[under55]

Originally Posted by davem4616

We took a look at Latitudes a little over a year ago just out of curiosity. Way smaller scale than TV and it will stay that way. It is a 'golf cart' community...but there are no courses within the community. A little surprised that their private beach area hasn't opened yet, that was all the talk when we visited. They planned on having a shuttle bus running between the beach and the community. Had homes actually been under construction when we were last moving we would have given it serious thought, as neither of us golf and my wife is a beach person. Now we're tired of all the hassle that goes with packing and moving.

Understand that. We are lucky we don't accumulate stuff. If we don't use it or look at in a year we get rid of it. We can be packed and ready to move just about anytime in 4 hours. We are about half packed now and only have 4 boxes full. Oh I have to clean out the attic. We have a Christmas tree up there. Yep that is it. We had a 2600 sq. ft. basement in Illinois and that is all we kept down there was the Christmas tree.

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by New Englander

It looks very nice. Wondering what it would be like during storms.

I will never live near the coast. Much prefer inland where the storms peter out a good degree by the time they reach us here in TV.

[billethkid]

Originally Posted by dewilson58

The Developer develops. They are in the business to build and sell homes. The "priority" has continued South from the Historical Section for the last 30 years.


468 apartments out of 75,000 houses. The sky is not falling.


Closures???..............look at the rest of the country.......food industry is in sad shape.


The glass is not 1/2 empty, the glass is +90% full.

Nail on the head!!!!

[dewilson58]

Originally Posted by coffeebean

I will never live near the coast. Much prefer inland where the storms peter out a good degree by the time they reach us here in TV.

Always for the peter out. Hope it continues.

[blueash]

Originally Posted by kmspla1952

In the April 30th on-line News:

One bedroom units will run between $804 to $1,099 per month; two bedroom units will run between $956 and $1,169; three bedroom units will cost $1,097 to $1,369 per month; and four bedroom apartments will cost between $1,210 and $1,544.

The Lake Sumter Apartment Homes are “non age restricted with income limitations.”

Lake Sumter Living will be “age restricted where one person in the household is 62+. Income limitations.”

And a third entity under construction, Lake Sumter Reserve, will have, “No age or income limitations.”

I take it that is a reply to where did you read there will be section 8 housing in the Villages? Your reference is to apartments that are NOT being built in the villages but in nearby areas.

[justjim]

On top Of The World is a very nice community. We took a look at it and was our second choice at that time. If your unhappy with TV and have the energy and resources to move, I say go for it. When we reach our age there are really only about two questions to answer. Approximately how long have I got and second, what do I want to do with the time I have left. Good luck to you.

[JerryLBell]

That was one of the places we toured when considering retirement communities. For us, it had some advantages and disadvantages but overall came up short compared to The Villages

The community is truly gated, which some people prefer. The houses (at least the newer ones) are very energy efficient and many come with solar panels for electricity so your energy bills are likely to be lower than elsewhere. If I recall, there were a lot of mature trees there and so the community is attractive. The pace of life is very much slower than in The Villages so if you're finding living here to be too hectic, it might be more what you're looking for. We didn't find there to be much there in terms of social groups and activities, something that nobody can come close to The Villages on. Still, if you find that the activities they do offer match your interests, that can be fine.

We found the layouts of the houses we toured to be, frankly, weird. There seemed to be a lot of wasted space and strange choices made, design-wise. Allegedly, you could dine at the one rec center on certain days and hours, but any other dining out meant leaving the reservation. There was a single rec center with a nice outdoor pool but we saw almost nobody using the facilities. There were 3 guys playing pool on the one pool table and one guy on a golf simulator and perhaps one guy at the pool. The place struck us as dead, dead, dead.

Friends of ours had actually picked out a lot and house there, took one final tour of the place before signing the paperwork and realized it was just too inactive for them. Seeing one guy sleeping in a lounge chair at the pool, she told her husband, "The only action we're ever going to see here is when we give that guy CPR someday." They backed out of the deal and bought here.

Your mileage may vary.

[vintageogauge]

Originally Posted by kmspla1952

In the April 30th on-line News:

One bedroom units will run between $804 to $1,099 per month; two bedroom units will run between $956 and $1,169; three bedroom units will cost $1,097 to $1,369 per month; and four bedroom apartments will cost between $1,210 and $1,544.

The Lake Sumter Apartment Homes are “non age restricted with income limitations.”

Lake Sumter Living will be “age restricted where one person in the household is 62+. Income limitations.”

And a third entity under construction, Lake Sumter Reserve, will have, “No age or income limitations.”

You forgot to mention that these are not in The Villages. There is housing like this everywhere you go, Daytona, Ocala, Naples, Vero, Melbourne, etc, etc., Those with limited or no income need a place to live just like you do.

[Toymeister]

Originally Posted by Mortal1

should I take your word for it? Unfortunately there are many "opinion" posts here that are not based on fact, but word of mouth.

Since I monitor my energy consumption 10,000 times a second and it's unlikely that you do. I am all with you on facts, and on this matter I have got them.
One simple comparison in the polystyrene insulation in stucco walls is twice as thick as those in TV.

[sunny56]

Originally Posted by Bjeanj

Where did you see that Section 8 apartments will be included?

If you dig, I found on apartments.com that this has income restricted apartments. That means they are subsidized apartments. If you search for "income restricted apartments" it will explain that they are subsidized and developments. "Income Based" is the description for subsidized apartments owned by individual landlords.

[dadspet]

We looked at TOTW way back in 2007 before we bought here and there were several reasons then we didn't consider it further. Here are some that I remember.

1. Not owning the land was a major consideration. It seemed like with a 99 yr lease it would depreciate 1% a year.

2. You couldn't take your Golf cart from one area to another because they were separate Villages without any connection to the others. This came up when we looked at one House and found we couldn't take our Golf cart to the lone rec center (which was very nice). Perhaps some of the villages/developments were connected in some way but not all so if getting to the Rec Center or someplace else by golf cart is important to you > ask this question. Actually this might have been one of the developments you did own the land but I really can't be sure. BTW in full disclosure I have trouble remembering the PB score and who served, but thankful for people that have their names on their hat large enought to read.
3. Put my fingers in the pool and found it was very cold, when we asked the agent they told me it was winter they didn't heat the pools. If you of course plan to put in your own pool this wouldn't be a consideration.
4.The town square had no activity going on and at that time they didn't have entertainment every night. Actually I think entertainment was very limited. This was a real negative for us.
5. I think you had to pay for golf and tennis with some membership but can't honestly remember if thats a fact.

On the plus side we thought the houses were nice and you got a little more house for your money then TheVillages. But without owning the land and other other negatives we didn't think they would hold their value as much as a house in The Villages.

[2newyorkers]

My sister owns a home in Candler Hills of TOTW. She does own her home and her land. Much like TV one family owns the community. You can get a much bigger home for your $$$ than TV. Each "village" ,including the condos, have different fees and whether you buy or lease the property. Some villages are not allowed to use the other villages facilities. Just like TV it is not a plus to live close to the waste management facility. Prior to Covid they did have music, shows and fairs in the public area but not everyday or even every week. The use of the gym is included in your fees. They do have free dog parks. They do have some activities but most are neighbor to neighbor activities in each others homes. If you wish to go to the stores, restaurants, etc you have to go to 200th Street which is outside TOTW. A little scary in your golf cart. My sister has lived there 6 years and the build in TOTW and 200th street is just like TV, constant. You are also further from Orlando airport but Gainesville is a nice small airport.

[Carla B]

Originally Posted by Toymeister

Since I monitor my energy consumption 10,000 times a second and it's unlikely that you do. I am all with you on facts, and on this matter I have got them.
One simple comparison in the polystyrene insulation in stucco walls is twice as thick as those in TV.

To Mortal1: Yes, I would take Toy's word for it. If you've ever read his posts, he can monitor his stuff here from far, far away.

[JimJohnson]

I miss a friend that moved there to get away from the politics of TV. I love TV so I have learned to turn the other cheek and avoid the attitudes. Most folks here don’t talk politics nor religion.

[kathyspear]

Originally Posted by Mortal1

should I take your word for it? Unfortunately there are many "opinion" posts here that are not based on fact, but word of mouth.

After reading these forums for a few years most people will realize that if Toymeister says something you can take it to the bank.

kathy