Six years ago, ours was $1,700 for a medium sized house (2 car & cart garage). That was using copper wire versus aluminum. Note, no home with lightning rods has ever been hit in The Villagers -- which means all those that have been hit did not have lightning rods.

So far, houses in The Villages that have lightning rods have never been hit by lightning. And just in case, I had our cheap (yellow) corrugated gas lines replaced with black iron piping.

No, not unless they were grounded with at least two 10 foot, steel (copper coated) rods -- which is how the lightning rods are grounded.

No. There have been many examples where nearby trees were not hit and yet a home was hit. And, many years ago, a big tree next to my home was hit and it's root system channeled the strike into my home -- causing lots of electrical damage.

In The Villages -- only homes without lightning rods have been hit and/or destroyed by fire.

Had A-1 install lightning rods. Some months later lightning struck the house. Had no damage but the TVs were out for about 20 minutes. Glade I have lightning rods.

Are these non-metal rooves ? Shingle ?

Would be nice to find online somewhere the stats on shingle vs metal roofing and lightning penetration.

Lightning Protection for Buildings with Metal Roofs | 2017-07-21 | Building Enclosure

Lightning is a powerful, destructive force of nature and will strike a building regardless of its type of roofing. Metal roofs do not attract lightning strikes; nor do metal roofs protect a building against lightning.

The only way to protect a building is with a properly designed and installed lightning protection system (LPS).

Do you contend that lightning has never gone towards a home with lightning rods? (the lightning rods were unnecessary)

Or, are you saying that when lightning did threaten homes with with lightning rods the LPS absorbed the strike before it could reach the home itself? (the lightning rods worked as designed)

No home in The Villages has ever been damaged by lightning -- only those homes without lightning rods.

I also suspect a weak point for lightning damage or entry could be any rusty areas of a metal roof. Conductivity and resistance is compromised if the path has rust, not to mention the water penetration factor too. Seems and peaks tend to be the first-to-rust locations.

I suspect the number of homes in TV that have been hit by lightning is very low, and the number of homes with LPS is very low. So, the probability of lightning striking a home with LPS is very, very low.

Does anyone know if this presentation is available online?

No, because it is continually updated. Len Hathaway gives this talk many times each year to various clubs and groups -- and once a year at the Weather Club.

Like flood Insurance