Life style preview or free style
 

My wife and I are coming down the first week in May for three days to see if we like the Villages enough to retire there. The place seems incredible from what we have seen and read so far. I have checked and the Lifestyle Preview plan is limited to no less than four days. So, my question is should I simply book four days and stay three or do a three day free style visit. Staying longer this trip is not possible. Cost is no object and the Preview Plan appears to make for a much better presentation than doing the tour on our own. What do you suggest? Thank you all in advance for any help and guidance you could give us.

Call the sales office and tell them the circumstances. They'll work with you. Definitely do the preview plan with a sales rep. You see more and get much more valuable information.

Thanks that's what I thought. In your opinion what questions would you ask that would not normally be answered in the general sales tour/presentation?

When you are here and are out and about, talk to as many people as you can. I have met so many nice people here, and there is a wealth of information and opinions that can help. Much luck to you. We absolutely love it here.

We actually did it both ways. The first time we came the Lifestyles was all booked up so we stayed at a hotel and toured around on our own. A kindly person from the boards met us and took us to Katie Bells and we went out with a Realtor and viewed some properties. Went to the music at night and had a good time.
Then last summer we came again and stayed for 5 days at one of the Villas. It was great! It was fun having a golf cart and going to the pool every day. Every morning we went out to breakfast an we would open our map to go look at open houses and our table would instantly be surrounded by 5-6 people asking if we needed help and telling us their stories. It was great but on the last day we both said..."leave the map home!" We had a wonderful visit and we are actually putting our house on the market next week to move there.

We actually did it both ways. The first time we came the Lifestyles was all booked up so we stayed at a hotel and toured around on our own. A kindly person from the boards met us and took us to Katie Bells and we went out with a Realtor and viewed some properties. Went to the music at night and had a good time.
Then last summer we came again and stayed for 5 days at one of the Villas. It was great! It was fun having a golf cart and going to the pool every day. Every morning we went out to breakfast an we would open our map to go look at open houses and our table would instantly be surrounded by 5-6 people asking if we needed help and telling us their stories. It was great but on the last day we both said..."leave the map home!" We had a wonderful visit and we are actually putting our house on the market next week to move there.

MissyPie is right. Talk to as many people as you can and get their stories. Go to the town squares for evening entertainment and watch the people have a great time. Whichever route you go for life style or free style - get a rental golf cart and spend time driving it on the multi-modal trails to see how easy it is to get places without getting in your car. That is the part that sold my wife on The Villages - 5 years ago. We are full time residents and love every minute here.

As far as homes - I would suggest looking at resale homes also. It can be a much better deal. First, the price is negotiable on a resale. The infrastructure bond can be much lower or even paid off. The landscaping is mature. No construction going on around you for months. Established neighborhoods so you will not be surprized by what goes up nearby.

Villages Properties agents cannot show MLS listings and vice versa. It is a good idea to get input from both agents. ERA Tom Grizzard is a good MLS agent. It is not a sneaky thing to do. Both agents basically expect their clients to look at both.

We did the Lifestyle Preview Tour in August; bought in November. This was after looking at least a hundred house plans for our lot we owned in Bella Vista, AR. We compared Bella Vista against The Villages - there was no comparison. My advice is, STAY AWAY FROM THE KOOL-AID. We drank it.:laugh:

We did the Preview last February. Just to look and see. My husband and I made a vow that we were not going to jump in and buy. Just to look.. We closed in April!
An agent will bring you to your "rental" for your preview and believe me..you have to ask to see houses. They are not pushy in the least, which surprised me.
Good luck! You'll love it! We can't wait to come back full time. We were 50 and 53 years old when we bought. This is a young retirement community... Young at heart, that's for sure!!!

1. Take the trolley tour.
2. Talk to anyone and everyone.
3. You will be blown away by the beauty of TV and it's people.
4.. Bring your checkbook!!!

There is no doubt you will be impressed with the amenities and wealth of info you will get from residents, rather than just listening to the canned propaganda. One thing you may also want to factor in is the time of year you are here. It is much less crowded in May than in the winter. Many people are put off by the crowded conditions and the driving habits of people here. Without a doubt the worst drivers I have ever seen. An appropriate joke may be the ad for a used car which said...'car has 300,000 miles on it but the turn signals have never been used'.

Check out our listing on airbnb. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/2374407?alsm=1&s=8z_l. We have had many future Villagers stay with us.

Use this link if you are not a member, and get a $25 discount on your first booking. www.airbnb.com/c/tblair?s=8

If need be, pay for 4 and stay for 3. I also would call their office.

Rent a car from the airport. A cart is fun for dinner for and the squares but you will cover more ground in a car.

Buy the GPS App advertised on this site. It's too easy to get lost.

Take the trolley ASAP to see the scope.

Get a video camera and video tape each house address, up and down the street and around the outside of the house and then go inside and narrate your first impression of each room. Ask the model name if its a new house. If it's a resale ask the rep if the model was renamed. Bring a cable so you can connect the camera to the TV later.

Take the paperwork advertisement and have the other person number the pages in the order of each house that was shown. They will give you a map and write down the number to each address on the map. Bring a 3 hole punch and small binder to keep things organized.

The new home price when we bought was not negotiable. This surprised us.

It can be confusing later, when you are at home if you are only taking photos.

Most people do move 3 times in the villages. This surprised us too.

You only get the life style visit once, why waste it with three days, which IMO not enough time to get it all in. I would stay or plan trip when I could stay the full 6 or 7 days offered.

The best advice is to talk to people here. Let them know you are new and you will find just about everyone is helpful. We bought in 09 and love it here. Never want to leave! Good luck.