T Minus 3 to 5 years

[T-325]

Hello everyone

I have been a long time lurker from Boston MA and just want to take a moment to say Hi and thank everyone for all the Q&A that goes on here.

In anticipation of our eventual move (I like to plan and be prepared)..we just accepted an offer on our house. My wife and I will down size into an apartment for the next couple of years.

We have visited The Villages a few times while vacationing in Orlando and plan to do a LSV this fall.

Thanks again

T-325

[bkcunningham1]

Hello everyone

I have been a long time lurker from Boston MA and just want to take a moment to say Hi and thank everyone for all the Q&A that goes on here.

In anticipation of our eventual move (I like to plan and be prepared)..we just accepted an offer on our house. My wife and I will down size into an apartment for the next couple of years.

We have visited The Villages a few times while vacationing in Orlando and plan to do a LSV this fall.

Thanks again

T-325

Welcome to Talk of the Villages, T-325. Cute name, btw. Congratulations on the offer on your home. I hope the sale works out perfectly for you. You are going to love the LSV.

[Jrcohn1]

Hello Boston. We are researching too. My wife and I live in south east Florida and are exploring retirement options in fl. The villages are high on the list. However it looks like there is a lot of research ahead. Fortunately, we are at least 5 years out. Did you decide where to buy in this megalopolis? How did you decide?

[DougB]

Welcome to TOTV T-325 and JrCohn1. You will certainly find a lot of information here. Great place to get all your questions answered.

[klc1923]

I too am the "planner". I search these boards regularly to get facts, opinions and suggestions. We plan to come down again in the fall to say a few days and get the feel of the land.

Congratuations on the sale of your home
Karen

[T-325]

Thank you. From following all the different threads it seems like there are many people are in that 3 to 5 year waiting period.

My wife wants to start spending her Winters at the villages in 3 years while I'll wait for Social Security to kick in in 5 years. And so we will start looking this Fall and plan to buy a house when we find one that makes us pull out that check book.

[ilovetv]

Hello everyone

I have been a long time lurker from Boston MA and just want to take a moment to say Hi and thank everyone for all the Q&A that goes on here.

In anticipation of our eventual move (I like to plan and be prepared)..we just accepted an offer on our house. My wife and I will down size into an apartment for the next couple of years.

We have visited The Villages a few times while vacationing in Orlando and plan to do a LSV this fall.

Thanks again

T-325

Great idea, to sell and downsize there for a couple of years. The savings on house expense will be great for your purchase here or retirement funds. Lots of happy people from MA are here, and cost of living here is a treat!

[2BNTV]

:welcome: to TOTV. You will love TV when you come for a LSV.

My advice is that you read older threads for info and ask a lot of questions. I too have used this site to learn about TV and it has been invaluable. There are many smart people here.

Be prepared to be blown away by the beauty of TV and it's friendly people. :smiley:

[justjim]

[QUOTE=T-325;653407]Hello everyone

I have been a long time lurker from Boston MA and just want to take a moment to say Hi and thank everyone for all the Q&A that goes on here.

In anticipation of our eventual move (I like to plan and be prepared)..we just accepted an offer on our house. My wife and I will down size into an apartment for the next couple of years.

We have visited The Villages a few times while vacationing in Orlando and plan to do a LSV this fall.

Thanks again

T-325[/. :ho: Sounds like a plan. There will always be homes available in TV. Good luck.

[chuckinca]

We bought in early 05 and came twice a year for two weeks. In 08 & 09 did 3 months each winter and two weeks in the fall. Retired in 010 have been doing 8 months and 3 in CA since. Hope to start full time in 015.

A ten year (or more) journey.

.

[T-325]

Chuck, I have a few questions for you.

Did you rent out your home during the 2005 - 2010 time frame?
Did you buy new in 2005?
Did you have someone local "house watch." Was there some long distance maintenance issues?
Even with such a short stay during those years did you get to know your neighbors?

I see from some other threads you have a RV. Do many people go RVing across the USA during the summer? My wife and I are campers and were thinking about a small RV for exploring the good ole USA for 10 weeks or so each summer. Did a cross country trip with the kids in 2002 pulling a pop up. Lots of fun had by all.

Thanks
T-325

[Schaumburger]

To all the planners and long term wannabees, I am in the same boat as you as it will be a few(?) years until I can buy in TV. But I thoroughly enjoy my visits to TV as every time I have visited TV I have rented in a different village to get a feel of living in the different areas of TV. Next month I will venture to the Village of Del Mar, just a few blocks from Spanish Springs.

As others have said, TOTV has a wealth of information for wannabees and gonnabees so post questions and keep reading TOTV.

[asianthree]

we are 6 years out bought in 2010 use six weeks a year with family sometimes using our home...we rented out this winter and next winter...you have to have a good home watch person things happen and is they are on top of it can save you lots of heart ache and sleepless nights

[dndlion]

We are 3 to 4 years out also. Next year the house goes up for sale, move into an aprtment for a few years. I figure since the misses retired a few years ago at 57 it is only fair for me to retire at 57 also. We plan on visiting next year to check out the different villages and house styles.

[SannyTX]

Hello everyone

I have been a long time lurker from Boston MA and just want to take a moment to say Hi and thank everyone for all the Q&A that goes on here.

In anticipation of our eventual move (I like to plan and be prepared)..we just accepted an offer on our house. My wife and I will down size into an apartment for the next couple of years.

We have visited The Villages a few times while vacationing in Orlando and plan to do a LSV this fall.

Thanks again

T-325

I've also been lurking around here for a while; also from the Boston area; and we are also 3 to 5 years from retirement.

I heard about TV probably 15 years ago from commercials on The Golf Channel. I loved the concept but never seriously considered it because, well, it's in Florida and I have long said I would "never" move to Florida. I also said I would "never" move to the northeast and live around all those funny-talking, heathen, yankees. Turns out I've been here 14 years and love it. I'm not sure why I have had this thing about moving to FL. We visit often and we've always had a wonderful time.

We take golf vacations pretty much every year and always check out potential retirement communities wherever we go. We have visited places in Palm Springs, Arizona, Hilton Head, Texas. This past December, while spending some time in Orlando, we drove up to TV for a day visit. That was all it took. We hooked up with a Villages sales agent (Pat White) who drove us around and showed us many homes in a completely low pressure way.

We came home and got motivated to start cleaning out closets and cabinets - all in preparation for retirement (me at the end of 2017 and my partner a year earlier). I started reading everything on TOTV and frequently look at homes for sale (both on The Villages web site and Realtor.com) to get an idea of pricing for the type of home we want with the features we are looking for.

We will probably do a LSV in the next year or so but I can honestly say I have TV fever!

[The Buckeyes]

I too was lurking and finally took a Life Style visit in January. I had the same plan as many of you with the 3-5 outlook but, all I had to do was drive around and open my eyes. I am building a Lily in the Village of Pinellas and close at the end of May. Bottom line.....unless the builder comes up with more property you may not have 3-5 years. All I had to do is look at the massive constuction going on, look at a map to see where the village south boundry was on SR44 and made a decision. Another point especially if you wish to build....you have had many people on TOTV mentioning the fact that they will be building more spec homes. I've heard the same from a few sales agents (this is after I informed them I bought a lot). Rumor has it about 5000 spec homes, sounds like a hell of a lot but considering last year they sold over 2800 new homes, you do the math. So BRING YOUR CHECKBOOK and decide on a model you like. Stretch it out as much as possible and hopefully you find a lot it will fit on. The sales agent can help you with this.

[T-325]

And so we are moving to the next step by renting an apartment. Picked a place that will cut our commute times in half. Of course we are reducing our living space by over a half and so we are selling stuff on Craig's list and having yard sales. I rented a storage unit to help manage the process.

When we go for a Lifestyle visit this Fall we'll just have to see. I have a hard time buying new and then renting it out for a few years. All those dings and wear and tear by tenants and so when we finally settle in the newness will be gone. So maybe a resale will be be in our future. About 10 - 12 years old. Since I am handi I figure I will fix it up we we go down full time.

Again just a plan subject to revision.