How do you buy a house in The Villages?
 

Okay, let’s get some of the preliminaries out of the way. I did a Lifestyle visit, about 3-4 days, a year ago, in Newell. I spent July in an Airbnb in the northern village of Alhambra. I don’t want to move until I start my Social Security, so sometime after February. Although my wife was smitten with the idea of a new home, the LONG drive down to Eastport made her less eager, and I don’t want the big bonds of the new houses (I know, many say bonds don’t matter for various reasons, but I don’t want a new house bond.)

Maybe I should clarify my original question now:
How do you go about buying a (preowned) home in a community 1500 miles away from where you live?
Thanks to all who share their experiences.

Well do like rest of did. Look for houses on real estate sits and villages site. Review the information, look over the location, select ones in you like and in your budget. IMO I would get here and rent first month to month basics while looking. Trying to buy 1500 miles away not good idea to me, but that’s me. I like see the listing in person, look area over and make decision.

Right now kind slow market so plenty to select from when you get here. Should be able to close within month or two depending on how picky you are. Or when you house goes on market and has closing date come down and select then. IMO in few months market going to sluggish well into next year if not beyond do to all expansion down south.

Bonds don’t just come with new houses. Some resales will have them as well.

I would not try to but a resale 'sight unseen', at a minimum you need an inspection report by YOUR inspector, you time to find a suitable house, plan where furniture will go, IF you will bring furniture with you etc. As noted, there are sites where you may be able to get a list of potential homes to look at and schedule a trip to see the houses. Closing will take some time unless you are paying cash. You will require time to pack and move, and you will need to find a suitable mover (I suggest one that does not use a transfer station). `
Also, you will probably need 2 realtors, one for MLS and maybe one for houses listed with the villages, with the recent changes in the way the realtors work I have no idea how this works now.

You can get a fully furnished rental for a year (or less) while you look while living here without a bond, pest control worries, tax bills, water bill, mortgage payment, etc? Renting is a really good option for those reasons alone as opposed to buying, IMO. If you rent in the summer it’s a no brainer but if you do this in the winter not so much (so do a year lease). Plenty of inventory year round so why buy before you get here? The “crap” you end up bringing down with you (we all do) will need packed anyway so just do a POD and you only need to touch it once and pay for the monthly storage fee. If you look on the VLS there are many homes just over 1 years old so same as new. Speaking from our experience.

Except you are wasting $30,000+ renting a home with no equity.

Pete,

My wife and I bought our current home (not in The Villages) ne’er having stepped inside. Our realtor walked us through a few video chats where the on-line photos matched the video. I refused the inspection on the (then) seven year-old home simply because the inspector wouldn’t assess the irrigation system. Our current house is part of an HOA where reality does not dovetail with the written rules. We needn’t worry about that in The Villages; for the most part, perception is the reality. Good luck.

It can be a balancing act to pull it off with ease, but very stressful no matter what.
Buy too early.... you got two houses
Buy too slow... homeless and living out of your moving truck
Rent long term.....wasting money, plus furniture storage fees

Everybody has a different way
Few get the perfect house and area for them the first time
Most move again to the perfect house/area long after moving down

.

You don't. You rent. Then you have plenty of time to look around.

You have to decide what you want. We wanted to be near Sumter Landing. We wanted a courtyard villa for our dogs. We wanted a two car garage. That narrowed our choices down considerably so when one became available we had a friend who lived here go and look at it for us and it was perfect.

That's a pretty narrow and tough order to fill. I'd like the same thing, but pretty much gave up looking for one. Not many out there, from what I've seen.

But that $400k-$500k that you would have spent on a home is sitting in the stock market earning 9% or $36k-45k. Or, taking out a mortgage at 7% and paying that same $30k in interest expense. So, not really that cut and dry.

We were lucky.

It depends on so many things for different people. If you cash out your home up north and put that in a high interest account it can help pay a large portion of the rent. Yes, $30K seems like a lot until you do the actual math for your situation. Your not making killer equity (at age 65) in a years time even in the villages?

It's much easier in The Villages, than it is anywhere else.

Their are limited models to choose from. Narrow down your preferred area and they'll be a zillion home that will meet your needs. Given the current inventory, you'll have to problem finding one that suits your needs. Given you're going to end up painting and doing a few other upgrades, one is about the same as the next.

You'll need 2 brokers, one MLS, one from The Villages. Because of the way the MLS system works in TV, that's the only way to see the entire inventory. The MLS inventory, you can view online at a number of sites.

When the time comes to actually buy, set up 8-10 homes to view ... one will be right.. A day or two is all you'll need.

Assuming you're paying cash and selling a home to generate funds, open an Equity Line on the home you're selling. The cost is usually under $500 and you'll have cash available when you're ready to make a move, independent of whether your home is sold. That said, you really need to price the home you're selling, on the money.

Eazy peezy, lemon squeezy.