[rugbyjohn]

We will be in TV the week of 11/1 and we WILL BUY A HOME during our visit. We have both an MLS and VLS agent. We will look at both types of homes, although our preference leans toward pre-owned. My question to this group, who keep giving me great advice, is "what are the key things to watch out for when we buy"? We understand the bond issue, late afternoon sun, pest control issues and landscaping considerations. But I'm betting that there are little things that we should be aware of and I'm betting you know them and/or have experienced them. As always your thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
John & Barb
Cherry Hill NJ.

[Tom Hannon]

I did read somewhere that houses built after 2007 were constructed with a stricter building code and that insurance might be higher on houses built before that time. Don't take me at my word. Just remember reading something about that. PS: We were looking for a resale also but found out the difference of price was not much different...in some cases the used houses were higher. Yes, with resales you get extras and upgrades such as matured landscape etc but I'm not sure if the tradeoff is worth it. My opinion. Good luck with house hunting.

[Ohiogirl]

Everyone's needs/wants are so individual that I think it's really hard to say. You've hit the main considerations, I think, except for maybe location.

If you already have friends/relatives in TV, you may want to consider if you want to be nearby (or further away ). It's a long golf cart ride from one end to the other. A friend of mine is considering having her parents move down, and doesn't want them TOO close, if you know what I mean, but close enough so it's not an ordeal to get there by golf cart.

If one of you knows they will get majorly involved in a hobby or volunteer organization, find out where it meets, e.g., woodshop on Rolling Acres would be more of a drive from some Villages than others.

We think we like being 10 minutes or less from LSL, but maybe it won't be such a big deal once we're living there instead of just visiting. If you have friends/family outside the Villages that you expect to be visiting a lot, consider how long that may take to get out of TV. Takes lots longer to get to Ocala from our location south of LSL than it would from the north end near Nancy Lopez CC.

[2newyorkers]

We do not live near the main road in our village. Our neighbors that live on a corner say that cars are always riding onto their lawn. Those that live at the direct end of a road complain about headlights shining in the house even with the blinds closed.

[JenAjd]

We contacted an MLS agent from our home state and shopped online and set up an app't to go thru the homes we had pre-selected. BUT we also set up an app't with a TV agent as well. We saw alot of houses with the former agent and thought we'd settled on a "pre-owned". But then TV took us thru some brand-new homes. We had a 'short-list' of "MUST HAVES" plus a price point. We ended up with a new, marked-down home and have been very happy. TV has a very smooth and easy way of purchasing and the houses ALL have a warranty as well. I'm glad we went this route...as we are the first and only people who've lived in our place. It was pretty much a 'bare-bones' model but we've added everything we've wanted (my husband is a former contractor) and in my opinion, have added upgrades at a low-cost. It's a personal thing on which way you want to go.

As an aside...the MLS agent didn't live in TV and he really didn't know his way around w/o his GPS. He wasn't all that knowlegable neither when we'd ask him questions. If you're new to an area, you want to have alot of questions answered!!!!

[jebartle]

Only one thing I would suggest, if you go pre-own and love trees than you will be pleased, if you are ready to give up the leaf-rake experience than buy south of 466...We moved here 3 years ago and moved into a pre-own in the WOODS of LaZamora and could not be happier BUT where-ever you go, I know you will LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

[Sparky-30]

AHS or American Home Shield Warranty and AZ plumbing be very wary of:

We sold our home in N.Va. on Aug 30, 2010 and moved to the Villages on Sept 1, 2010 with a Home Warranty in the sale with AHS or American Home Shield.
Effective Date of warranty 8-26-2010
Contract # 90310181
On Tuesday October 12, 2010 we noticed we had no hot water, so I made a call to our home warranty service company named American Home Shield to report it, she said she would be contacting AZ plumbing and wait for their call. We did not hear from them, so the next day I called them at their office in Ocala area and the lady there at first did not see our name anywhere for service, but looked further and found it buried in another file.
She said someone would be coming out on Thursday Oct. 14 to check out hot water tank. On arriving he got his flashlight and started checking UNDER the hot water tank, said "a lot of these problems are with the screen, very hard to get to, but I made a special tool to check it and also pointed to 2 pvc pipes which fed into the tank at the top and said they were not code. (Everyone has them in the neighborhood) I went into the house and the next thing I was told the hot water tank needed replacement, and he said it would be covered under the warranty for replacement and that I would be receiving a call from his company to schedule. The charge was $60.
On Friday morning received a call from AHS and was told the plumber said someone had poked a hole in the screen probably trying to deceive the home inspectors involved in the sale of the house and it would not be covered.????, This was an elderly lady that owned the home and why or who would do such a thing.
We had been without hot water for almost 4 days now.

After that call, I looked in The Villages newspaper and found PRO PLUMBERS and called them for service, Plumber Mandy came out and I told him what the other plumber said and he became bewildered and amazed at that statement. Mandy easily in front of me reached into the tank and pulled out the screen, which is not under the tank, and it was completely intact and not damaged,
Mandy also holds a special plumbing license CFC which is above a master plumber and was initially involved supervising plumbing crews that did the plumbing work on these homes when they were first built around 2003, he also said that plumber had no idea what he was talking about and that those pvc pipes were code.
Mandy said the tank needed replacing and I was charged $745.