Friends who didn't like The Villages
 

Has anyone had friends/family who didn't like The Villages?

Not possible.

The only time I've ever heard this was when someone was close to their family "back home" and couldn't imagine living here.

NO!

Everybody we have ever brought here ended up buying a home here.....

We had some friends visit this winter.....4 different couples.
One couple is planning to buy, two couples were unimpressed by the lifestyle and the size of the area (and they don't know each other). The last couple were unsure, but they want to visit again.

Actually I did but as they are now in psychiatric care it doesn't seem worth mentioning........
As I remember they did like dogs too.

Fumar ( mr. warmth ),,,,,,,,, :ho:

kit, I think you'll find some people who won't/don't like the physical size of TV - the place IS humongous compared to any other 55+ community. It's certainly not the place for everyone...............otherwise all of the other 55+ communities would be vacant! :D

Bill :)

Hubbie's ex-boss told him that he and his wife visited TV before purchasing their current Florida home and found it to be 'OVERLY CONGESTED'. We also have close friends who have told us they would never live in a place like TV. To each their own - but they just don't have a clue.

Yes. People who think their grandchildren will die without them there (as if the adult kids the grandparents raised are incompetent).

Yes

We just moved from a very small, but building, over 55 ranch community in the Atlanta area. 2years ago, a woman moved in, attended one get together and told my husband, she moved out of TV as it was very unfriendly ..... We never saw her at another event, and neighbors near her said she refused any invites to do anything ... So is it the or the individual???

I posted this because I just had a best friend from high school. This was not her first visit. These are her thoughts:
-Houses are like development/track homes
-Hates Fox News playing throughout the square
-Thinks parades are dumb
-Thinks golf carts are silly
-Not interested in golf
-Not interested in live music at the squares

This was a guest in your home?

As Ben Franklin said, "Fish and house guests stink after three days".

we have friends who don't like TV
 

they are pretty much horrified by the thought of ANY retirement community - they recently bought in a family development (all ages) in Venice. Have their own pool and they do have retired and non-retired friends in the area, so maybe they will like it. Different strokes for different folks.

We like it here in TV. We have a relative retired in Ft Myers, in a retirement community, and they are bored - want to move here when/if the housing market there recovers and they can sell their house close to what they paid for it. They looked here - briefly - when TV was much smaller, about 9-10 yrs ago. Didn't pay much attention to the lifestyle, just how much house you could get for your money.

nope! one couple we know thought the villages was like a cruise ship that has no need to dock! :)

Yes, one friend just hates Florida.

Another said she couldn't even think about living here because there aren't enough Jewish people and too many Republicans.

Yes........it's very difficult to entertain someone who is so negative about the place that I love so dearly! There isn't a day that goes by that my husband and I don't say how blessed we are to live in such a beautiful place. There is no place on earth like it! 101,000 people agree!!!

Yes.

Yes We had one friend tell us they couldn't live here because the houses are so close together. They had lived in the country their whole life and also didn't like the idea of of living somewhere with covenants

Yes

Yes, but after a couple more visits, they moved here and love it. So you never know.

Oh sure. Much of my family have been urban dwellers all their lives. They live in the middle of big cities, where they walk or grab a cab to everything.
They love having the opera, symphony, universities, museums, theaters and art galleries be just a moment away.
They love the variety of ethnic restaurants, specialty corner grocery stores and the old architectural neighborhood enclaves tucked here and there within the city.
Their personal taste is high brow in every aspect and they look at me with that 'deer in the headlights' look when I talk about TV.:blahblahblah:
Truth be told, they would break out in a rash here.
But I love them anyway.

My daughter and son in law are coming down to St Pete beach for a vacation. They love the beach and do not really enjoy visiting The Villages. We will spend a day with them at St Pete.

My grown niece comes down and loves it. She did observe that the villages is more similar to suburbia then to a city or the country. People who prefer a city or the country may not find the villages an ideal home.

I had never looked at it quite that way

THAT is a very good observation. I hadn't thought of it that way either. I have lived all of my life in suburban areas and it feels "just right".

How I first learned about TV was from some local townspeople up here who had parents living in THE VILLAGES. They spread the word to all of us about how great TV was.
They all hoped and dreamed about moving to TV and would visit the old folks as often as they could........last we heard, these three couples never did move to TV.
However, they did love it.

As far as NOT liking it, my daughter's brother in law, about our age and single, visited it for ONE DAY at the request of his friend. The Vermont friend has a winter home in TV. Well, I asked him what they did? He said they did take the boat ride on Lake Sumter Landing..........I believe they saw Spanish Springs, etc.

Then he drove back to the beach (Atlantic Coast) where he was renting a place.

His opinion was that TV was "PHONY" and "AN ADULT DISNEY WORLD" and "NOT FOR ME".....meaning him. I had asked him if they drove around to see "ALL" of the various villages and he replied that he had seen enough and that it was "ARTIFICIAL".

This same man experienced FOUR MUD SEASONS last spring due to the thaw, freezing, thaw, freezing, and again and again..............anyone who has lived in a state that still has DIRT ROADS knows what I mean..........but, he was just stating his opinion.

Obviously, we do not agree with him.......so don't shoot the messenger. Oh, the biggest thing he harps on when we gather for holidays or family get togethers is that he could never ever live in a place that was all R's. I can't believe that everyone in TV is an R. It doesn't matter to us.....but just telling you what the L.D. might perceive TV to be.

It fascinates me how many people hate the idea....old people....inland....hot....cookie cutter homes...but once they visit, they see the light and love it. Some are so sure they won't like it that they never even visit....shame on them.

I THINK that many a rant and many a negative opinion posted on this forum is colored by folks who move here to find the atmosphere discribed in your last paragraph.They can't believe that they now live in that kind of a majority and do NOT like it at all.

I grew up in that climate and just like suburbia it is what I am used to.

We've had friends move here, and other friends turn up their noses because the homes are tract homes, too close together (which they are let's face it). We bought in spite of the small home lots, and really enjoy our lifestyle here because we enjoy the activites and the many friends we have made. We ignore the Fox news at the Square, and actually rarely go to the square or to parades, just not our thing. With 100,000 people here, there are many of each political persuasion so something for everyone.

Fumar you are soooooo funny
 

I sure have missed your posts.:1rotfl::1rotfl:...Where have you been.?...

Yes

I know exactly what you mean. It doesn't matter to us, one way or another. We live our lives and don't care what other people do...or how they think. We are all entitled to our opinions.

When we moved to Vermont in 1970 it was a totally CONSERVATIVE state in every shape and form imaginable. Some parts of Vermont didn't even have electricity until the 1960's. Hard to believe, but we've seen the documentaries put out by our state on Public Television. In a way it was slightly backwards.

What a sea change has transpired in all the years after 1970.
The folks who were the "salt of the earth" are long gone....for the most part. They were the oldtimers.

It's become a totally ultra "L" state..........if the old farmers and such would rise from the dead, they would be in total shock at their beloved Green Mountain State's "new views".

We were among those who migrated up here........but we enjoyed the "difference" after we finally adjusted to the fact it was NOT New Jersey.

However, people flocked up here.........not just hippies but doctors and professionals, college professors from all the cities in the east.......and the nature of Vermont has definitely changed......as one can see by what gets voted into law. Our own high school and college kids had very "L" teachers and professors influencing them...........but we also knew some of the "old timey" traditional native Vermont professors and teachers.
Big change from 1970 to now...........

No problem with the viewpoint of those who reside in TV....that's for sure.

With age comes wisdom.......generally speaking...especially if you worked hard and saved your money and go to church and all that stuff we were raised to do.

It's definitely not for everybody, but that doesn't mean the people who don't like it should be criticized. Some people like a little privacy and the postage stamp lots here do not appeal to those people.

Hmmmm......so I guess it's OK to reference political parties as long as it's abbreviated:shrug:

It can't be all R's as the D's won. TV is not right for some but it's right for me.

I tend to think that some people gives reasons as why they don't like it because some people don't like change and are very resistance to starting a new lifestyle.

Ive heard:
1. It's too hot in the summer.
2. Too many bugs.
3. Aligators are going to get you.

I can se some people wanting to stay near their children and grandchildren. I have also seen people say they see their children and grandchildren more since TV is close to Disney World.

To each their own. :smiley:

I have the same relatives. And I share their love of all things Big City. But you cant have it all. I'm content to get my Big City fix on travels and enjoy the weather and activities here the rest of the time. They can stay home, and I won't be offended

:BigApplause:

Your friends second thought would raise a flag for me! She does not sound village friendly!