Exotic landscaping is a real pain to maintain, constant trimming, fertilization, getting rid of pests--wish TV would allow Astro Turf--no irrigation, no mowing, no maintenance

yes! We wanted golf cart garage plus 2 car, stucco, closet in every bedroom, not near busy/noisy streets or golf cart paths, decent size dining room and back yard. The dining room was the hardest, because if the dining room worked, the master was very small..oh 3bedroom/2 or 2.5 bath

Must Haves & Wants
 

We bought a home with a two-car garage that had room for a golf cart. After playing musical vehicles in order to get the golf cart in and out, we have decided to add a golf cart garage which will make the current space available for storage.

- Location (personal preference and debate-rich so won't get into details).
- Specific designer home style (again, personal preference and debate-rich)
- Natural Gas (can't get past cooking on anything else)
- 3 bedroom
- Closed lanai

- full basement and basketball hoop in driveway :icon_wink:

YES! I would like Astro Turf. My wife won’t have it, she loves landscaping and it’s beautiful. We have seven crape myrtle trees, holley tree, three palm trees (dwarf, easier/less costly to maintain) two dozen bushes/shrubs and then don’t get me started on the flowers. All need constant maintenance, but thankfully no magnolia or other leaf barring trees that, imho, are just messy. Then no matter what you do, rocks in the landscaping you get weeds and don’t waste your money on that landscaping mat you’ll need the cash to spry for weeds. We tried the natural weed treatments, didn’t work, tried weed burning propane torch weed still come like the energizer bunny. The latest that’s showing some promising results, in clinical trials LOL, is extended control Preen. But after all I am retired and it keeps me busy, motion is lotion.

Must Have:

Central location, central location, central location - defined as being a short cart ride from LSL.

Large two car garage, preferably with golf cart garage.

The rest we can either live with, or change.

Man, talk about lazy.

As you might guess patience is essential in the home purchase experience. Finding the perfect home in a perfect location is not easy and may not be quick. We used both an MLS and a Villages realtor simultaneously, and we took 3 months to find our home. Many of the homes that backed onto a busy street were attractive but the sound of gas golf carts going by was worse than the the sound of auto traffic, even with dense green buffers. I know there are thousands of homes in TV with this arrangement with insulated glass sliders installed but it wouldn’t work for us.

1) must be in budget.
2) deep 3 car garage.
3) lanai on east side.
4) no pickle ball courts nearby.
5) no water processing buildings near by.
6) house must not be on busy street.
7) will car headlights shine into your house at night.
8) taxes (+25% is wrong)
9) 3 bathrooms.
10) 4 bedrooms.

If you are patient, you will lose your hearing, like the rest of us and the street noise won't bother you.


HOWEVER, you can wait too long to buy a home and lose the home you really wanted. That happened to us. Half an hour too late.

ear plugs are cheap, are really essential @ times

Yes I did. At least 2 car garage, indoor laundry room on the same side of the house as the master bedroom, 3 bedrooms and 2 baths, location an easy walk to the adult pool/mailboxes, southern facing lanai so I can enjoy my caffeine and paper in the morning sunshine. I did not get the commode room, but we're not there full time, so that's OK. Be really sure of the choice you make on the lanai positioning.

Good luck!

We had built. Large lot to allow expanded lanai/birdcage, golf cart garage, eastern exposure for lanai, expanded garage, prefer cul-de-sac. wanted to be able to fit a Lily.

Add to all of the above: a FULL 2 1/2 car garage so you can park 2 carts tandem and a utility wash tub in the garage. Also if buying pre-owned make sure it has "attic style" truss framing above the garage so you can easily use the space for storage. Many homes built 10-15 years ago did not have this.

For me, I had to be in a specific vicinity. Between 466 and 466a, or a little above or below and had to be on the Buena Vista side. Also a golf cart garage. That was top propriety for me. I also knew exactly the model home I wanted. Also a decent sized lanai.I also didnt want my lanai to face a road, but wound up getting a home that did only because it had a privacy wall. In purchasing a home I realized that you wont get everything on your list unless youre building from the ground up and have the perfect location. Sometimes you have to make some concessions. What is a deal breaker for you!

LOCATION: Privacy, View, Quiet - your interpretation of each (this is your FOREVER HOME, don’t settle for anything less than perfect). Proximity to other things doesn’t matter that much, because it is all close by. Get what is RIGHT FOR YOU.

I have heard it said that mouse people here in TV buy 3 times!!! Don't be a 3xer. Do your homework (and it IS WORK) and make an informed buy the first time and save all those $$$

Graciegirl makes an excellent point about acting quickly. When we were house hunting in the summer of 2019, we’d email a list of homes to our Village realtor that we wished to see, only to learn that they went into contract the day they were listed. It was frustrating. When you’re looking, the housing market may have cooled off.

Thanks! Thinking of moving to TV and had same questions..

Green space...….we are on our 4th home in The Villages in 10 yrs (12th overall); loved each of them for different reasons and made $$ each time. We are gypsies at heart, love the change, embrace what each move offers, we don't get attached to our homes and enjoy them while we are in them. To answer your question further, as above, green space which is hard to find, we are now in Fenney area and it is beautiful! We are not social butterflies and enjoy the solitude this area offers. Love a great kitchen, 2 car garage, peace and quiet. Have fun with your move and remember, if you are not happy where you are move, beats complaining about it.

Things to think about.....
 

- No kissing lanai
- Put in a Side door to enter and exit the garage. It will save on putting the garage door up and down.
- Check out the neighbors to make sure they don't have continuous barking dogs.
- Less is more in terms of landscaping
- Oversized garage
- A/C in the garage so you can work or store things in there without them getting ruined.
- Extend the concrete all the way down the driveway in front of the golf cart door. Don’t settle for a little area to pull your golf cart in and out of.
- Close to shopping
- Far away from pickleball courts.....you can hear the ball clinking from pretty far away.
-Away from main roads
- If you choose to live on a golf course, if you can afford it, choose a championship course. Much less golf traffic than an executive course and still fun to watch the golfers.
-Tile floors
-Walk in shower
-Don’t paint the driveway.....the sun fades it terribly. Go with a concrete design.
- If you are building a pool, have the builders put a Partial concrete wall up Around Parts of the pool where people can look in. This will give you some privacy.
- Put a water connection out front as well as on the sides and back of your home.
- put in additional electrical outlets on the lanai and out in front of the garage so you can vacuum your vehicles easily.

Shopping now.
 

Must Haves: 3 BR, 2 Car Garage, No Carpet, Nicely Landscaped, Close to neighborhood pool, Center of TV property, Nice scenery or view within walking distance.

Wants: Golf cart garage, Gas, Stucco, Enclosed lanai under air, View from the lanai, Turn key.

depends on your plans for retirement. we left 5 bedroom, 5 bath on 5 acres in wyoming. downsized to a patio villa, landscaped with less grass, on the go a lot, no worries, lock and leave. bought a couple more for rentals, grew tired of that responsibility and sold them. not entertainers, very few visitors, if they come now, will put them up in the waterfront when it is done. since i do stuff in the garage, would like a bigger garage, but not going to get a bigger place or move down south to get one. the less we have to worry about, the better we like it.

My wife and I have a long list of must haves. We are moving down in 2 and a 1/2 years. I am an automotive hobbyist so I will need a full 4 car garage. My wife will need an office, so we either need a large master or a bump out room. One of the benefits of a 4 car garage is a wide lot. That should help with outdoor space. We will build new, obviously, with the cheapest vinyl flooring and countertops available from the villages. We want a the lowest price point for taxes and we will upgrade the rest at a much lower cost later.

Where in WY?