Courtyard Villas VS Cottages Homes Energy use.

[KEVIN & JOSIE]

I've heard all positives about the energy efficiency of Courtyard Villas from those who own them. Can any Cottage homeowners reflect on their energy use experiences?

[Down Sized]

They told me when I bought my cottage that it was a courtyard villa, with a yard. Same floor plan. :wave:

[KEVIN & JOSIE]

They told me when I bought my cottage that it was a courtyard villa, with a yard. Same floor plan. :wave:

How are your energy bills? I've heard from some that the concretes are more efficient than the sided ones. What have you found? Thanks

[wendyquat]

We Have been in a Foxglove cyv for 9 months. With the thermostat at 78 all summer, our electric bills have been in the $120 to $135 monthly range. Our heat, cook stove, water heater and dryer are gas. That bill runs $20 to $30 in the summer. During the winter gas bill runs a high of $75 and the electric bill drops to about $50. VCDD runs us about $205 per month. We like to be comfortable and these utilities are so much lower than we had in NC we don't feel like we have to shiver or sweat! The foxglove is cement/stucco. Hope this helps

[Down Sized]

I'm sure that is right. Concrete is a pretty good insulator. But, there are many sided villas. So the only difference is the concrete. If you pay that extra ten to fifteen thousand for a concrete villa, it will take a lot of years to recoupe in utilities. At my age I probably would not ever get there.

[John_W]

We purchased a new masonry CYV last July, we just had our one year anniversary. We have a 2BR 2BA 'Woodlawn', it's now called a 'Durham'. The only difference is the front porch overhang is 10' instead of 5', it goes out past the front bedroom window. The interior only difference is they now have tray ceilings in the bedrooms instead of a vaulted ceiling, which I actually like better.

We paid $156,900 and I think we got a pretty good deal. In fact of the 88 villas in our section, ours was the cheapest. The average price of a 2BR was $164,000 to $169,000 and overall the average was between $179,000 to $210,000 and a couple of units hit $225,000.

We started last year by keeping our A/C on 80 degrees then eventually 81. This year we keep it at about 83 degrees, any lower and it gets too cold. We have total electric everything and our bills have averaged about $92 a month until July when it hit $117. Our amenities/sewer/water/irrigation/garbage monthly bill was about $207 but lately they've been about $215.

http://www.thevillages.com/homes/newlyconstructed/NCHimages/201202190_1.jpg

[KEVIN & JOSIE]

We Have been in a Foxglove cyv for 9 months. With the thermostat at 78 all summer, our electric bills have been in the $120 to $135 monthly range. Our heat, cook stove, water heater and dryer are gas. That bill runs $20 to $30 in the summer. During the winter gas bill runs a high of $75 and the electric bill drops to about $50. VCDD runs us about $205 per month. We like to be comfortable and these utilities are so much lower than we had in NC we don't feel like we have to shiver or sweat! The foxglove is cement/stucco. Hope this helps

Sounds like the utilities are fairly reasonable. We are looking to downsize, and with so many home choices, we're trying to narrow down the right fit for us. We want a small home, with a lot less stuff and little or no maintenance. Every time we look at the website home tours, we always find another possibility. We started looking at the sided Cottage homes yesterday, and although they do have some grass to cut, the larger garages attracted me. They kinda look like a CYV, but with a little more garage space. I do like the 2 car garage CYV'S, but they seem to be quite a bit more money than the Cottage with a 2 car. That's why I was wondering if anyone that lived in a sided cottage could share there utility usage with us. Thanks for your reply! :wave:

[KEVIN & JOSIE]

I'm sure that is right. Concrete is a pretty good insulator. But, there are many sided villas. So the only difference is the concrete. If you pay that extra ten to fifteen thousand for a concrete villa, it will take a lot of years to recoupe in utilities. At my age I probably would not ever get there.

You have a very valid point & Thank You!

[Paperboy]

Bought a cottage home "Tuckett" (3 bdrms.) Nov.of 2011 in the village of St. James & we are snow birds.
In the winter the air is @ 76 & the bill is in the mid $70.'S. May - Nov. the dehumidistat is set @ 60 & 85 & the last 2 bills were in the lo$20's. Home ia ALL ELECTRIC & we have a solar attic fan.

[KEVIN & JOSIE]

We purchased a new masonry CYV last July, we just had our one year anniversary. We have a 2BR 2BA 'Woodlawn', it's now called a 'Durham'. The only difference is the front porch overhang is 10' instead of 5', it goes out past the front bedroom window. The interior only difference is they now have tray ceilings in the bedrooms instead of a vaulted ceiling, which I actually like better.

We paid $156,900 and I think we got a pretty good deal. In fact of the 88 villas in our section, ours was the cheapest. The average price of a 2BR was $164,000 to $169,000 and overall the average was between $179,000 to $210,000 and a couple of units hit $225,000.

We started last year by keeping our A/C on 80 degrees then eventually 81. This year we keep it at about 83 degrees, any lower and it gets too cold. We have total electric everything and our bills have averaged about $92 a month until July when it hit $117. Our amenities/sewer/water/irrigation/garbage monthly bill was about $207 but lately they've been about $215.

http://www.thevillages.com/homes/newlyconstructed/NCHimages/201202190_1.jpg

Nice looking home you have! Your utility bills surely look a lot better than ours up North. It's good to know you are comfortable at 83 degrees, it shows that your home is well insulated. I look forward to being comfortable at 83 degrees with a heavier wallet. :cold: Thanks :wave:

[JSX2=US]

John W
I do not currently live in the Villages, just doing my due diligence and research about a possible move to TV.

You posted:
Our amenities/sewer/water/irrigation/garbage monthly bill was about $207 but lately they've been about $215

Is this per quarter? Or per month. Please explain.

Thanks
JS

[asianthree]

John W
I do not currently live in the Villages, just doing my due diligence and research about a possible move to TV.

You posted:
Our amenities/sewer/water/irrigation/garbage monthly bill was about $207 but lately they've been about $215

Is this per quarter? Or per month. Please explain.

Thanks
JS

thats a month amenities/garbage stays the same sewer/water irrigation changes month to month

[tommy steam]

We Have been in a Foxglove cyv for 9 months. With the thermostat at 78 all summer, our electric bills have been in the $120 to $135 monthly range. Our heat, cook stove, water heater and dryer are gas. That bill runs $20 to $30 in the summer. During the winter gas bill runs a high of $75 and the electric bill drops to about $50. VCDD runs us about $205 per month. We like to be comfortable and these utilities are so much lower than we had in NC we don't feel like we have to shiver or sweat! The foxglove is cement/stucco. Hope this helps

What is VCDD?

[dkrhardy]

After the sun goes down, the concrete holds heat. That is good in the winter and not so good in the summer.
Don

[John_W]

Nice looking home you have! Your utility bills surely look a lot better than ours up North. It's good to know you are comfortable at 83 degrees, it shows that your home is well insulated. I look forward to being comfortable at 83 degrees with a heavier wallet. :cold: Thanks :wave:

I see you are from Baltimore, we moved from Abingdon near Festival Shopping Center last July. Since BG&E was deregulated about five years ago our electric bill in Abingdon was about $250 in the summer and about $400 in the winter. It's hard to complain when our bill now goes from $92 to $117. We just had plantation shutters installed yesterday so we might even have a lower bill, our house is very bright inside so we wanted to control the brightness little more.

We also had a screen installed on our garage door opening about a month ago and I now open the attic steps about a foot from the ceiling. I now can feel a nice breeze going up into the attic when I stand near the attic entrance. Since we installed the garage screen we have since set our inside temperature on 84 degrees, it's hard to believe because I'm normally a hot person.

[KEVIN & JOSIE]

I see you are from Baltimore, we moved from Abingdon near Festival Shopping Center last July. Since BG&E was deregulated about five years ago our electric bill in Abingdon was about $250 in the summer and about $400 in the winter. It's hard to complain when our bill now goes from $92 to $117. We just had plantation shutters installed yesterday so we might even have a lower bill, our house is very bright inside so we wanted to control the brightness little more.

We also had a screen installed on our garage door opening about a month ago and I now open the attic steps about a foot from the ceiling. I now can feel a nice breeze going up into the attic when I stand near the attic entrance. Since we installed the garage screen we have since set our inside temperature on 84 degrees, it's hard to believe because I'm normally a hot person.

Wow, the garage screen sounds like a really good idea. Did you put insulation above your garage? I understand they don't come with it.

Yes, we are originally from Baltimore. Yeah, years (31) ago when we first got married BG&E bills were reasonable. We currently live in Pennsylvania and we are with Met-Ed which is cheaper than BG&E but still no where near as low as you are describing in Florida. I sure do look forward to one day having those low utility bills. :pepper2:

[gerryann]

" We just had plantation shutters installed yesterday so we might even have a lower bill, our house is very bright inside so we wanted to control the brightness little more. "

John, who did you use for the shutters? Are you happy with them? I am hoping to do the same.

[graciegirl]

We purchased a new masonry CYV last July, we just had our one year anniversary. We have a 2BR 2BA 'Woodlawn', it's now called a 'Durham'. The only difference is the front porch overhang is 10' instead of 5', it goes out past the front bedroom window. The interior only difference is they now have tray ceilings in the bedrooms instead of a vaulted ceiling, which I actually like better.

We paid $156,900 and I think we got a pretty good deal. In fact of the 88 villas in our section, ours was the cheapest. The average price of a 2BR was $164,000 to $169,000 and overall the average was between $179,000 to $210,000 and a couple of units hit $225,000.

We started last year by keeping our A/C on 80 degrees then eventually 81. This year we keep it at about 83 degrees, any lower and it gets too cold. We have total electric everything and our bills have averaged about $92 a month until July when it hit $117. Our amenities/sewer/water/irrigation/garbage monthly bill was about $207 but lately they've been about $215.

http://www.thevillages.com/homes/newlyconstructed/NCHimages/201202190_1.jpg

You home is beautiful. A perfect choice. I wish you every good thing.

[John_W]

John, who did you use for the shutters? Are you happy with them? I am hoping to do the same.

I originally tried 48 Hour Blinds because I read so many good reviews. However, we could only get their voice mail and they never returned our calls so after a week I called another company I heard about, 'Blinds 4 Less'. They have an actual showroom on 441 just south of 466 on the right behind Mon & Dads Italian Restaurant.

They came out and they gave us some choices. We could of had them in 3 weeks from a company called Legacy I believe in Orlando. We had shutters in our Baltimore home by a company called Norman. He said they handled Norman, they would be cheaper but take about 8 weeks. We had been here 10 months already and since we weren't in a big hurry and we knew Norman was very nice, so we went that route. They actually took 9 weeks but they came and installed yesterday and they look great. Get the faux finish and not the real wood, they actually look better and are cheaper.

[John_W]

Wow, the garage screen sounds like a really good idea. Did you put insulation above your garage? I understand they don't come with it.

I thought about installing insulation in the garage ceiling, but one of the first things we did was put in attic steps and plywood flooring so we could have more storage. With only a 1-1/2 car garage storage is a premium. With the flooring and probably 20 boxes already up there I didn't proceed. I did put the silver bubble wrap (R3) on the inside of the garage door. During the day we usually just keep the garage door up, that way it's the same temp as it is outside and helps with air flowing up through the attic steps. The garage screen is white and it's almost impossible to see in, so you still have some privacy and security.