Should I request a different sales rep?
 

We have time until we retire, but we decided that if we find a lot that we love, we are ready to buy it right now. Well, we recently found a special lot ...twice ... (and before it even went on the market) ....but our sales rep said that she was "not fast enough" to get it for us. We are so disappointed and are finding that something that we thought would be a positive experience, has become very stressful. I do realize that the best lots are snatched up as soon as a new section opens, but I'm wondering if the rep makes a difference. Any advice or recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you :)

We found we could not work with the first sales rep we had. Way too pushy. We simply got a recommendation from someone for another sales rep., called him and had a fun buying experience. I suggest you find someone you trust and who listens to you, and makes your experience fun. TV is all about relaxation and fun-- not stress.

In a word, absolutely. Good stress- trying to decide what model, colors, etc.- is part of what mskes the experience "fun".

The stress caused by your sales rep is not good stress.

Don't get Discouraged!
 

When I started looking I had a friend recommend a sales person who was terrible. I've been in one form of real estate or another all my life, so I know what to expect. The Villages called me and asked me why I didn't plan on using this person again and wanted to work with someone else. I told them why. Well I was so surprised that they cared enough to follow up. They recommend another person and she has been very professional, works hard for you and is easy to work with. I don't know if I'm allowed to mention her name, but I have done a few deals with her and I find her very good. Her name is Angie Stokes.

Our sales rep REALLY blew it for us when we were trying to sell our house here in Silver Lake. We had 3 months to sell and get into our new house in Mira mesa. She knew that but failed to hit the date. She wasn't aggressive and just didn't seem to care. We ended up losing our new house and alot of money to boot!

Two words that might help: Colleen Wotring.

:pepper2: :pepper2:

Some Sales Reps are very experienced. Some are new. As with any profession, there are different levels of proficiency. I know there are many excellent Villages agents, and many of them have been recommended on previous threads. You should make sure you have a Sales Rep you respect and who knows your goals. That's your right.

new home realtor
 

We had Angie Stokes and she was great.

Chris Wyatt, or his wife, Carol Ann. Both are for you 100 0/0. PM me for phone #'s. if you wish.

I've been in real estate over the last 20 years and was very impressed with the knowledge and professional ability of our agent ,Craig heron. He was highly recommended from another friend and we weren't disappointed.
Ask for Craig or another but try to use someone that is highly recommended

I really appreciate everyone's response. I was also wondering how many people buy their lot, sight unseen. (We currently live 1000 miles away from TV.) Thank you!!!

We had a situation similar to yours but went through 2 other reps before we worked with Angie Stokes. Not only is she very professional but treats you like a person and not just another number..Too bad they can't clone her...

To be fair, it probably wasn't the sales reps fault that those deals escaped you. It is a frequnt occurance to have a house or lot come on the market and be snatched up quickly by another person or rep. It can happen in a key stroke and sometimes they are held for a certain amount of time and then released again and sometimes they are gone. We tried to hold three different view lots in one day and waited just a few minutes too long to commit.

We fell in love with a house in Hadley and we called our sales rep to find it had been put on hold for another person. We didn't believe it. That house was sold to a couple who became our best friends as we bought the house next to it. We never let them live it down that they stole our house.

Many people here are annoyed that a furnished model comes on a market and they have instructed their sales rep to hold it for them when it happens but so have many others instructed their reps too. It is announced at a sales meeting and everyone will immediatly grab their I pads or phones and it is up in the air...or the internet or the phone lines as to who gets to who first and who gets back to who first. This has been told to us many times by our rep Jim McLaughlin. I never thought to blame him when we missed a lot or a home we wanted. It is often just luck and being in the right place at the right time prepared to buy.

Sometimes it has nothing to do with a sales person being a slouch but rather the pace of business in this amazing place. The speed of selling homes in this place is unheard of before. And probably will only get worse as the build out approaches.

But if you don't feel comfortable...with your rep, switch. You may find the same thing happening with the new one.

Yes. We had one that I could not be around after one day. Changed to Tammy Griswald and became friends while finalizing our buy in Duval.

Your sales rep was not lying -- at that point it is just luck. The lots in the section we were interested in were released at 4:00 on a Friday afternoon. Our rep called at exactly 4:00 to reserve the lot we wanted. She happened to get through before anyone else who wanted that lot, but she had no control over the phone lines. All of the view lots were gone in 20 minutes.

By all means change reps if you are not happy with him/her for other reasons, but don't blame her for not getting the lot you wanted unless she did not call at all.

We bought our lot sight unseen. Our rep Ron Delk, called us and immediately emailed us pictures. The first lot we refused, the next time we bought immediately (it is a water lot so we only had two hours to commit). We would do it again in a heartbeat. When we met with Ron initially he showed us a map of potential lots and we identified the locations we were interested in, it worked like a charm. We have been in the house in Charlotte door eight months now and are VERY happy. Good luck in your search.

If you are going to build, it is paramount to have a rep who has done builds before. Unfortunately, we had a very nice rep but we were his first build and he was of no help whatsoever. That said, he did see that lots were going on sale in a new section and got me over here two hours before they would hit market. We were lined up for the five o'clock bell and got our first choice. It is by sheer luck and my doing the homework through this site that we were able to build what we wanted.

If you are not happy get a new agent. We had a real bad one. When we sold our first home here ,she did a bad job. In 6 months she never once had her own showing of our home. Yes we had many from other agents. She was more interested in showing new homes that resales. Thats pretty common here. We would watch agents show our home for 2 minutes and back in their cars driving to new homes. Watched that many many times. Ended up selling on our own 7 days and about 50 showings.

yes absolutely get new sales rep we just fired ours. he told us a lot was available for us we ran out to look at it and it did not fit a golf cart garage nor a pool (which is what we requested) complete waste of our time. the sales reps should know exactly what size lot you need before sending you out and disappointing you. Lots to choose from i have a good one i used in past if you need her name then just pm me

You are kidding; right?
I'll leave it at that.
Anyone wanting more info can send a PM

We bought our first pre-owned home in TV in 2007, sight unseen. I'm not suggesting that option for other purchasers, but for us, it was a great decision. Sometimes you just have to trust your intuition.

We worked with Kiernan Bowls for five years before moving to The Villages in 12/2011-- he is great and will do a great job for you in The Villages Realty 352-391-0797
tell him Susan and Eddie Doran recommended him

Dan baker
 

Dan Baker is the name to rememeber...he is an EXCELLENT Sales Rep. :eclipsee_gold_cup: He can even read your mind!

My wife and I about 4 years ago decided to look in The Villages, and talked to a friend that had been here and was ready to buy, ready to sign the papers, then was told about the BOND.
They backed out of the deal due to the large expense. So when we told them we were looking to buy in TV they warned us about a large amount of money that was required that was not mentioned in the price.
We had a Villages sales rep show us places and after the tour we sat down and I asked her if there were any more charges not mentioned, that didn't show up in her figures. She said there was nothing hidden or owed.
Turned out she lied and hid the fact that we would have to pay a large bond.
Most communities, or all I've ever heard of, the cost of infrastructure is included in the price of the home. The Villages doesn't include these costs to make the homes seem lower price. I've been told the reason for this is to make the taxes lower since the value of the home would be less. Sounds like BS to me. Anyway I didn't like how she lied or hid the facts to us. We bought here about 3 years ago, but not from her.

We enjoyed working with our rep, Jim McLaughlin but as we always did, we did our due diligence OURSELVES. We read this forum and talked to friends and knew about the bond, the conventional loan and had adequate funds to go forward.

I don't think many Villagers are property virgins at our age, and I would imagine that most people have had several homes bought and sold under their belts before they arrived here. Most of us thought we could negotiate the price of a new home and soon learned that wasn't the case.

I always think that most people know this or that, But...if things go wrong it is NEVER their fault.

As I have said before, no one has to hoodwink anyone here to sell a house.

Caveat Emptor. We are all grown ups.

I really appreciate all the info and recommendations. I was wondering if anyone has heard anything about which section is likely to go on the market next.

Many thanks!!!!

I think one needs to establish a good working rapport with their sales rep and trust is the key word in business dealings. If you don't feel comfortable wih your sales rep, then you should switch. This is not to blame the sales rep but if the chemistry and trust is not there, then there will be a problem.

One should be relaxed in making a big decision so one's thinking is clear and concise. The homes in TV go fast in terms of selling so one needs to make a clear decision quickly. You snooze, you lose.

I so agree about feeling comfortable with your sales rep. We are one of the vanishing breed that put money down on a lot for a year's wait. Although the wait has been agonizing, our sales rep has stayed in touch throughout. When we discovered our lot would not allow for side stretches, she went to great lengths to find us a new one. She would track us down within hours of a new section opening, and get our go ahead on bidding for that lot. After several attempts, she indeed succeeded, but we decided to keep the lot we had for the time being and in all likelihood build on it.

The point I'm making is she has been there answering all our frantic questions, satisfying our requests for estimates on building a different model on the same lot, freaking out over exterior colors when fearing everything else was taken, sending us pictures of the street, etc., etc. You name it, she has been there for us. She knows our preference for the lanai exposure, expansion plans, proxmity to neighbors on back and sides, whether water or golf exposure or not, maximum premium we're willing to pay, etc. By the time we design, I expect she'll know our interior tile preferences!! :spoken:

And your experience is at it should be - not the exception, but the norm.

There's no way to know if your agent was slacking. My agent warned me that the lot I wanted might not be available by the time we went from the sales center to look at the lot and back. He also told me how disappointed he was at having lost a previous lot sale because of being an instant later than another rep to place a hold on the property. I highly recommend JIM MINNELLI. I looked at properties with him for over a year and now I consider him a friend. He truly represents your interest as a buyer and is faultless in patience and follow through.By the way I did get the lot I wanted.