P.S. If one is approaching 70 years old (68/69) they would be 100 years old by the time the mortgage is paid off.


I will be repeating something I heard or read on this forum and I have no way of saying whether it is true or not. I have heard and really believe from people I know well, that well over half pay cash for their homes here.

[Ohiogirl]

Everyone's financial situation is different. Our 91 yr old neighbor got a 30 year mortgage last year - obviously, she doesn't care if she pays it off. A paid off mortgage is not everyone's goal.

Remember that if most of your reserves are in regular IRA's, you would have to pay taxes on the funds you pulled out to pay cash for a home. That rate is a lot higher than a 4-5% mortgage.

[rubicon]

Everyone's financial situation is different. Our 91 yr old neighbor got a 30 year mortgage last year - obviously, she doesn't care if she pays it off. A paid off mortgage is not everyone's goal.

Remember that if most of your reserves are in regular IRA's, you would have to pay taxes on the funds you pulled out to pay cash for a home. That rate is a lot higher than a 4-5% mortgage.

There is a lot of that going around that is why taxpayers paid for all the bailouts

[DougB]

I have a question on the bond, I was told my bond was about 24,000 give or take a hundred, BUT, if I pay about $1500 for 30 years, that 45,000? How can that be?

Believe they call that interest

[Ohiogirl]

There is a lot of that going around that is why taxpayers paid for all the bailouts

If someone dies before paying off their house, the house would normally be sold and the lien (mortgage) satisfied before the title can be changed.

If someone wants to get a loan (and can qualify for it) instead of pulling out cash from investments, why would anyone care? Not talking here about someone not paying their bills.

[justjim]

When we first moved to TV, about 8 years ago, our biggest surprise was the amount of closing costs. Closing costs were significantly higher than any other home we ever purchased in the States of Illinois or Tennessee. That said, Taxes were a bit less than Illinois and a bit more than in Tenn. for about the same home.

Monthly expenses tend to be higher because of the bond and maintenance fees. Normally, you pay for that upfront ---not here---because of our form of government---CDD. Food, insurance, utilities and entertainment or at or near the national average in my opinion.

The other difference is the perception (some say fact) you have less to say about how the CDD or how the local form of government is operated. Many like the CDD form of government, many really don't understand it, and most probably don't care.

Bottom line, to most of us, TV is a great active Adult Community! There is no place
Like it. You can live here relatively cheaply (100,000-1,000,000 home and in between) or very lavishly or like most of us middle class residents. And we have TOTV to post our likes and dislikes!

[senior citizen]

Everyone's financial situation is different. Our 91 yr old neighbor got a 30 year mortgage last year - obviously, she doesn't care if she pays it off. A paid off mortgage is not everyone's goal.

Remember that if most of your reserves are in regular IRA's, you would have to pay taxes on the funds you pulled out to pay cash for a home. That rate is a lot higher than a 4-5% mortgage.


Guess our bankers up here , in a small town, have always been conservative....

....... at least they were when we were young and needed a mortgage.

All we ever did was use the money from selling our home to buy the next home.
We've purchased a lot of homes in our almost 50 years of marriage.

That's what we would do when this home sells. Not take our savings.

We, personally, would not want a mortgage anymore at our age, when we paid off our last mortgage in our 40's plus paying all our kids college bills. Just us. Obviously, everyone else can take advantage of The Villages generous pattern of mortgages to us elders.

I doubt if a 91 year old would get a mortgage up here.....truthfully.
I just can't see it happening. Common sense wise.

But more power to that elder. If that's what they needed. Good for them.

[Ohiogirl]

Lenders can no longer discriminate by age or gender, race, etc. You must qualify for income to be able to make your payments. Hopefully, some of the "creative financing" that led to the meltdown is gone, or at least maybe the income requirements are more stringent.

Maybe small community banks or credit unions who do not sell their loans on the secondary mortgage market can be pickier, don't know.

[senior citizen]

Lenders can no longer discriminate by age or gender, race, etc. You must qualify for income to be able to make your payments. Hopefully, some of the "creative financing" that led to the meltdown is gone, or at least maybe the income requirements are more stringent.

Maybe small community banks or credit unions who do not sell their loans on the secondary mortgage market can be pickier, don't know.


As you mention, I agree...I'm sure it is the law now. Laws have changed for sure.

I should have stated I was referring to back in 1968 when we bought our first home and then in 1970 when we bought our second home.......etc., etc. all quite awhile ago. Back in the stone age.

Back then, they only considered the husband's income. Woman have come a long long way since then.

New Jersey was about the same as Vermont, however, when we moved up here.....they definitely were much more conservative in giving out mortgages (the bankers were very very very elderly themselves) and everyone we knew, including ourselves, only had 20 year mortgages.

In New Jersey they did give 30 year mortgages, but then things cost more down there.

However, my husband noticed in the most recent past when so many were unfortunately losing their homes due to foreclosures.........and these were GORGEOUS HOMES.......not modest homes like we bought when we were young........that perhaps our "old banker" was right when he practiced a more conservative route. We were never "house poor" and always paid the mortgage off........just using the profits of the sale of the home in order to buy the next one..........and always lived comfortably.

The homes in THE VILLAGES are all truly nice. It will be hard to decide.
They are all beautiful, in their own individual ways. Sometimes I think smaller would be a lot easier.........but then I keep thinking about visiting family, etc. So, I flip and flop.......I'm sure it is normal. Just weighing all the options. We never ever had so many options as we will when we move to TV.

God bless your neighbor. We had a few 91 year old very spry, wonderful, cheerful friends of that age.......all gone now. Miss them all. They had such wisdom and didn't sweat the small stuff........having seen it all.
Enjoy her (or him).

[SisalPhil]

I would appreciate updated information: We are about to purchase a new home costing $400,000, 2000 sq ft designer home with a pool on a corner lot in Collier . Numbers are all over the chart. We will not have a mortgage but will have a bond payment. We are hoping we would rent it for four high season months.

If anyone has information on actual expenses we would appreciate it. I understand there are variables but we are just interested in fixed expenses. We would need prices and companies for insurance, total lawn care, pool services, house watch etc.

We currently live out of the USA and have our house for sale.

Thanks

[justjim]

senior: There are many young people in our Illinois neighborhood living on the edge of foreclosure. When we were their age, no way would we buy into a relative expensive subdivision that extented our $$$$$$ to the absolute limit.

However, many want everything we have economically and it took us 40 years plus of hard work and modest lifestyle and savings to get. Television, media, and easy credit changed everything. We see it and we want it now!

Too many kids say to their parents " Mom and Dad you are lucky that you grew up in a different era." We were poor growing up but had no idea we we poor. It seemed the harder we worked and the more we saved the more luck we got.

TV has something for almost every senior. Almost any senior can afford to live here who has worked hard and saved for their retirement. 100,000 home or 500,000 home---it makes no difference as we all have the same amenities. "Don't sweat the small stuff.". I like that advise.

[patfla06]

I would think most people would choose a house so they would have NO mortgage.

God bless anyone that wants their own pool, but after 16 years of having the pool/hot tub/outdoor kitchen with all the repairs/replacement and maintenance I am glad not to have any of that!

[rayschic]

I have a question on the bond, I was told my bond was about 24,000 give or take a hundred, BUT, if I pay about $1500 for 30 years, that 45,000? How can that be?

Here's a link to a bond payment info. I just picked one that has a bond of about $24,000. Interest and fees bring it up to $49,000.
http://www.districtgov.org/departments/Finance/amortization/Sumter/District%2010/S10%20-%20Unit%20233.pdf

You can look up your actual bond amortization schedule on this link.

Village Community Development Districts (http://www.districtgov.org/departments/Finance/amortization.aspx)

[senior citizen]

senior: There are many young people in our Illinois neighborhood living on the edge of foreclosure. When we were their age, no way would we buy into a relative expensive subdivision that extented our $$$$$$ to the absolute limit.

However, many want everything we have economically and it took us 40 years plus of hard work and modest lifestyle and savings to get. Television, media, and easy credit changed everything. We see it and we want it now!

Too many kids say to their parents " Mom and Dad you are lucky that you grew up in a different era." We were poor growing up but had no idea we we poor. It seemed the harder we worked and the more we saved the more luck we got.

TV has something for almost every senior. Almost any senior can afford to live here who has worked hard and saved for their retirement. 100,000 home or 500,000 home---it makes no difference as we all have the same amenities. "Don't sweat the small stuff.". I like that advise.


Last evening we were just reminiscing about an elderly neighbor of ours who didn't marry until he was 57 years old. He inherited a bunch of his new wife's adult children and grandchildren........but he also adopted all of us young neighbors.

He passed at 91 and is missed by all. He was the life of all of our parties. He would come down from his side yard hill and plant violets in my rock garden on the hill.........he would show up at our kitchen door with a wooden basket filled with home made blueberries muffins from blueberries he had picked.........it was little things like that.

I also remember when he brought me down a gin and tonic.

He was a surrogate grandparent to my kids and all the kids in the neighborhood.

He dressed up in his wife's clothing at one of our friend's Halloween parties and fooled a lot of people....make up and all. He was a riot.

Young at heart or second childhood. Who knows. It didn't matter to us.

When my husband was in the hospital, he'd come down and drive me and then when we'd return in the dark he insisted on walking me to my door, as his mother had taught him. A real old fashioned gentleman.

After his wife died, we all helped him out and then later visited him in the nursing home.........he still had his great sense of humor.

He NEVER worried about the "small stuff".......he was too busy doing good deeds to make people happy...........he would invite us all up just to have pancakes on Sunday morning.....he made them from scratch......not a pancake mix.

Little things mean the most.......in the long run. That's what people remember..........not the house he lived in, which was a modest cape cod.

But immaculate. He also mowed his lawn every day. Planted his impatience every spring.

We all teased him that he'd have no paint left on his car as he washed it each and every day (after he retired).......I could write a book about our elderly neighbors........when we were the young ones with growing families.

His was the generation that never lived beyond their means.
They took simple pleasures in life.

Even though he was a stepdad to his deceased wife's children, they were devoted to him and cared for him, from afar, until he passed.

His favorite expression was always, "Don't sweat the small stuff".

He would tell me how he would get paid twenty five cents to mow lawns when he was a kid. So, that's the generation that grew up with lots of hard work. His mom was a widow............but would tell the children the story of how she came from a good family in Connecticut, but fell in love with a "common"street car conductor......her parents disowned her.
She moved with him to Vermont.......and the rest is history......

Unlike some people who "tune out" their elders, I always enjoyed hearing their stories (many others beside this one neighbor)......so to me , they were not "invisible".......but fun to be around.

We also enjoyed the simple life........and I doubt if that will change, no matter where we live.

It's already getting chilly and damp up here, so really looking forward to the sunshine and more warmth.

I enjoyed your posts.