Looking for Jan under $3K
 

Anyone know of a home available for Jan for under $3K with a golf cart and golf?
We figure we should probably try a whole month before we make any rash decisions.

Thanks

I don't know Jan but she must be smoking something.

:pepper2::pepper2::pepper2:

Gunther, you simply won't get any location in TV for 3k in January, especially for a 3br 2 bath. If you are open to December drop me a PM.

It's simple economics there is a greater demand than availability.

We who keep monthly rentals must pay the expenses for the entire year from the rent on the only four months anyone is interested in -- Jan-Apr. If there was ever any chance of anybody ever asking for December or May, we wouldn't have to ask $4k for January.

If you want to spend a month in The Villages for less that $3K, there are 9 other months in the year when you can actually do that. And even at $4K in January, it's a steal compared to 30 days in a hotel room. Heck, it's a steal compared to a whole house at any vacation destination you can imagine. I bet you couldn't rent a house for one January month in Poughkeepsie for $3K!

4k for Jan is under market, a bargain if it is not a patio villa. In my village we get 5,500 and up for 3br, 2 bath.

It all depends upon proximity to the squares and when you take the reservation. My neighbor has already booked 2025 prime season. I've had people try to book three years in advance to lock in today's pricing.

Renting for at least a month is a very good idea. Think the price you are looking for is very unrealistic.

We rented for the month of June to see how we liked this place during the summer months.

Paid a lot less than 3000 though but a cart was not included

I don’t think you’ll find anything for that price in Jan but your best bet is to look on Airbnb or V R B O

No way will you get that month for that money.
November is good month to rent.
A lot cheaper, easier to book a round of golf when you want to play, and TV are not full at that time, weather good. December/January can be cold!
First time wife and I stayed in TV was in year 2000 and we paid $3000 for Jan/Feb and March, for 3x2.
Those were the days!

I was looking at RentFromAVillager & it looks like there are monthly rentals for January (some with golf cart included) available, but unfortunately the pricing is high.

https://www.rentfromavillager.com/

OP if you hold out until mid December, newly closed home will try to cut a deal to get a renter for January, if they truly need the money. Not sure you will get under $3,000, but under $4,000 could be doable without a cart.

Make sure no sublet
 

If someone rents to this OP make sure there’s a ‘no sublet’ clause in the rental agreement. IMHO beware.

Be realistic
 

You’re right to spend time in The Villages to see if it’s right for you before making any decisions. A good month (or more) is smart. However, I took a look at various booking websites, and there isn’t much inventory left for the month of January. Why wait so long to book?

I’d recommend booking more in advance — try May or June or beyond. Remember, The Villages isn’t a cheap place in which to rent or buy. And honestly, nothing in Florida is these days; it’s become expensive because demand is outstripping supply.

We’re just finishing up renting a house for one month for October and this was my second visit here. We are closing on our new (preowned) house in a few days. Yay!!

Our rental was a small but nice house in DeSoto.

Stuff ain’t cheap here. ;)

try here

VH4R Home Rentals in The Villages Florida The Villages Rentals

I would wait until April or May. The weather is good, renters have left, snowbirds are leaving, prices have come down. January-March is high season, no way will you get a place for 3K, not even a patio villa.

Might have better luck renting a used travel trailer and RV lot at that price.

A buddy and his brother have rented a 3 bdrm 2 bath for $6000 in January. He's looking for someone else or a couple to share the house for $2000. Send me a private message if you're interested.

Renting a place for under $3K.
 

I agree with the others. Renting a place under $3k between January and March will be impossible. April and May would be the most desirable month because the weather is still not too hot and the snowbirds are leaving. June through September - easy to find a place at that price because those are the three hottest and most humid months of the year. It is all about supply and demand.

December Rental
 

I have December 10- 31th $2000 Courtyard Villa.
************.com/964

As you have read an under $3000/mo rental will be hard to find, esp. in January.
In my opinion December us the best month. Beautiful weather, not as cold as January, and lots of rentals available. You are smart to rent first. Best of luck.

Lifestyle Visit
 

Before we purchased, we were able to do a lifestyle visit for a month. We paid about $3000 and it was in the month of February. Not sure if their prices have gone up, but it’s worth a try. This was two years ago.

Jan
 

My thoughts exactly

First, find a time machine, set back 10 years…

You're dreaming!

Other options
 

There are websites where you can rent direct from owners, I used one for several years before we actually bought. Even 5 years ago, I had to make a lot of calls to find a place. There are several, the one I used is www. villagershomes4rent. com (spaces added, since this site is odd sometimes on embedded links).

I would also add that having rented for several years, my advice would be to NOT do January; Jan and Feb weather can be quite cold at times - Nov, Dec, Mar, and Apr are my favorites and Oct and May can be quite nice.

One of the advantages to renting for several years was the ability to rent in different areas each year; location can really make a difference, depending on the activities you find you are interested in. TV is now grown to the point that living in one end when your major interests have most of their activities in the other end can result in a lot of time spent traveling. After several years, we figured out what we were interested in and where most of that happened, then bought a house central to that.

Good luck finding a place, and enjoy your stay!

Do a Lifestyle Visit
 

Do a LifeStyle visit for two weeks. For $160/night (when I last checked the price), The Villages gives you a nearly new 3 bdrm home, a golf cart, two bicycles, and a lot of freebies.

You do not have to sit through a sales pitch. You meet a representative at the Brownwood sales office. He/she hands you a paper bag with keys, garage door opener, a map etc and leads you to the house, answers your questions, points out locations on the map, tells you to call if you need anything, and leaves. You'll never again see the rep unless you want to. LifeStyle visitors are treated like royalty. If you need anything--a tee time etc, the rep will see that you get it. You'll even have a newspaper on the driveway every morning.

**I just checked. Current price in January is $179/night

So many people offering the advice to rent outside of the high-season months, but the OP stated that they want to experience TV before making the decision to buy.
If the ultimate goal of the OP is to perhaps spend the winter months in TV, then the OP needs to rent during those months in order to know what it will be like. Renting in July is not going to give the OP much of an insight into what life is like here in January, now, is it?

Probably not impossible to find a place for 3K, however you'd need to get lucky with a last minute cancellation, and you'd certainly run the risk of not getting anything at all.
I used to rent, and while renting from an agency is not the cheapest way to go, it comes with some safety features that are missing from direct rentals,

Gunther - I saw your other post looking for a sublet. That's a rarity and unlikely permissible by the owner ... something which I would not recommend you pursue. Your search for a bargain could land yourself out on the curb and your $3k gone. If it sounds too good to be true ....

If I owned this house might have vetted the renter but now the renter will sublet. Would not approve if I owned the place

Very risky. Besides the neighbors noticing and reporting/complaining to the owners, landlords commonly have doorbell cameras. In fact, I just learned that some internet modems can be used to track/report devices within the home (i.e. how many cell phones are in the home and when).

The lengths some people will go to in order to stretch a dollar. I can't imagine an owner would drastically increase the monthly rate for two couples to share the contract. Again, a cost savings gamble which could result in a big loss and headache.

Well my internet tells me how many devices are using it, the water bill indicates how much water has been use, and the doorbell camera and back outside camera indictates what’s going on. I never rent to any one, this is for my information only. But you are correct, even if a car parks on my driveway both Empty Nest from The Villages Property Management and two of my neighbors call me to see if it is ok?

As far as renting in January on a budget, I would do the Lifestyle visit myself. It is the best way to find out what TV has to offer.

Wow, that’s nice.
The landlord priced the rent for a couple. So now the landlord will have to pay for more water and electricity and extra wear and tear.

All tenants should be on lease

Hope landlord has a no sublet clause.

We are looking for a new 4WD SUV without computer chips and a 5 speed manual transmission for under $20K. I think we are both SOL! Hope you find the rental.

When we did our 2nd Lifestyle visit last November the max allowed was 7 nights. I don’t think that has changed.

Lifestyle visit
 

Lifestyle visit is probably your best option at this late date. You can see and learn a lot about TV in two weeks.

January rental
 

I may have something that will work for you but need more information. # of guests etc.

In reading through these posts, I am finding some very ambitious pricing. Sure, you can spend a lot of money for a seasonal rental. Many are about 3k per month. But, can you find a suitable house for less? You sure can! We have done if for years. But, I have also found that we have had to take different rentals over the years because landlords simply sell their properties when they can't find suitable renters at the exorbitant prices they wish to get.

We recently had that happen with my need for a December rental. We have never paid more than $1750 for the month with a golf cart included. They have ranged from courtyard villas to designer homes. All have been lovely. But, the last landlord sold his house this year.

So, We need to secure a December rental between 44 and 466 for this year. We are quiet, non pet owning. We don't smoke. Anyone have a blank in their rental income for December that they would like to fill with a responsible couple. This could be an ongoing year to year type of situation. PM me if you have such a place

You paid $1750 for a place with a golf cart in the villages December of 2022? Was it a single room? The prices have skyrocketed since just before covid. We had rented our house out for a few months when we bought in 2020 and June - August of 2020 was $2000/month. Jan-March was almost $5000. If we were renting it now it would be in the $5500-$6000 range for those months, and that does not include a golf cart

You'd be surprised by the lowball offers that you get sometimes. I once had an offer for 37.00 a night including taxes. My philosophy is if you are that cheap my half a million dollar investment property isn't the right fit for you and I'll just keep it vacant.

Adjusted for inflation and season I'd say the same to $58 a night (1750/mo).