Village Advice Please

[Polar Bear]

This might be a little tough, because I would not expect anyone to speak poorly about any village in TV. But my wife and I are in the midst of trying to pick a home to buy, and of course location is an issue. This often presents a dilemma. So I'm looking for some advice from those who have been here a while...

We'd like to take advantage of the village squares...do you think we might regret a purchase in the northwest area up near SR 42? How about passing up a slightly nicer home (very vague criterion I know) for something in a centralized location?

Or how about a more general question...are there some villages that just standout as being extra good for all the many intangibles? Is Brownwood coming into its own...or is there a downside to moving into such a new/still under construction area?

Again...I'm not looking for any bad-mouthing of any village or area. And my wife and I have our ideas already. But I would still love to hear your positive thoughts about your favorite areas and villages in TV.

[wendyquat]

We had rented twice near Spanish Springs and liked it so well we just knew we would buy in that area when we moved here two years ago. We rented for 6 months, giving us ample time to search for a home and neighborhood. With Brownwood being developed we determined that we might prefer to be more "centrally" located so ended up buying in Largo and loving its central location. It's also conveniently located off of Canal Street where we are more comfortable on the cart lanes than those N of 466. It takes us 30 minutes to go to Spanish Springs or Brownwood and about 5 min to Lake Sumter (by cart).

The area between El Camino and SR 42 seems to be a bit out of the way to us and pretty far from the squares! After being here two years, it seems that we rarely meet anyone who lives in that area.

We really like Spanish Springs so South if 466a doesn't appeal to us either but if you want a new home that would be your only choice at this time.

Once you get in and meet your neighbors you will be happy in either Village! Good luck!

[queasy27]

Are you looking for a new build, PolarBear?

It comes down to personal preference of course, and everyone is partial to their own Village, but a consideration for me was closeness to shopping. I pop out a lot and wouldn't want to drive for miles just to get groceries or go to the drugstore.

[l2ridehd]

We made a decision to be central to everything in TV. We bought in Sunset Pointe. 5 minutes to LSL and 20 minutes to SS or BW. A slightly better location IMHO would be Winified. Only because it is 10 minutes closer to the 466 shopping corridor. If buying again I would consider Winified, Belvedere, Tall Trees, Bonneybrook, Ashland, Lynnhaven, Bridgeport, Virginia Trace, Sabal Chase, Sunset Pointe, parts of Liberty Park and Mallory, and that general circle.

Stay away from the power lines, train tracks, and backing to a busy street. All have a negative impact on value. And now we will hear all the exceptions to that, and I am sure there are some.

[skip0358]

It's nice to be near places you might need to go like grocery stores, restaurants,gas station, the local pub and the square. As for a new area here's what we found as we moved into an area that was well under construction. There's noise as they start work early, there's tons of traffic and congestion, flat tires,and TONS of dust and dirt. The good thing about a new area you'll meet other great neighbors and friends because you will all be starting lives new journey together. Also I use my golf cart for ALL my transportation in TV regardless of where it is and have no trouble with it . I just leave a little earlier. Hope this helps somewhat.

[gomoho]

Location of course was one of our criteria, but we also had to love the look of the neighborhood we would be coming home to everyday. And eventhough the homes are mostly the same here the difference in what extras people do to enhance the exterior are striking and part of what helped us make our decision. We are in Hadley.

[Bonny]

When we first moved here in 2000 we lived in Santiago, the last Village being built then. We moved to BonnyBrook in 2004 and love it. It really is centrally located to everything. Even Brownwood we are a straight shot down Buena Vista. Location really does make a difference. But, it's all good ! :wave:

[buggyone]

My choice was an established area for a resale home. We saw exactly what we got. No surprises of what will be built next to you. Landscaping is mature. Lots of great extras were built in the house that we would have to added on later at extra cost. Even things like gutters are an add-on that you think of as normally being on a house.

No construction noise or dirt or rubbish or nails.

The new neighborhood does have a closer knit feeling since all move in at the same time - but sometimes that goes too far and everyone knows exactly what is happening within a couple of hours.

I almost forgot - you can negotiate price with a resale but NOT with a new home. That can save lots of money!

Don't forget one big thing about resales vs new builds. The Bond. The older the home, the lower the bond. My bond 4 years ago on my resale was only $1500. Friends of mine who bought new in St. Charles at that time had bonds of $20,000. Now, bonds are higher at around $25,000 and up to $50,000. That makes a pretty significant difference at tax time. Some posters have said, "Only about and extra $1500." Personally, I will take that extra $1500 per year and use it on some outstanding fun for myself.

My advice - get a sales agent from BOTH Villages Properties and an MLS agent - since neither can show each other's listings - and concentrate on resales. Look for your dream home be it with a golf view, water view, or whatever you want.

[Newbeginnings]

When I visited I looked at new and pre-owned, finally deciding on new build south of 466A. I am in my 50's, single so the newer neighborhoods appealed to me as most of the people are new retirees and have not formed close attachments in groups. I live close to Colony for shopping and not far from Sumter Landing or Brownwood. My sister lives north of 466 and it's different, but she's happy where she is living and fits her lifestyle. I think anywhere would be friendly in The Villages, but for me living south in the new neighborhoods was my best fit.

[graciegirl]

We made a decision to be central to everything in TV. We bought in Sunset Pointe. 5 minutes to LSL and 20 minutes to SS or BW. A slightly better location IMHO would be Winified. Only because it is 10 minutes closer to the 466 shopping corridor. If buying again I would consider Winified, Belvedere, Tall Trees, Bonneybrook, Ashland, Lynnhaven, Bridgeport, Virginia Trace, Sabal Chase, Sunset Pointe, parts of Liberty Park and Mallory, and that general circle.

Stay away from the power lines, train tracks, and backing to a busy street. All have a negative impact on value. And now we will hear all the exceptions to that, and I am sure there are some.

Chris you know I respect anything you say mightily but on the issue of a busy street I have to disagree. We live in a new village right off of 466 and three houses have resold...immediately. We couldn't be "centraler" and we love going right out onto 466 and heading right to the grocery store, many restaurants and doctors and shopping. We can get right to Buena Vista and Morse and go north or south.

The grocery is where I go most often and I love being close. Some folks I know have never turned on their oven and restaurants are hugely important.

I think that you cannot go wrong ANYWHERE. My favorite village second to the one we now live in is Hadley. We owned a home there and I loved it. We lived right against Odell rec center and could go right out the back door and walk to the swimming pool.

I love Sanibel too. It is all filled in now and the folks are getting things all finished looking and I have not met anyone from there who wasn't so enjoyable.

Of course I love Caroline and Sabel Chase, and I love where you live PTurner and Bonita and Hemingway is nice...and anything off of Canal.

Well my dears, it is so hard to go wrong.

Do NOT live next to a grouch. It ruins everything. But I don't know where he lives. Or she.:wave:

[gatherer47]

We are in De La Vista West which is equally distant between Lake Sumter and Spanish Springs,which makes it very convenient.And Bonny is from Bonnybrook-Wow,c'mon Bonny admit it,that's why you moved there-LOL

[asianthree]

We rented three times before we bought...its hard to say what one person loves and another one does not...but here is my 2 cents...we do not go to the squares often, so our cart ride is about 20 minutes to two of them...grocery is not a big deal either since i use a car for that and prefer fresh market....golf, that is everywhere so not an issue...yep we are in fernandina and not sure if that will stick, but found in the cart we could get where we wanted...we have a kissing lanai and now have a landscape buffer..said no to a busy road but i know at night sound goes down greatly...chris is right if we look again it will be sable, virginia,maybe stjames or duval

[Bonny]

We are in De La Vista West which is equally distant between Lake Sumter and Spanish Springs,which makes it very convenient.And Bonny is from Bonnybrook-Wow,c'mon Bonny admit it,that's why you moved there-LOL

LOL, it definitely worked out that way. :smiley:
Actually, we were the very first house built south of 466. The villas were in, but we were the first house.

[CFrance]

Chris you know I respect anything you say mightily but on the issue of a busy street I have to disagree. We live in a new village right off of 466 and three houses have resold...immediately. We couldn't be "centraler" and we love going right out onto 466 and heading right to the grocery store, many restaurants and doctors and shopping. We can get right to Buena Vista and Morse and go north or south.

The grocery is where I go most often and I love being close. Some folks I know have never turned on their oven and restaurants are hugely important.

I think that you cannot go wrong ANYWHERE. My favorite village second to the one we now live in is Hadley. We owned a home there and I loved it. We lived right against Odell rec center and could go right out the back door and walk to the swimming pool.

I love Sanibel too. It is all filled in now and the folks are getting things all finished looking and I have not met anyone from there who wasn't so enjoyable.

Of course I love Caroline and Sabel Chase, and I love where you live PTurner and Bonita and Hemingway is nice...and anything off of Canal.

Well my dears, it is so hard to go wrong.

Do NOT live next to a grouch. It ruins everything. But I don't know where he lives. Or she.:wave:

But I get what l2ride is saying, Gracie, when it comes to some streets. You have a buffer where you are--466 is not directly in your backyard. There is a cart path and a lot of landscaping between 466 and your neighborhood. I don't think there are any houses whose backyards sit directly on 466 in your neighborhood. I may be mistaken? Some houses back right up to a busy street--Bailey Trail and St. Charles come to mind--and the privacy is nil.

As for the grouch... he isn't anywhere near us either. The grouch police kept him away.:police:

[Bonny]

But I get what l2ride is saying, Gracie, when it comes to some streets. You have a buffer where you are--466 is not directly in your backyard. There is a cart path and a lot of landscaping between 466 and your neighborhood. I don't think there are any houses whose backyards sit directly on 466 in your neighborhood. I may be mistaken? Some houses back right up to a busy street--Bailey Trail and St. Charles come to mind--and the privacy is nil.

As for the grouch... he isn't anywhere near us either. The grouch police kept him away.:police:

Houses back up directly on Belvedere as well. Definitely a busy street.

[Bonnevie]

a lot depends on what's important to you. I wanted more of a yard in back of my cyv than the new ones have. I bought a resale that backs to one of the major streets--but the wall is much higher because of it. When I look out toward my back yard there is nothing but sky--not the roofs of several other villas. I love the privacy (in fact the former owner who moved into a larger house said she'll miss being able to run around naked in the house and lanai) I may hear some swishing when the cars go by but it's almost pleasant if you have tinnitus like I do. Mine is north of 466A almost equidistant to all areas.

[Polar Bear]

There are some homes that back to streets like O'dell Circle that have a great view of a pond and/or a golf course directly on the other side of the street. Cons outweigh the pros?

[l2ridehd]

There are issues with a busy street. First and foremost it does have a negative impact on value. Same house that backs to a busy street vs not will sell for less per square foot. I have over 4 years and 4000 sales that support that. It's not the time on the market but the price per square foot that is the problem. The other thing you will notice is many of the homes that back to a busy street will have the lanai enclosed. For me I want the outdoors that the lanai provides without having to close it in to be comfortable with the street noise. You can't have your windows open as often because of the early AM golf traffic zipping down the street.

I define a busy street as any that are on the Villages street map and the street name is in bold. Ask anyone who has owned one (past tense) and they will all say never again. Ask anyone who has rented one and they will avoid it when buying. For some I am sure it is not a problem, for many it is not the best solution. The reason people buy them is the assumed privacy, but they usually forfeit more then they gain.

[rubicon]

Location location location. Yes. However residents come from around the world and so making friends is important too. Distance to--------is something that can be managed as we are talking The Villages and not NYC, etc.

How much square footage one needs is also a factor , as well as price range. At this time in life one probably does not want to be house poor, nor maintain more than is essential. Important too is staus fulltime or seasonal resident.

I found my selection in Bonnybrook. I'll bet you already figured out that I am partial to Bonnybrook because it seems that those who live in Largo are partial to Largo and those in Polo Ridge Polo Ridge, etc etc etc.

N o actually Bonnybrook is the best:D

[jbdlfan]

We live in Chatham and absolutely love it here. 15 minutes to Spanish Springs and 22 minutes to LSL by way of golf cart. We have no use to go much farther than that. Personal preference. But......I will say it is much nicer this way between December and May. 1/3 the traffic and hassles. We have access to all the stores and can be in Belleview in 15 minutes and Ocala in 25. Trust me, the traffic south of 466 is horrible,in my opinion, most of the Fall and Winter. My wife used to work at Colony and she added 5-15 minutes to her drive that time of year.

[Bonnevie]

resale will be my son's problem....and anything he sells it for will be pure profit for him...and I agree, I wouldn't buy a regular house with a yard that backs to major road, a cyv with the high wall is ok for me.... to me the new cyvs with all the cement in the back and other villas all around was too clausterphobic for me and I was able to get it for a good price

[Bill-n-Brillo]

As long as you're in TV, it'll wind up being a good location! :D

Assess what things you feel are important to you then go from there - ex. some people want to be close to shopping, yet to others that's not real important.

You'll enjoy whatever you choose!

Bill :)

[janeg]

Fernandina is our home away from home. We specifically bought there because everyone is in the same starting place....all new and so happy to be here. We will spend our first 3 months starting in Sept. We spend a week in April and Brownwood was building very quickly.

Hope it helps and good luck! such happy times:)))

Jane and Jim Garrison

[NJblue]

One area that intrigues me is La Zamora. I think it's entrance off 466 is one of the prettiest, with all the mature oak trees. The entire village is unique from anywhere else that I have seen in TV with the shade trees and rolling hills. It is also convenient to both Spanish Springs and Sumter Landing as well as the shopping centers along 466 and 441. And no, we don't live there so there's no "my neighborhood is better than yours" in my opinion. There's probably a downside as well once you look at other issues, but if I were looking to buy and didn't care if it was an established neighborhood, I would check it out.

[fb32162]

We bought our first home new. Second house is in an established neighborhood. We found it easy to make friends in both. We chose a place centrally located the second time so no square, golf course or shopping is too far from us.

[fudgelady]

Hi, My husband and I are coming to live at TV soon, as we think we have sold our house in Ohio. thanks for posting all the different opinions about the different areas to choose from. I look everyday to see if there are any new resale properties on the market, but there are so many "pending". Do you know if these homes are sold, or can you still look at them and possibly buy? Can't wait to get to TV, hopefully we will be there in Aug or Sept. thanks again for the posts

[LvmyPug2]

Hi, My husband and I are coming to live at TV soon, as we think we have sold our house in Ohio. thanks for posting all the different opinions about the different areas to choose from. I look everyday to see if there are any new resale properties on the market, but there are so many "pending". Do you know if these homes are sold, or can you still look at them and possibly buy? Can't wait to get to TV, hopefully we will be there in Aug or Sept. thanks again for the posts

Pending means they have an accepted offer but the sale hasn't been finalized. Financing may fall through etc so they may still show you a home...it really is up to the buyer if they want to continue to show it.

[LynnDeb]

We loved the look and feel of the North side here. We live in Woodbury which is in Springdale. We have VA and Mulberry Shopping area just 5 mins away. We take cart its less than 30 mins to get to Lake Sumter and less for SS.

[TrudyM]

Didn't some of you say that in the summer some of the areas have a smell from the waste treatment plant? Isn't it off Buena vista and Bonita Blvd by the traffic circle? I have been keeping a comments list of pluses and minuses from you guys and I have that area of liberty Park and Largo marked as smelly. Am I wrong? Comments from people playing key largo Bacall course in that area.

[Golfingnut]

After moving in your square visits will slow down and we find a cart ride to the square enjoyable. Make the home priority one over anything else. You will spend more time in your home sitting outside than you will at the square.

[Polar Bear]

I've had an opportunity to speak to a couple of folks who back up to Buena Vista. Neither claim there is any real problem with noise. And they say they love their place, for several reason including golf course views (across the road of course). I want to believe this and they truly seem sincere.

Any further thoughts on this kind of location?

[Bonnevie]

I won't deny that it was something of a concern for me buying there despite my 8 foot wall. But I'm not buying a house thinking of resale anymore. Unless I change my mind, this will be my last move. I'm buying what I want. and I liked the feel of the openness of the back yard and I wanted more of a yard. It's interesting, but in the new construction area, lots that back up to Buena Vista are considered premium and cost more. As I said, I did get what I felt was a good deal. Was that because it backed up to Buena Vista, I don't know, the owners bought a new house and wanted to get into that....

If you have any reservations, I wouldn't do it. If you think you might sell it someday, it will probably sell for less. There was a beautiful 3 bedroom on the same street that had to undergo two price decreases but did sell. It had lots of upgrades and I would have considered it but it was the biggest 3BR cyv....so I suppose the location was a drawback...but it sold.

[T-325]

During the transition from home owner to apartment renter, my wife and I looked at many places. Location was important as well as the final finish and amenities of the property. We narrowed our choice to one complex next to Route 1 just north of Boston. The were 2 unit's in the final running a top floor unit with a view of Boston and a distant ocean view or a unit that viewed the interior of the multi buildng complex.

The only draw back to the top floor unit was my concern about the highway noise. My wife wanted the top floor with the view and while I warned her many times, we leased it. After having lived here a month I love it. The highway is just background noise which actually make the unit seem quieter as the noise from neighbors just get absorbed into the general flow. We sit on the balcony and watch the road action at times. The views are gorgeous and after month 1 we love it.

In

T-325

[TrudyM]

Didn't some of you say that in the summer some of the areas have a smell from the waste treatment plant? Isn't it off Buena vista and Bonita Blvd by the traffic circle? I have been keeping a comments list of pluses and minuses from you guys and I have that area of liberty Park and Largo marked as smelly. Am I wrong? Comments from people playing key largo Bacall course in that area.

Are there neighborhoods that have a bad smell in the hot weather. I would think all those who come and buy during high season might end up with one and not know it until they are down full time. Odors really bother me more than noise as my hearing is going but my sense of smell is just fine.

[Polar Bear]

A lot of homes that meet our criteria seem to be in the Village of Santiago. Let me hear all the good things about that village please. :^)

(You can pm me if you know any bad stuff...heheh.)