State count for Village residences
 

Hi all,
I posed this question directly to the editors of the Villages Daily Sun newspaper but got no reply, so trying here:

Each day, on page 4 of the newspaper there are stories from several states along with demographics of the number of houses from each state...

I have been keeping a master summary list of those state-by-state numbers here (Demographics - The Villages 101)

I'm missing all owner demographics from Arkansas, Delaware, Rhode Island, and Utah. Are there no owners from those four states?

The newspaper has not updated those numbers for well over a year. Yet the boards in the sales offices have daily/weekly new owner demographics. Doesn't make sense.

Random thoughts welcome, but not as important as other pressing issues.....

Apparently keeping up the number of households from various States is not a priority for the Daily Sun.

Maybe each is less than 1% of entire population. They were excluded because of rounding off?

Well, I doubt if you will find anyone here that would keep or have any source for those stats. If your source does not reply and they have not updated for over a year, how important can it be? Or accurate for that matter.

If it does not sell houses would not expect to see it there

The Daily Sun arrives at our house very early each morning and it has been enjoyed now for sixteen years along with our morning coffee. It does a very good job, actually has improved along the way with interesting stories about people and issues that affect us who live here as well as well sourced national and international news. It is obvious to all that the editorial section has always leaned to the right and the paper is owned and run by the same family that builds homes.

Since I think that building houses is a worthy business and I also think that this community has been very well planned, and very well maintained, I have no quarrel with any self promotion of the business of the Morse family. I think any tension that most folks find with the Sun is that they don't agree with the editorial comments. I can't remember now what that balance is, but it is most certainly heavy on one side.

It seems to me that the same folks have issues with the Sun repeatedly, as I read this Forum.

We all are allowed an opinion.

I really like mine the best.

All figures are not very accurate anyway. Many people moved from another state to another Florida area and then to TV and are shown from Florida only.

This might keep me up all night.

We have been getting the Sun for the four years we have been living here and read it over breakfast.

They get their news mostly via AP which to me is very liberal in its stories. Almost never an editorial so no idea which way the paper leans, other than the way the developer tells them to.

I just wish the paper was more objective in the stories it prints.

This is a great place to live and the developer has done a great job making it so.

Have you asked at the sales office?

I have noticed that these numbers have not changed for a long time, so I just ignore them.

Hi all,
Thanks...I guess "the tribe has spoken". I will extinguish my torch on this vital topic! If I do hear from the sales offices or The Daily Sun, I'll be sure to update it here....haha

Total the number of residents you have data then compare with the entire current population. You will be able to calculate the number missing. Then guesstimate on the number of residents formerly from your listed states because the calculated missing is probably very small.

If you find the calculated missing is high, the data you are using probably has not been updated.

I do the same thing! And, indeed, these 4 states (I gave up before I got Vermont or DC either). They update this every other year. And it is houses - not residents.

If you are curious, the 2021 numbers were:
Arkansas 123
Delaware 299
Rhode Island 461
Utah 42

Every year we receive a big Residential Directory for The Villages.A big part of that is names, telephone numbers (including cell phones), addresses, and where people came from. Nice to have! The next section is the names of residents (single or couples) BY STATE. This section doesn’t give the numbers, but it’s easy to count the columns or in some cases the actual numbers. For example, there are four columns of names per page. Only half of a column are people from North Dakota. There are fewer—33–entries for people from Utah. Rhode Island has six columns of residents! There is one column of residents from Arkansas. There are 3.5 columns of residents from Delaware. By contrast, there are almost nine columns of residents from California (same for Iowa) and thirty-two columns of residents from New Jersey.

This book also has a lot of useful maps of The Villages and its shopping areas at the beginning of the book.

Opt-Out
 

Residents can opt-out of putting their name in this directory so it’s not accurate for these purposes. I suspect it is representative though, i.e., 10% may opt-out.

I moved from one end of The Villages to another. That made me a "Floridian" so I no longer was counted under my home state.

Nor is it for the majority of the world.

Arkansas
 

[QUOTE=DrHitch;2321667]Hi all,
I posed this question directly to the editors of the Villages Daily Sun newspaper but got no reply, so trying here:

Each day, on page 4 of the newspaper there are stories from several states along with demographics of the number of houses from each state...

I have been keeping a master summary list of those state-by-state numbers here (Demographics - The Villages 101)

I'm missing all owner demographics from Arkansas, Delaware, Rhode Island, and Utah. Are there no owners from those four

Look in the phone book there are quite a few of us from Arkansas.

Maybe these numbers are of their newspaper subscribers only or actual numbers determined by TV? OR, only houses new and pre owned purchased using Villages sales agents?
For the record I bought pre owned and used an outside agent and we are from NJ. I do not have paper delivered.
Feel free to update your records if need be.

Since the Daily Sun is the printer of the phone book, I would think that this is where the state stats come from. However, at closing you can elect to not be in the phone book, thus would not be included in these state stats. Also, all MLS closings would not be included unless the new owner contacts the daily sun and requests to be included in the phone book. Go to the phone book and count the number of Villagers in a specific state and see if it is close to what is in your spreadsheet/printed in the paper.

When I bought my place here at TV, no one in an 'official' position ever asked me where I'm from.

I’ve lived in TV 15 years. At first, I found that section of the phone book very useful.
In this time period, I’ve known many people who died or moved away. They are still listed as residents.
Unless you notify them to take you out of the phone book you are still in

Thanks, will try and remember to tell them just before my expiry :a20:date

I suspect that the stats are taken from the data base of the green Village ID card that we all have. I know that is how they maintain the record of how many of us are over age 55.

Difficult to notify them, once you are dead.

MLS sales are included since the data is coming from when you get your Villages ID, which could be at closing or afterwards.

For this year - sometime in 2023 to today:

Arkansas 147
Delaware 318
Rhode Island - not reported
Utah 61

Rhode Island was 461 the previous year. I have not figured out on what date they switch to new data, but they have not done it yet.

Also missing this past year were
Washington DC (20 the previous year)
Puerto Rico (not reported last year either)

Welcome back, Graciegirl.
 

I’ve always appreciated your kind and informative responses. Thank you, Graciegirl.

The Developer owns the Sun so likely leans red. But more than that it believes in GREEN.

You have to opt into the directory so it's only a fraction of the residents. In addition, the deadline to get into the directory is nine months before it comes out so all of Newell, Lake Denham, and Dabney aren't even in it.

You don't opt out of the directory; you have to opt in. Filling out a form is required.

I see Wisconsin is still missing.... Apparently 13 NFL Championship/Super Bowls do not count:eclipsee_gold_cup:

New data starting today.

I have been here almost 14 years. When we moved here they asked “where did you come from”. That’s a funny question for me as we lived many places in USA. We moved here from TX BUT I have always considered myself a New Yorker where I was born and grew up.