Looking for opinions on the value of moving into a new community, vs. established
 

I will likely be moving to TV within the year. I'm an active, single (divorced) man in my upper 50s. I am going back and forth between the idea of buying in the more established areas (in/around the 466/466A areas), or the newer areas down South. I'm wondering how many of you find/found that getting in with new neighbors, where everyone is likely to be more interested in establishing new friendships, is/was a great experience; vs. finding friends through the various clubs and going out, wherever they might live.

The first method is a bit more random but extremely convenient, but I just wonder if on average the excitement of the new neighborhood friendships tends to diminish after a year or two. Also please comment on what you see happening down south regarding development of activity centers (pools, pickle ball courts, golf course, Bocce ball, restaurants, pubs, etc) - does it appear that the activity center density will be as high down south as it is up north? Thanks

Good Luck with some of the following posts.

:ho:

Tommyboy9, I doubt anyone can answer your question, however think what is important to you and what type of house you are interested in. Then contact both Villages sales agents and MLS agents and see what they have to offer. If you find a home you like go for it. As for meeting people, there are so many activities that you can easily be overwhelmed, so pick a few that you really like and see what develops.

First rent for a month or more and decide what is best for you as you explore this place.

Conventional wisdom is buy new and your neighbors are your friends as all are looking to make friends.

Buy a resale and not so easy to make friends but do what we did and join lots of clubs and now we go out more evenings than we have ever done before.

Not our experience. We bought re-sale, are youngest in the neighboorhood by 10 to 15 years, and made great friends with our neighbors.

When we bought in the Historic section over 4 years ago we were the youngest in our neighborhood. We're not anymore, because a house sold early last year to someone who is younger than we are now.

When you're looking for people around your age - and you're already 50, and you're moving to a 55+ senior community, then you're going to need to look for people between 55-65. Those are the "young folks" in the community. The 50-year-old single male is an outlier.

In the Historic area, all the people who bought in the late 1970's when THEY were 55, are now either a) close to 100 years old, b) living in assisted living/memory care/a "home", or c) dead. They've been replaced by people who were 55-65 back in the early 2000s. THOSE people are now 75-85 years old, and still going strong for the most part, but some are either b, or c. The ones who are c - their homes are now occupied by people who moved in within the past 10 years, and are around 65 years old, give or take - probably not b, and probably not c.

There's a lot of younger people moving in to the Historic area because EVERYONE eventually dies, and their homes become occupied by the next batch of 55+ homebuyers, usually coming in at the younger side of retirement.

You have been a member of TOTV a couple months. These questions have been debated to the ninth degree. Try a search on those topics of interest.

Well, personally, I like to know my neighbors in general. Do I fit in? Some neighbors may sell or pass away but not the whole neighborhood.

I’ve travelled too much in my life since I was a young child, different countries, different languages, different cultures. I’m tired of adjusting all the time. It’s now nice to find my own “tribe” and I did. Very happy.

I guess I’m not into the new areas, I’ve gone down once in 6 years to see and that was enough for the time being.

It is easy to find friends that share your interests by joining clubs.I believe you will find everyone is friendly no matter which Village you choose. Most of the neighborhoods have planned get togethers and welcome newcomers with open arms. Do a drive by in the neighborhood BEFORE purchasing. Talk to the neighbors and ask questions that concern you. From the get go, you will know if that neighborhood is your perfect fit.

I lived in the south and have returned to the north to be closer to amenities and commercial. I did not enjoy the amount of daily travel required in the south. This may change once Eastport is complete. Do a drive by in the new areas to see all that is available. Keep in mind, it will take several years to attain what is available in the north. Some things planned may never reach fruition. You can't force businesses to open shop. Or, obtain needed professionals from thin air. Especially in the medical field. Do you want to wait? If not, I suggest buying a home north of 44 about 10 miles or so from Eastport. There you will be able to enjoy the best of both worlds.

Be careful.of Villages Sales Reps and outside real estate agents who may blow smoke in your face. Their motive is profit not your well being. Research EVERY area carefully before buying. An example of this is homes in Moultrie Creek. You may be told the homes are selling like hot cakes. But, if you look on VLS and do a drive-by through that area, you will see hundreds of spec homes are sitting. If you buy in a rush, months later, the Developer may slash prices.This happened in Lake Denham and Dabney. Folks who paid $30-50K more than their neighbors are not happy.

Several commercial buildings have been built but are not occupied. RESEARCH and pay careful attention to the surroundings.

Your friendships and active life in TV are dependent upon on you…….don’t wait & expect things to happen…..jump in feet first.

Rent in different areas for about 6 months.
More haste, less speed.

I’d see what squares you enjoy hanging at and live within a short golf cart ride. You certainly don’t want to be 30-40 minutes from any of your favorite things.

Just the opposite, so much better living south of 44 for many many reasons. Since you are in your 50’s, you will find more people in your age range south of 44 than the other areas combined. Somebody did some statistics on this over a year ago.
Why would you want to move to the north where the houses are old, outdated, no natural gas, horrendous traffic, just to move to shopping? How often are you going to Best Buy or target? Once every 6 months? 441 has been a terrible area to drive thru for years now.
I know people that have moved to an established area and were treated like outcasts because of existing clicks that have been established. They moved to a brand new area where everybody else was looking for friends and had no existing groups.
Where we live, we have around 50-60 pickleball courts in a couple mile radius, where we play 95% of the time. We belong to many different pb groups, card groups, and other sport groups down south of 44. Now with Bexley bridge open and golf cart paths open to go to any of the southern golf courses in a few minutes, along with TV building 5 or 6 more golf courses down there, the need to go up north is waning

Honestly you won't know unless you go into a neighborhood and physically meet people living there. We wondered the same thing. We bought a brand new Courtyard Villa in Lake Denham and just moved in a week ago. We met the neighbors next door on day two. Last night we met 3 other neighbors and all are very friendly. Two weeks ago our little neighborhood had a block party that we just missed.

I'm in my 50s and in the historic section. I love the well established area. Mature nature is important to me, but it might not be to you. I love to work on my home so being near Home Depot is a must to me, might not be to you. I love advanced pickleball play and my home courts have more advanced play in early morning most of the time. Otherwise, it's easy to go to afternoon dedicated reserved advanced groups. Again, you have to decide what's important to you. Good luck and enjoy!