New vs established
 

What is the difference in living in a new area of TV than in a already established one?

Established one has shopping and other immenities, new build might have to wait some time

The established ones are older.

Lots of differences, but by far the biggest difference is Championship golf. If a variety of easily accessible Championship golf is important to you, go North. If walking trails are your thing, and you don’t care much about golf, you might prefer the new southern Villages.

The established homes are closer to the 441/27 corridor which has popular restaurants and shopping. We live between 466 and 466A, which IMHO, is the best place to be for the 441/27 corridor of retail and restaurants. 466 also has a great corridor of restaurants too. I prefer to be closer to the many retail stores and restaurants but others can do without the proximity to retail and restaurants. The 441/27 corridor is also dotted with plenty of medical facilities.

You have to decide what is important to you. The new areas in the Southern Villages have lots to offer, just not the same as the established areas.

Retail stores in the 441/27 corridor include:
Home Depot
Bed Bath and Beyond
Kohl's
Best Buy
Pet Smart
Target
Pier One
Michael's
Jo Ann's
Staples
Belk
Bealls
Lowes
Marshalls/HomeGoods
Ace Hardware
at least 2 Car Washes
and many more

Restaurants in the 441/27 corridor include:
Applebees
Bamboo Bistro
Carrabbas
Texas Roadhouse
Miller's Ale House
Chilis
and many more

The 466 corridor of restaurants include:
Bone Fish Grill
Red Lobster
Olive Garden
and many more

The new builds are all in the furthest south areas of the Villages. If you are interested in the entertainment offered at The Savannah Center or The Sharon Morse theater, it's a solid 30 minutes drive by car. Since most of those performances are in the evening, some people might not be comfortable driving that far in the dark after a show. For some people that won't be a big deal. We that a 30 minute drive is longer than it used to be.

All new builds are across 44 and the turnpike from the rest of the villages. Golf cart bridges are up, but the paths aren't there yet so getting to the rest of TV by cart isn't possible yet. Dining, groceries, doctors, dentists, etc mean at least 15 minutes each way in a car.

Established homes have more of these things nearby, and they are golf cart accessible. The further north you buy, the denser the infrastructure. Older homes frequently have the bond paid off, and can have improvements made by the previous owner. Landscaping is more mature to the north. For entertainment, The Studio at Tierra del Sol, Sharon Morse Performing Arts Center and The Savannah Center are all north of 466.

One that was big for me was mature landscaping and beautiful live oaks. If you have a western facing lanai and no shade tree around, you won't be using that lanai in the afternoon.

Many, but not all, established home have a paid Bond. Big Savings.

Not entirely true. New builds are on both sides of the turnpike, Paddock Square, dining, groceries, doctors, dentists, etc. are 10 minutes or less from any of the villages south of 44 as is the new 24 hour emergency room and the new Brownwood Health Center, in addition it's only 15 minutes from the UF Leesburg Hospital. Some older homes have the bond paid off but it is reflected in higher asking prices, they also will be nearer to the time when you will need a new HVAC system or roof and you get no warranty as on a newly built home. The new builds have more up to date windows, insulation, electrical, smart features, etc. and most of all the new homes cost less than the used ones when comparing apples to apples. Big box shopping is 20 minutes away and the Savannah Center, etc. are a good 30 minutes if you're into that. All in all it boils down to what you do and what you like, have to look at them all. We came down 3 years ago to look at used homes which we did, but when we were shown Fenney, it was a done deal buying a new spec home on the spot. Almost everyone south of 44 likes it here but there are as in all areas a handful that are not happy. Most of the complaints you see on here about the southern villages for some reason are from people that do not live down here, not all, but most. Take your time and enjoy looking at as much as you can.

I guess who haven't been here. You should try a Lifestyle Visit. The info on the The Villages website, it's $99 a night and you'll stay in a courtyard villa with a golf cart near Brownwood Square. You could fill a book between the differences.

I live in a nine year old CYV that I bought new, so it's fairly established. We are 3-1/2 miles from LSL (Lake Sumter Landing) and 4 miles from Brownwood and 20 minutes from SS (Spanish Springs). If you like live entertainment at the squares, the movie theaters, restaurants, MVP at Brownwood or at SS (Spanish Springs), then right now those areas are not near the new areas and and cannot reached by your own golf cart until the bridges are finished.

The 12 championship golf courses, 10 of which are 27 hole layouts are in the established areas only, I can reach 8 of them in my own golf cart with my clubs on the back in 25 minutes or less.

The landscaping, the homeowners individual landscaping has all grown in and the homes appear like an established neighborhood.

As mentioned earlier, resales will have a lower bond or a paid in full bond. In fact the bond started at a much lower rate, my CYV bond was $14,000 when it started. I pay $1100 a year or there is a payoff of about $12,000 if I desired to do so.

Shopping and restaurant areas on the southside are Colony and Trailwinds. In the center part the entire 466 highway, which is only 20 minutes from my area. The SS area is 441/27 which is only 20 minutes from my area, and the north end is Mulberry Plaza. Plus these areas are all accessible by golf cart if I desired.

Essentially the new areas lack the shopping, championship golf and the nearness to the squares, and the connection via golf cart trails.

Brownwood Square

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Lake Sumter Landing

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So, looks like you have been looking at TV for six years now. You have asked some great questions. Did you visit in 2014? Either way, you really need to come down and see the new areas for yourself.

Other reason for us is as we get older who wants to be so far from the 27/441 corridor.

Or who want's to be near to it? I go there once, maybe twice a year if Belk's has a good sale otherwise I have no need to fight the traffic on 441/27, I don't like driving on that road at all. I would rather take the back roads to Ocala.

Considering the massive size of The Villages it will be warmer on the south end in the winter. :a040::a040::a040::a040:

Yes, I did visit and now I am actually retiring and ready to move!

I was looking at new homes but they seem a little close to the turnpike and just started looking at older homes yesterday...so excited!

That is the one reason hubby and I would not ever consider living south of 44. It is a personal decision. We would not even consider living south of 466A actually but, as I said, that is a personal decision.

Once there is connectivity from the new areas to the established areas, if you plan to golf cart to Lake Sumter Landing or especially Spanish Springs, pack a lunch.

Seriously???????

Good luck in your search and have fun with it.

Another big difference is golf cart accessibility. Our home is in the established area and for the first three years we owned our home we never had a car. Easy to get from the airport to our front door and vise versa via shuttle. There really is no need to own a car in the Northern parts of the Villages. We are able to shop for anything we need, dine out, enjoy all the amenities, go to shows at the Sharon, Savana Center and the Studio at Tierra Del Sol, and play 12 different Championship golf courses, all via golf cart. The only time we wished we had a car would be to take a day trip to the beach or to play golf outside the bubble during the busy winter season. You kind of have to have a car in the new area. We did finally buy a used Florida car, from a listing in the classified section of TOV, but we barley use it. No need.

Younger ages as you travel south. Sometimes established areas have neighbors that were there from day one. Not all the time but sometimes neighbors are not a fan you moved there

What are your desires in the resale, single home, or CYV or Patio Villa? A large garage with golf cart garage, a swimming pool, 2 bedroom or 3, no carpet anywhere, all the upgrades already done or a basic home and you'll upgrade to your desire? Location near a square, a golf course, north end, middle, south area? So many choices.

The reason I ask, is I'm always looking at resales and I live in a CYV and really like it. However, I wish I has a swimming pool, and we've doing upgrades gradually. This year we'll redo the master shower and bath and granite countertops in the kitchen.

I saw a CYV for sale right now for $479K that has it all, except one thing, it doesn't have a 2 car garage, but what it has more than makes up for that, and it's in a great location in Fernandina.

Homefinder - The Villages(R) Homes and Villas for Sale

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Take a deep dive inside yourself and determine what’s important to you.

When we came down for our Lifestyle Preview (almost 3 years ago) we stayed in a CYV across from Brownwood and really enjoyed it. If one wanted new, Fenney was basically your only option within the Villages, and it was being pushed hard by the tours and guides.

I mentioned to the tour guide that Fenney seemed like it was in the middle of nowhere, and she said it would all be built out with stores, restaurants, medical offices, other amenities, and golf cart connectivity within a year or two. Well, that didn’t happen. Now there’s talk of a 4th square coming in Coleman, and I’m sure that whole area will be spectacular in another 10-15 years, but we were not willing to be pioneers and wait that long.

We like the Villages, but even as beautiful as the nature areas are down there, in addition to new construction, we wanted more restaurant choices than the Fenney Grille and a couple food trucks in Marsh Bend. We also didn’t like that it’s a 15-20 minute drive for basic needs like groceries, and even longer drives for any entertainment.

We resumed our search of the area and ended up between 466 and 466A about a mile west of Buena Vista on Rainey Trail in Lakeside Landings. We are not in the villages proper, but we got a beautiful new construction home with no bond or CDD. We don’t golf (btw, golf is supposedly losing its popularity big time.....will golf be as important to buyers in 10 or even 5 more years?). The money we saved on the bond and cdd was put into a street legal golf cart, and we connect to the trails about 2 blocks away.

What works for us may not work for you, so, back to my opening line, take a deep dive inside yourself and determine what’s important to you and yours. Good luck.

yep, it's a nice drive through farm land.

You can get new builds on the Historic side east of 27/441 'cos they are tearing out the old manufactured homes and building ranches and block and stucco - fantastic location a few minutes from all the stuff on 27/441 very quiet if you choose a plot away from the road and all the huge mature trees you could want - all bond paid !! Terrific !!!

Primary difference is one is established and one is not.

I agree with your insights. Live in Caroline, love the mature landscaping by Spanish Springs.

One thing you should really consider is the orientation of the house. We have a 3/2 designer which backs to a villa wall. The wall is fully landscaped, our lanai is glassed-in, and our oversized patio has a pergola. Our lanai faces north/northeast and is shaded and comfortable almost all day. We love our lanai/patio and spend most of the time there. If fact, we eat most of our meals in the lanai which has a mini split, a/c heater.

Good luck with your search.

That's the same conclusion we've come to.

We want to be able to immerse ourselves in the entire lifestyle the day the moving van leaves and are not interested in waiting years, for other areas to get to where the heart of TV already is.

The villages has purchased 6 miles of land running south along the turnpike and in approximately 15 years they'll be more homes below 44 than above it.

I live in the new section and I'm 53. From what I've been told younger people are moving into the new sections.

After nearly a year living here I can say if I had to buy all over again I would have bought closer to 466 if the money was not a factor. I paid 202k and I got the home I really liked. Buying a resale obviously means less choices and more updating cost.

I hope this helps you.

It was mentioned here several months ago by someone that they are no longer doing that.

The biggest difference is whether the Bond has been paid in the older sections. If not, the Bond is very high in the newly areas.

The infrastructure bond. Most in Marion County are paid off, or did not amount to much anyhow. Go south, and bond prices are big. The further south you go the bigger the bond will be.

Speaking from experience! One of the main reasons you need to highly consider is how fast do you want to make friends and how social do you want to be.

People in Older established neighborhoods already have established friends and social networks. In addition, the longer you live Here the less of the Amenities you will use...like the music on the squares.

People moving into newer areas are looking for friends and social groups to join. Friends are a lot easier to make and will accept you faster. They have a tendency to be extremely active.

Gook luck.

I agree, Seriously??
 

I agree, Seriously?? If you live in The Villages you don’t go on 441/27 to shop Belks or wherever. You go in your golf cart. There is a golf cart bridge if you want to cross for Lowe’s etc.

Bonds are either paid or nearing the end and mature TREES!

it all comes down to personal preference....every part of TV has pluses to it

We went new...didn't want the hassle of renovating, and it was easier to meet neighbors as everyone on the street was new

another fellow I know wanted to be in the more established areas where the trees were fully grown

we don't golf....but had been going to The Sharon, Savannah Center and Tierra del Sol on a regular basis....so being north of 466A makes that easier

when it comes to the bond...if the bond is paid off it's going to be reflected in the price somehow....if there is a bond you pay is over a number of years

good luck, hope you find the home of your dreams

new vs old
 

Speaking from my experience, the biggest difference is with the older home you will have to update everything! If you loved the 80's style of paint, lighting, fixtures, flooring, counter tops, north is where it is at! You may save on the bond, but you will pay that much on bringing the house into this century! Bought new on the south side just last week. Didn't feel like redoing an entire house. The drive ain't bad for the what you want on the north side. In my humble opinion! We all know what opinions are!

I would look at all options. Many preowned homes have been updated and have amenities which would be costly to add in a new home. Another consideration is the lack of recreation centers with indoor meeting rooms considering the amount of homes south of 44. Many clubs are very crowded at Everglades, Riverbend and Fenney Recreation Centers. There are less rec centers per capita south of 44. During the hot months the usage of the outdoor amenities will decrease so the indoor activities are important too.

Great photos John W. Hoping it will look like that again before too long.:)