Moving to TV and have more questions:
 

So I've been reading every forum and all information I can get. Our plan is to come July, August and September - rent a furnished place while looking for our home. I just read that more homes come on the market during the high season when more people are there... So do most of you agree? Do most rentals come with a golf cart or is there somewhere to rent them? I have read all of the information on different neighborhoods and most people are partial to their neighborhoods but is there one village you would avoid and why? I understand I need to have a realtor and a Village salesperson and I want to stay open for FSBO's too. I'm sure I'll have more questions but feel free to jump in with whatever you wish you knew when you were beginning the process of moving to TV. Thank you

Save most of your questions until you get here. Many you will answer yourself or the answers will become obvious.

Renting is a great idea. Many rentals come with carts but carts can be rented also. But keep in mind the additional cost of renting a cart. Doesn’t add up to rent a place because it is $200 a month cheaper but doesn’t include a cart and then pay $400 a month for a cart. I have no idea what a cart costs to rent, I was just giving an example.

As long as you find a place you can be comfortable in and can ride a cart easily to most places, it doesn’t really matter which village you rent in. You will probably be much choosier about which area to buy in once you explore.

I rent my place out, I estimate that 70 -80% of rentals do not include the cart. Honestly, I don't recover the cost of the cart in extra income. It might be a different story if I had bought a used cart, usually that is what you will find. Expect to be approached by several landlords offering to rent to you, based upon your post.

Watch Skip Smith videos on YouTube.

Holy cow. No one likes this place more than I do, but do I understand you are coming here to rent a place in order to buy a place and you have never been here???

Like...you are bringing your stuff with you?

We didn't buy a golf cart until six months after moving into our home here. And there are PLENTY homes for sale at all times. Just don't hesitate when you find the one you like, someone else is sure to like it too.

LOL - no we did the 4 night preview before we made the decision to move. We decided to rent first to give ourselves an opportunity to try and make a good decision about which village and/or neighborhood we would prefer.

Go to the various on-line Villages house rental services, click the box that you want a golf cart included in the rental. There will be plenty for you to choose from. You could select different villages for each month and experience 3 distinct areas.

I am so pleased to know this. You will love it here. LOVE it here.

Happiness to you. We all wait to Welcome you HOME!

Good way to go about it. We visited here many times and have always liked it. Last year we spent a month here and put our home on the market the day after we got back home. Once it sold, we found a furnished rental with a cart and moved all of our stuff into storage. We bought a new home before the first week was over. We close on it in a couple of hours from now and, if the weather cooperates at least a little, will begin moving in this afternoon.

By the way, the 3/2 courtyard villa we rented is south of 466A, is furnished, has a cart, and I believe it is currently available July thru November still. We have enjoyed the location and the neighborhood is super quiet.

4 days into the lifestyle visit my sister bought a lovely place on a golf course. 6 months later she sold it and bought an even lovelier place.

They say the average villager moves 2.7 times. I must admit I've never met an average villager.

There is also the old quote 'location location location'. But hey, this whole place is The Villages, so that's solved.

Me, I figured out what I wanted to do and how I wanted to spend my time . 2 years later I'm still in the same house.

Enjoy yourself and have fun. Oh wait, both of those phrases are synonyms for The Villages.

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When we were looking at homes with out sales person, she told us that it is not unusual for residents to change homes two or three times. That tells you that there is some important things that you learn only after living here a while. Things about the community, and things about yourself. Some rent for a year before buying just for that reason.

This would be my recommendation as well. I have rented three different times in three different areas of The Villages. Based on my experiences I have a good idea of where I would purchase and what style of house I would want. This goes for micro locations as well if one is considering a golf course or preserve lot.

Since some of the things have changed holding you back from leaving California, is moving to the east coast now more a priority?

Yes it is. My daughter is miraculously well enough now to move back to Maryland where she wants to live. She looks forward to residing near younger family members and long term friends from college. She tells me "I am not a California Girl." although she moved here from MD back in 1994. She is closing on a house she found on the internet on 6/15. She made a contingent offer before physically seeing it which worked out remarkably well. I would like to live closer to her but I do not do winters so actually TV is at the top of my list.

MCO - BWI flight times are about two hours and both cities are in the same time zone. Piece of cake compared to going from SNA, LGB or LAX to BWI, six to ten hours, depending on whether there is a connection or not and three times zones away.