[QUOTE=jarobar;1020012]I'll be moving there mid November. In advance of that I want to identify a really great TV Agent ......not an MLS realtor..../QUOTE]

Just curious....if you haven't yet found an agent, and, I have to assume do not yet have a house under contract, how do you know you are moving in November, let alone mid November?

At any rate, the answer to your question is Tony Trussler....352-552-6027....one of the good guys!!

We were really fortunate to have been assigned to Julia Powell when we did our "Lifestyle visit". She was fabulous. She helped introduce us to The Villages and answered all our questions. We were not ready to buy, and she didn't rush us at all.

We worked with her long distance and she always found the answer to our questions, no matter how tiresome we were. She is a pro!! You couldn't find a better agent!

Brian Dees is the leading realtor. They even named a street after him. Once you meet him you will be sold. He does not sell homes, you buy a home.

I find it difficult to comprehend you don't want a "MLS" realtor who subscribe to a strict code of ethics. So that being the case, you definitely
should go to the Villages Real Estate owned and operated by its developer to purchase your home.

We highly recommend Chris Day. He has been with TV for 10 years and is very professional, hard working and responsive. Also very patient. We saw both pre-owned and new homes. We started with what we thought was our target budget and spent a day looking in that range. When we didn't find anything we liked, he took us to some other properties, beyond the budget, to give us a feel for what was available. (We liked some of those better.) We spent that evening reworking our own budget numbers upwards. The next day we saw properties we increasingly liked and found our home. He expertly knows the models, knows which one is similar to another or a variant of the same and was able to ask us the right questions each time to narrow the focus and hone in on our wants/needs/wishes. I mention this because looking at houses in TV can be a little overwhelming and it helps speed the process along if your salesperson knows their product and helps you narrow the choices, as the great lots and certain models go fast.

Chris' number is 352-988-7777. Best of luck with your search!

Another vote for Julia Powell. She is professional and will work with you here or online. Quick with responses on the phone too!! No frustrating waiting for return calls.

Now, with all those wonderful recommendations, how do you choose????? LOL

:agree::agree::agree:

Don

Tony Trussler is your guy. He is extremely informative and thorough in giving you all your options but he truly listens to what you want. Very laid back and not pushy. We've referred him several times and no one has ever been disappointed. He and his assistant, Geralynn, will help you and make it a pleasant experience.

[QUOTE=NYGUY;1020117]I plan to house hunt a few months in advance of the mid November time frame and when I make an offer I will target that time frame to close. I'm in a rental home currently in the Fla. panhandle, so must time things carefully. Could be a bit challenging on the timing.....and that's another reason I want a great TV agent.

Communication glitch, my friend. I'm just looking for a TV agent in this thread. I already have a ReMax MLS agent. Some months ago when I did my reconnaissance visit I quickly found out that there are 2 markets there. So it only makes sense to explore houses in both. I didn't want to just call TV and get assigned "someone". Too much left to chance on that. Thus my quest in this thread........which is working out great!!!

Agree PaPa!......HOW?!?!?! But as I see it, there are worse problems. Before this thread, I had zero names......now I am brimming over. If this thread is any evidence (and it is), what they say about this being a community where folks pitch in and help each other is so very true.

THANK YOU ALL.......YOU ARE SIMPLY AWESOME!! YOU HAVE REALLY HELPED ME.

:a040:

Remember, you're buying a house, not a realtor. Each day, there are 18 open houses, that is 18 different agents you can talk to. Do that until you find one that you are comfortable with. There are no 'bad' agents. They never got hired.

[quote=jarobar;1020230] So you would be looking for a delayed close. Depending on the situation with the seller that can be tough. We have not listed let alone sold our house in WA yet so were looking for a closing on Sept 1. We instead ended up with a closing in mid March for less money. A delayed close even if it isn't contingent on selling another property makes people nervous. It might be cheaper to break your current lease. You need to find out what that would cost so you are prepared in the negotiation faze.
We used Nanette Tolleson Nanette.Tolleson@TheVillages.com, she was a broker and a manager with the villages real estate but missed working with clients and stepped back into sales. She has an assistant so you can always get in touch with someone when handling the paperwork and little stuff no problem. We liked that she was very honest and upfront with her opinion and didn't argue with my number crunching only pointed out a couple of estimate errors. When we wanted to offer less than the list on a resale she did not give us the properties in the villages are moving fast grab it song and dance which most do. Very Professional and personable.

Thanks. But I'm not just going to visit open houses. Well in advance of my visit, I will identify a number of homes that fit my preferences using the online sites......both TV and MLS sites. Prices and "value" vary dramatically in this market. That is already obvious to me, so homework is important. In addition to my homework and advance planning, I expect MLS and TV realtors to arrange showings on additional homes (that I couldn't find online) that fit my preferences and are "value" priced. That's why I want quality agents......to do great work on the hunt in a team effort with me. As you may have guessed......I'm a real planner. But this approach to "big events" in life (like house hunting) has generally paid off for me. OK......OCD.....go ahead and say it.....LOL