Young people living in the Villages
 

As you probably know, I'm still living in Michigan physically (the mental part is somewhere in Sumpter Landing)..anyway, yesterday a young man came into my office and said that he had just been to Florida to visit his dad in TV. This, of course, prompted a great discussion :). There were a couple of things that he said that I was a little confused about. He stated that if his dad purchased a second home there, he (the son) could then live there. Is this true? It didn't seem right to me. Another question, can a family under the age of 55 rent there? We also got into a discussion about gas vs electric carts..he said that electric carts had an extremely limited range, that you could not drive from Market Place to Spanish Springs and back. Again, this didn't make sense to me but did make me wonder. Lastly, anyone that knows Gracie or Russ, please tell them that they are two of the many wonderful people that made me want to visit TOTV every day...repeatedly...over and over and over and...........................

Sumpter Landing may bring Russ back.

I think the rule is that no one under the age of 19 is allowed to live in TV. I'm not sure of the specifics, but there's a law that dictates just how many folks under the age of 55 can live here...I think it's somewhere in the neighborhood of 20%. Someone else might know the exact number and reasoning for the law.

As for golf carts.... it would be a pretty bad electric golf cart that couldn't make it from LSL to SS and back again. Most of the newer electric carts have ranges in the 40+ mile range. I have a Par Car electric and I have never even come close to running it out of charge. I have driven from St. Charles (close to 466a) to Lopez (10.2 miles), played 18 holes, driven to SS, had dinner and driven home with the lights & radio on....no problems.

Cheers....

Trish,
More questions than I have time to answer. Anyone can buy or rent here now as long as they have the money. Someone will give you the long explaination. One of the things going on in advanced sports is the young bucks are killing us oldies. Thing is they buy and own their homes and are full time villagers. Gotta go, hope someone comes on to answer your questions.

Here is a link to a good article about gas golf carts vs. electric golf carts:

http://thegolfcartguide.com/index.ph..._articles&id=3

Ditto, except we have a Yamaha electric with extended range batteries that are supposed to go 65+ miles on a charge. HoneyBoy can drive from south of LSL to Hacienda or Orange Blossom (on the historic side), play 18 holes, go over to Beef O'Brady's in Southern Trace with the boys, and drive home with the lights on ... no problems.

That is correct. The federal law governing 55+ communities states that 80% of the homes have to be owned by someone 55 or older. It’s up to the developer how they handle that remaining 20%. They can choose to sell to folks under 55, or they can require that everyone be 55+. I’ve read several posts on here from folks who have purchased prior to turning 55.

There are many of us under age 55 living here, and I would think people in their 70-90's would want young people here to remind them that the whole place is not a big pre-nursing home colony. I know our neighbors love to get new neighbors who are young......or young at heart.

The only place I see that age means anything, in TV, is in the traffic circles! YIKES!

I agree! And I'm under 55 too...at least for a little while longer. :)

Trish, When I looked at TV for the first time last year, I asked a couple of MLS and TV sales reps. about buying under 55. All said that they've never heard of it being a problem as the 20% rule is enforced, but that TV is not near 20% -- at least last year it wasn't. One agent mentioned a buyer having to sign extra forms if the buyer is under 55 -- forms acknowledging that TV is considered a "55+ community." Also, all agents stressed no permanent residents under the age of 19 may live in your house. Visitors under 19 are fine of course -- saw lots of grandkids when I was in TV last month.

When I rented in July I made sure to tell my Village of Chatham landlord that I am 50. No problem. By the time I rent again in October, I will be 51. I made sure to tell my Village of Sabal Chase landlord about that also -- he also had no problem with my "youth." :).

Golf carts range -- I will leave to the TV experts.

I think the reasoning behind the law is because, in order for a community to be considered a "senior" community, at least 80% of the owners must be over 55, not that there has to be at least 20% under that age. And thank you for the info about the carts.

Trish

If the son lives in his father's house he would need a temporary resident ID, the owners would have the original. I'm not sure just how long they are good for. Renters of any age can stay as long as the children under 19 stay no longer than a month during the whole year.

The law states only 20% of under 55 "owners" for the community to keep its status and legal advantage. Anyone can live in The Villages full time with the exception of the under 19(limited to 30 days a year.) Many young people are living in The Villages; some owning their own homes, some renting, and some living in the same home as their parents. And there are some who own the home who have their parent(s) living with them in it. I prefer the community to have a mix of ages.

I do too, I didn't mean to sound like an 'old crab', I was just curious about what I heard. Thank you to everyone that responded!!

Trish

I am in my early 40's and own a house in the villages but my mother is the only resident. I don't think it matters who owns the house I think it is who actually lives in the house but I could be wrong. I do go down and visit for a few weeks in the winter to get some fishing in.

I think this is right and Trish also mentioned that to keep the senior status, there needs to be 80% over 55. Does anyone know exactly what benefit TV gets by being a 55+ community ? Legal or otherwise...

There are laws against age discrimination when it comes to selling or renting properties. You can't just say "no children, no teenagers are allowed to live here", unless that community is a designated age-restricted community. And in order for a community to be legally designated as “age-restricted”, 80% of the homeowners have to be 55+.

The purpose is to provide a way for “adult communities”, such as TV, to exist without running afoul of the federal age discrimination laws.

Skybo, Thank you for explaining this...I always wondered how adult communities were able to not violate federal age discrimination laws.

You’re welcome Schaum. And I might add...age restricted communities are very good for the cities/counties in which they reside because they provide tax dollars and other revenue without adding to the population of the school systems.

Very interesting ..thanks!

I have an electric cart and have driven from Buttonwood to SS and returned with absolutely no problem with power; never even got close to the red zone.

The Housing for Older Persons Act of 1995 (HOPA) does not use the term owner or homeowner. It simply states that to qualify as "housing for older persons", at least 80 percent of the occupied units are occupied by at least one person who is 55 years of age or older

Lynn222, Just wondering -- what would is the distance in miles from Buttonwood to SS and how many minutes did it take you to drive that distance in your electric cart?

Thanks again for a fact based response with appropriate references--- refreshing

25 minutes from Pennecamp to Spanish Springs in an electric ParCar. Par Car did a marathon drive for charity with one of their carts and got 80 miles on a charge.

Thanks for the correction EdVin, I was going from memory...and I should have looked it up to get the correct verbiage.

Is it true that a big percentage of those miles were at 5MPH in parking lots??

Raynan, Thanks for the info. From Pennecamp to Lake Sumter Landing -- how long did that take?"

I've only rented in TV and drove a gas golf cart. Yes, they are noisy. If I actually buy in TV at some point down the road, gas vs. electric will have to be something to consider.

The temporary ID's are good for 3 years. My son has one and rents a villa from me. He is 23 and I am under 55. I was told it was not a problem.

Do I get a vote? ;) We'll keep the light on for you!

Well, Thank you! Better go to Lowes or Home Depot and stock up on those light bulbs... :).