[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Originally Posted by RosemarySoso

Where are Lake Sumpter Apartments located??

They are not in The Villages nor part of The Villages. They have nothing to do with The Villages.

[Sanford Epstein]

I would definitely look elsewhere. Not only is the emphasis south of 44 but the emphasis is all on MONEY!! TV have every right to make money and lots of it however the endless south of 44 construction, dump trucks, road built then torn up and very little as far as the beautiful golf cart trails down Morse Boulevard and Buena Vista, compared to riding in the street south of 44 which is very dangerous since we drive on a 2 way street, 2 lanes, cars and golf carts = very dangerous situation. Be smart and move.

[daca55]

Originally Posted by kmspla1952

I LOVE the Villages. Honestly I do. The convenience of everything. The variety offered. A lot of friendly people. HOWEVER. I've noticed a change in the 5 years we have lived here. I see that the priority is focused on "south of Brownwood". I also see that our home values will decrease as each "multi family/apartments" is built. Hacienda Hills & Katie Belle's have been identified as apartments. 468 new apartments including section 8 are being built behind the Haciendas of Mission Hills. TooJay's and Demshar's have closed in Spanish Springs and are they next to become apartments?
I consider a move to On Top of the World in Ocala. Husband said he would never move anywhere that you didn't own the land (leasehold). I have recently found out that there are 3 communities in OTOW (Candler Hills, Indigo East & Weybourne Landing) that is fee simple and you DO own the land.
I would like your thoughts please on why or why not you would consider OTOW? Thank you.

I don’t like Ocala. The outskirts are ok but not a fan of the City.

[vintageogauge]

Originally Posted by Sanford Epstein

I would definitely look elsewhere. Not only is the emphasis south of 44 but the emphasis is all on MONEY!! TV have every right to make money and lots of it however the endless south of 44 construction, dump trucks, road built then torn up and very little as far as the beautiful golf cart trails down Morse Boulevard and Buena Vista, compared to riding in the street south of 44 which is very dangerous since we drive on a 2 way street, 2 lanes, cars and golf carts = very dangerous situation. Be smart and move.

You evidently haven't seen much of what is south of 44. The beautiful golf car trails along Morse south of 44 are more inland where it is quiet and safe leading to and from the Chitty Chatty bridge. There are areas where golf cars drive along 2 lane roads both south and north of 44, no more dangerous in the south than up north. Do you consider the golf car lane north of 466 along Morse safe???. Buyers be smart and move south of 44 where it is peaceful and safe.

[stan the man]

Originally Posted by vintageogauge

You evidently haven't seen much of what is south of 44. The beautiful golf car trails along Morse south of 44 are more inland where it is quiet and safe leading to and from the Chitty Chatty bridge. There are areas where golf cars drive along 2 lane roads both south and north of 44, no more dangerous in the south than up north. Do you consider the golf car lane north of 466 along Morse safe???. Buyers be smart and move south of 44 where it is peaceful and safe.

much safer north of 44

[KristineTVFL]

I believe TOTW is fairly large with a wide range of housing prices and styles to choose from. It is kind of a golf cart community but if you need to go to the doctor, grocery shopping, church or need anything, you must go by car. They have no stores of any kind, nor medical, nor restaurants nor places of worship in the community. I find myself being more and more grateful to be able to drive the golf cart practically wherever I need to go. My eye sight isn’t what it used to be and I don’t think it will improve with age.

[Rrgolf]

We looked at Tow. We are moving from TV. Take a look at Terra Vista at Citrus Hills. Much better construction than Tow..and you can customize

[Dilligas]

Originally Posted by kmspla1952

I LOVE the Villages. Honestly I do. The convenience of everything. The variety offered. A lot of friendly people. HOWEVER. I've noticed a change in the 5 years we have lived here. I see that the priority is focused on "south of Brownwood". I also see that our home values will decrease as each "multi family/apartments" is built. Hacienda Hills & Katie Belle's have been identified as apartments. 468 new apartments including section 8 are being built behind the Haciendas of Mission Hills. TooJay's and Demshar's have closed in Spanish Springs and are they next to become apartments?
I consider a move to On Top of the World in Ocala. Husband said he would never move anywhere that you didn't own the land (leasehold). I have recently found out that there are 3 communities in OTOW (Candler Hills, Indigo East & Weybourne Landing) that is fee simple and you DO own the land.
I would like your thoughts please on why or why not you would consider OTOW? Thank you.

It all depends on what you want to do with the rest of your life. If you are moving because of what you read & hear....its the wrong reason.

[mydavid]

Originally Posted by kmspla1952

I LOVE the Villages. Honestly I do. The convenience of everything. The variety offered. A lot of friendly people. HOWEVER. I've noticed a change in the 5 years we have lived here. I see that the priority is focused on "south of Brownwood". I also see that our home values will decrease as each "multi family/apartments" is built. Hacienda Hills & Katie Belle's have been identified as apartments. 468 new apartments including section 8 are being built behind the Haciendas of Mission Hills. TooJay's and Demshar's have closed in Spanish Springs and are they next to become apartments?
I consider a move to On Top of the World in Ocala. Husband said he would never move anywhere that you didn't own the land (leasehold). I have recently found out that there are 3 communities in OTOW (Candler Hills, Indigo East & Weybourne Landing) that is fee simple and you DO own the land.
I would like your thoughts please on why or why not you would consider OTOW? Thank you.

I lived in Top of the World for 10 years moved to the villages in 2013, Yes they have many home options and it a well built community. You'll find you will get a lot of home for the money, also all the roads are private and gated with 24 hour guards. Also with all the build up you have a lot more places you can go on a golf cart. But like most places their are good and bad points. I thought of moving back a couple years ago for some of the reasons you have stated, but circumstances have kept me here

[B-flat]

Originally Posted by Mimi0808

Thank you for the info. Do you know how a person can find out about availability and prices for these places?

OTOW has a resales division and a new construction division. We used a resale agent named Tammy Coughlin, she was great. I took my first bicycle ride since we moved here this week. Lots of growth since we sold the original home we had here in 2015.

Tammy Coughlin - , Real Estate Agent - realtor.com(R)

You could also go to this web site and fill out the contact form:

Visit On Top of the World Ocala, Florida. Experience Retirement!

[Dgizzi]

Originally Posted by under55

Have been in The Villages over 13 years. Built 2 new homes here. But some things you just can't put a finger on just a feeling it's time for a change. Went last weekend to check out Latitudes Margaritiville Daytona Beach. Nice small development everything is new. There is now a range of preowned homes to buy so you don't have to wait to build. We purchased a preowned and moving next month. On to our next adventure. We also thought about OTW and Trilogy but the monthly fees seemed high. Our villa fees will be about 270 per month but that includes all outside landscaping upkeep and irrigation and any new exterior painting and roof replacement as needed. They will go up another $20 when the Beach Club opens up. But no Bond and no yearly maintenance fee.
Here is a great article on the place. Latitude Margaritaville Daytona Beach Retirement Guide

Yes, we looked at homes there as well. Very small. You get more for your money here. There are more activities and stores locally to use your golf cart here in the villages. Margaritaville only has one stage, no room for golf cart, unless you are buying a 3 car garage. But if you like small it’s good for you. But, I wasn’t thrilled living so close to Daytona Beach. Crime is getting worse there. And I would question why so many resales? They have only been opened couple years. We moved from a development in St Cloud Florida. They started in 2016, so many resales because the builder isn’t doing what he said, St Cloud is old and run down city, crime is worse over there. Kississimee is right next store. It was a small development and they are still building new but people are desperate to get out. We got lucky selling. Good Luck there.

[KRM0614]

I would go there because you don’t really own the land your house is built on. Move on listen to your husband the place is changing targeting younger buyers with more money ! I’m leaving and never looking back ! Will always warn prospective buyers they don’t own their house. Wish the IRS would do a deep dive and force the owners to sell the owners their house and land. Probably won’t happen they own all the politicians

[B-flat]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Here is a link to homes now available. The amenity fee seems to be in the high 300's and is it based on cost of living or can it be raised? Also, I see some mighty bright colors of homes there. Do they have community standards?

9249 Sw 97th Circle, Ocala, 34481

Also. What does "private sewer" mean?

When we inherited my uncle's home in 2015 the HOA fees were approximately $350 they are about the same now. I think the difference then to now was basic cable TV was included, now it's the internet instead.

[Jayhawk]

Originally Posted by Sanford Epstein

Be smart and move.

Are you taking your own advice?

[talleyjm]

Originally Posted by 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.

Exactly what we found when we were checking out different retirement communities in North and South Carolina and Florida - there was a DEAD, SAD feeling in most of them. Almost like a nursing home vibe. Folk just sitting around waiting to check out. We have been in TV for only a year and a half and are happier with every passing month. We don’t play golf but love seeing all the activity associated with that sport. So much to do if you want to be active. So many clubs. So many volunteer activities. So many churches. We decided early on we’re too old to worry about hurricanes. We were evacuated twice from our timeshare on Hilton Head Island so no coastal retirement communities for us. I think folk have to be careful at our age about looking for that “geographical cure” to fix what ails them.
I can’t imagine picking up and moving again. You can call it adventure seeking but I’m fond of the old adage, “Bloom where you are planted.” Find contentment by being grateful and feeling blessed for all your good fortune in life.