[Sidney Lanier]

I just posted the following on the other thread on this subject and am repeating it here as well:

You never know what you might find in the resale market, especially nowadays with TV lowering prices on new construction that do include full (and higher...) bonds and closing costs. As snowbirds we came looking for--and at--Patio Villas and ended up buying a small Designer home with bond already paid and upgrades (some costly) for barely more than the Patio Villas we had been looking at.

On top of this, with a resale the seller pays virtually all of the closing costs; the buyer pays adjustments (e.g., taxes paid in advance by the seller that will end up covering some portion of time that the buyer owns the house) plus, best as I recall, $25 which was half the cost of registering the new deed. We were fortunate to have been able to buy directly from the sellers (privately, that is), which helped as well.

If time is on your side, keep looking, check the FSBOs that come on the market, look at new listings every day, and eventually you will find something that you love and that is affordable to you. Best of luck!

[tkret]

Thanks Sidney. When Eileen returns from her trip, I will tell her she has received a lot of great advice and encouragement. I have no idea when she will return but I'll keep an eye out for her. Funny, though, she'll probably come aknockin' now that she has been bitten by The Villages bug!