Looking to buy
 

I am a retired widow. I would like to find a small condo/house that would be easy to maintain as it would be a second residence. I have visited The Villages twice in the past 15 years, but am not familiar with areas. What would residents advise?

The village’s now has apartments close Brownwood/CR44 and more planned In future. I would also consider renting? Plenty of rental’s all over villages? The condos/duplex’s around squares are very expensive it one ever comes on market. Then there villas, ranch style houses, and high end houses which come with substantial upkeep.

Not sure about The Villages, but some communities (like areas at The Plantation at Leesburg, south of Leesburg) offer yard and shrubbery maintenance with the HOA payment. And I bought a house with xeriscaping (where the lawn is replaced with stones or gravel) - no mowing needed.

There are one bedroom villas brand new for around $168,000, minimal maintenance required. Our lawn mowing service charges $35.00/month for small patio villas and does an excellent job, have never had to call him with a problem. You can also rent these new villas for $1300/$1400/month unfurnished and most maintenance is handled by the owner and all you have to do is pay your utilities. If you are not down here now come down and rent for a month to look around, lots of options but very few condominiums.

The Lofts Apartments mentioned by Topspinmo are brand new, the last building was just finished. Rent is a bit steep, $1700 for a studio, then $2100 to $3000 for the 2 and 3 BR units plus amenities fee and are one year leases only. They are right at Brownwood square, they have their own pool and dog walking park, and washer & dryer inside the unit.

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Actual apartment style condos that you buy, I'm not aware of any inside TV. The closest would be a patio villa. In the established Villages a resale unit would be about $165K to $230K and is similar to a small 1000 sf house with 2 BRs and a 1-1/2 car garage. In the new home section south of SR 44 a new patio villa is about $190K to about $230K and you can get those with a 2 car garage or for about $175K with a carport and no garage. The Villages Real Estate has about 90 patio villas listed in both new and used, here is a link. They'll be additional resales listed with the MLS Realtors (outside agencies) and those you can find by searching on zillow.com, trulia.com or realtor.com

Homefinder - The Villages(R) Homes and Villas for Sale

Here is an example of a new Patio Villa with 2 car garage, a lanai on the side, it's listed for $216K. From the inside photo you can see it has no carpet in the main living areas, gas stove and stainless steel appliances. With villas most people hire landscapers to cut their grass or if approved, have the grass removed and replaced with shrubs and gravel.

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Have you considered doing a Lifestyle Preview Visit through The Villages sales office? The visits last from 4 to 7 days, and I believe the Lifestyle Visit folks are put in villas near Brownwood Paddock Square. The Lifestyle homes are very well appointed. A real estate agent will show you around, but you don't need to spend all of your time with the agent. You also receive a golf cart to use during your visit, plus other amenities. Although you won't be able to see all of The Villages in 4 to 7 days, a Lifestyle Visit may give you an introduction to what The Villages has to offer. The Villages has grown a lot, especially in the last 6 or 7 years, so there are many areas to choose from and many housing options to consider.

:what:

There are no studio apartments in
 

the lofts

If you ever get over to Brownwood, it's the new buildings all around the north side of the square. 285 Apartments, they just opened.

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