[zcaveman]

Since I have moved here I have compiled a list of things to keep in mind when moving to the Villages. I hope these help and I am sure that others that have moved can add and/or rebut my entries.

Caveat: These are strictly my thoughts and experiences and can be considered, rejected, or talked to with others that moved to the Villages. These are just to help you when you move. They are in no special order. I have sent these to several friends that have moved to the Villages and they have been helpful. I do not personally endorse any companies that I mention in this documentation. How is that for taking the fifth!

1. Telephone/cable Service. Before you go back home, find out who your telephone carrier is so that you can order your telephone prior to actually moving down. That way you can set up an appointment with them to have the telephone installed when you get here. We did not order until we were here and it took about a week to get the telephone installed. Do the same with the cable service.

2. Electric and Gas. When you move to Florida, they are going to want a deposit. You can call your local gas and electric companies and get a form that says that you were a good payer for the past year. You can get a form from your new companies (TECO/SECO) and attach that form and send it in and get your deposit back right away. Apparently I got the waiver forms from the electric and gas company early as I have notations that I sent in the forms in June.

3. Papers. Be sure to bring your birth certificates and other ID with you. You will need them to get Florida driver's licenses. You should also bring your car titles. If you are still buying your car, bring the name and address of the car loan place and the account number. You will have to have proof of Florida car insurance before you can change titles and get tags. I stayed with my original company but they had to write me a new policy and cancel the New Jersey one. Of course you will also need home insurance on the new home and you cannot drop the old home until it is sold. I am sure you know that. This year we went with the Villages Insurance on Main Street. It was cheaper for both the home and auto than Liberty Mutual. They also cover the golf cart under the home insurance policy.

4. State Taxes. If you move from a state with state income taxes, you will have to file a resident and non-resident return for the year you earned income in both states. You will need to keep track on what your income was in your home state and out of your home state and what interest you earned on accounts both in and out of your home state. Of course, you should contact your home state and get the proper tax infromation so you do everything properly. TurboTax handles both resident and non-resident returns.

5. Bank. When we were down here to buy home, we also started a checking and savings account so that we could start funneling money to this account, get checks with our names and new address. This is important as some places will not take starter checks. We also started with a high number -300- so that it looked like we had been here awhile. For some reason the vendors like the higher check numbers. When we got here we had already changed the direct deposit for any accounts I had in my home state into the account down here. We transferred all of our savings to our checking account in our home state and then wrote a check down here to move the money to our Florida bank. This was a lot cheaper than a wire transfer. We closed the account in our home state after we were sure there were no more outstanding checks. We used the telephone system to check on the account up there. Don't forget to change all of the EFT accounts that you already have set up with your financial institutions. Don't forget to empty and cancel your safety deposit boxes.

6. Health Insurance. You should check to find out if you will be covered by your current carrier in this area in Florida and what you have to do to inform them of the change.

7. Change of Address. Don't forget to go to the post office and get the change of address kit. You will also have to figure out how to change all of your subscriptions when you move.

8. EMAIL. As long as you stay with your current ISP you should have no problem with EMAIL and those places where they use your Email address for a sign-on. I had to switch ISPs and it was really a pain. If you do have to change your ISP, don't cancel your old ISP before you switch any Internet accounts that use your email as the USERID as they won't swap you if you try to change it with your new ID.

9. Current Services. Make arrangements with your cable, telephone, heating oil, etc companies to cut off these services the day you leave the home state. Don't worry about the electric, as the new owner will get it switched to their name when they close.

10. Money. Be prepared to have your checkbook ready. You will be hit with the lawn mowing services, insect and pest control services, water softener, landscaping, awnings, lanai vinyl windows, not to mentioned food, kitchen stuff, cleaning and lawn stuff, ladders, etc.

11. After you put in the down payment, you will get a copy of the floor plan. This plan is to scale and can be used to see where the furniture will fit, etc.

12. We had the backsplash behind the kitchen sink and the stove tiled after the fact. I am not sure if the Villages will do it while the house is being built but it makes the cleaning behind the stove and sink much easier. We used Handy Andy in the Villages. He also installed the shelves in the garage and over the washer/dryer for us.

13. Wills. You might want to check with a lawyer once you settle in to verify that your wills are valid in the state of Florida. I think that the check is free.

14. You will be told this several times but before you hire some one to do any work for you, you might want to check with the Villages to verify that they are a reputable company or ask your neighbors to see who they used for a particular service.

15. After you move in, you will start getting requests to come to a meeting (includes lunch or dinner) to hear spiels about taxes, wills, trusts, Florida Intangible taxes, etc. It is well worth it to attend at least one - maybe two. It is free and there is no obligation. I did actually go and see one for a free financial check up. They tried to sell me some annuities but I said I was not interested and they did not seem to care. They did give me some insights on my retirement investments and well-being and pointed out a lack of sufficient Federal withholding from my job separation checks.

16. We have our banking accounts with The Citizens First Bank. They have on-line access and their debit card is free at all of the ATMs in the Villages. They also have safety deposit boxes.

17. Florida Homestead Exemption. If this is your primarty home, you will get a $25,000 homestead exemption when you reside in your new home as of January 1st of that year. Be sure to file for your homestead exemption if you are a permanent resident.

Remember that these are strictly my thoughts and should only be considered or rejected in light of what you want or need and can do on your own.

I hope some of this helps or at least gives you something to think about. If it is too much I am sorry. Once I get started I can't stop.

[ripwho]

Z - all good stuff.. keep them coming.... thank you!

[Becky]

Great and helpful advice!

Becky

[kar guy]

ZCAVEMAN..... GREAT INFORMATION... I AM SURE THAT THERE IS A LOT MORE... PLEASE GIVE US ALL THE INFORMATION THAT YOU HAVE. TAKE CARE KAR GUY

[conn8757]

Thanks for the information.

[villager99]

great list i'll just add one thing,
be sure to make new patient appointments with area doctors asap so things will go smoothier should health issues arise during your first months in the villages.
there are lots of doctors right here on village property but some only see patients one day a week as their main office is in leesburg or ocala.

[bestmickey]

Terrific list...thanks!

I'll add one thing. Before you leave for The Villages, ask your medical/dental providers for your files. If they won't give you the original files, ask them to give you a photocopy of all documents. Same goes for x-rays, if you have need for continuing care with these medical issues. These files could save you the time/costs of having some tests repeated when you find your new medical team(s).

[tbsoccer]

Z.

This good information but can't get your recommendations to print out. If I print portrate, I loose about 1.5 inches on the right margin. If I print landscape, I still lose about .25 inches on the right. I finally copied your message and pasted it to a Word document. Any suggestions on printing TOTV? There is good stuff here that I want to keep with our TV files.

TB

[zcaveman]

Good ideas Villager99 and bestmickey. I did that but forgot to add them. I will put them on my list in case I need to repost anywhere.

Also, When you get your medical records don't forget to stop by the vet and get the records for your pets - especially if they are on some kind of medication.

[pili]

Great information. We are a year away but I'm compiling everything I can. TB, I had no problem printing. It must be something with the way your printer is set up. I didn't lose any space. I printed just the way it appeared on this forum.

Pili

[Trueblue]

Z,
Thanks very much for taking the time to prepare this excellent and most helpful list! You are super!! Thanks to Villager99 and bestmickey too.
Best wishes,
Trueblue

[ouma1938]

All great information Z, many thanks. I am keeping a copy in my TV file. I am just hoping that we can sell our house here soon so we can move on down to TV before I get too old and can't remember where I put my TV file. :bow:

[Villages Kahuna]

We weren't here more than a few days when we got calls from at least two companies offering to test our water. Typically they offer a free dinner for two at a local restaurant. That fact is the tip that it's purely a sales pitch.

We made an appointment and a fellow came and mixed some chemicals to "test our water". In spite of the fact that TV provides a very complete annual analysis of water quality, the sales guy opined that we needed filtering equipment that ranged in price from $1,000 to over $3,000.

What he didn't know was that we had used a well as well as city water in the Chicago area for many years and were intimately familiar with the levels of permissable chemicals and contaminants in potable water. After we let him prattle on long enough to hang himself, we began to explain that we knew quite a little bit about water quality. He quickly shut up and headed for his car never to be heard from again.

If you get calls asking to test your water, be aware that it is purely a sales pitch for some polyrazzmatazz water filtering equipment. You'll find the quality of the water in TV is really quite good compared to many locales in the U.S. I'd recommend telling the prospective testers "thanks, but no thanks".

[SteveZ]

GREAT LIST!

As a couple of additional notes:

1. Other Licenses: Various other licenses (pilot, amateur radio, etc.) may require change-of-address with the agency within a defined time frame or they may be forgotten at renewal time or invalid upon the move.

2. Immigration: For those with green cards, a change of address must be filed within ten days to USCIS or you are deportable.

3. Organizations: I'm in more clubs/organizations than I thought. Each one has its own change-of-address procedure to keep current. Many of these can be done on-line.

4. Firearms: This is a tricky one. For those with a concealed carry permit, if issued in several states (check yours carefully) it may be valid also in Florida due to reciprocal-recognition agreements between the states. However, that license may become invalid the instant you have moved to FL and became a Florida resident.

[eujaynia]

Thanks, z ... a big help. I'm printing it out!

Rebekah