I'd be interested in knowing how to find this website since we purchased in Labelle North.

You hit the nail on the head! I agree 100% with your assessment of the situation in many areas south of 466A. I lived just north of 466A for 3+ years, and although the area was very flat (St. James), the drainage couldn't have been better. The lots were well prepared, and there was no real amount of standing water on lots just hours after the tropical storm came through in June of 2012. The lot that I live on here is a disgrace. I have an absolute river on both sides of my house when we have a heavy rain, and the yard has standing water for days after a rain.

Every neighbor on our block except for one is having water problems, and Villages Warranty is doing a great job of avoiding the obvious - poor design and grading. All but one on my block has attempted to get Villages Warranty to do something, and nothing of any significance has been done.

The houses across the street had the same problems, but a woman in one of the houses would come out and warn prospective buyers about the drainage problems (in the presence of their realtors). After a few weeks of this, the Villages decided to run a French drain behind the houses. Of course, this only works if there are still a number of homes left for sale in the neighborhood

While I love my neighbors, and my home (excepting the yard), I certainly would never buy south of 466A again, knowing what I know now. I certainly would advise prospective buyers to carefully examine lots after a rain, and if there appears to be a drainage problem, look elsewhere!! You will be fighting an uphill battle trying to get The Villages to fix it.

We love Sunset Pointe. We are close to Sumter Landing and in the geographical center of The Villages.

Well, this is 2015, and things have definitely changed. Maybe because they have more than they can handle, things are not handled quickly. Most of the people in our neighborhood are facing their year warranties running out and are nervous, upset, and unhappy.

Make sure you have a warranty claim "on record" with the warranty department before your year is out. They honored a warranty claim more than a year after our settlement date (although they did it kicking and screaming, metaphorically)

We just bought a new house in Silver Lake. We looked around the new Villages and felt that they are very remote. We felt that we'd really only have reasonable access to Brownwood by golf cart. The fact that there is no bond in Lady Lake also influenced our decision. We are very happy with our new home and neighborhood.

We didn't want to live out in the middle of nowhere.

Prior to moving to TV our previous house had numerous drainage and water in the crawl space issues. So far so good in the Gilchrist/Pinellas/Fernandina area and especially my lot. During heavy rains (3-4 inches in a few hours) I can see a river of water flowing in the back and the sides as it drains into the street. The water disappears in 30 minutes once the rain stops. So I'm happy that I don't have any standing water/drainage issues or a crawl space. And I think this area is now becoming more central to TV.

Something you may like..check out WWW.1012 hollyhockway.info

It's not as interesting as you think.

Oh, we definitely have a warranty claim "on record" as does every house on our street except for one. The majority of the neighborhood was a drainage nightmare to begin with, but they have put in french drains and other drainage systems on the blocks on either side of ours.

If you read my post correctly my house is at a higher elevation, but those at the lower are having drainage issues. Mount Dora is not on my agenda and Mt. McKinley no longer exists.

Based on the posts on this thread, some are saying that the flooding issues are limited to the south of 466A. Didn't you just recently purchase in the Villages of St. James which is north of 466A?

Looks like 466A may not really be the dividing line between potential flooding and limited/no potential for flooding.

There is the potential for flooding anywhere...given poor enough engineering.

Wait until this winter. Try finding a parking spot in Colony.

No, we purchased in St. James over 3 years ago, and had absolutely no problems. Moved to Hillsborough this year, and have a river through our yard each time it rains, and it takes days to dry out. You can see from the picture that the water gets up high enough to wash the bark out of the bed on the right.

Tamarind Grove no flooding issues at all, far away from major roads, keeps the heavy truck traffic to a minimum

I actually worked with both, and told them up front that I was going to do this. they both immediately said they had no problem with this sort of arrangement. It is the only way to be exposed to virtually everything offered, except fsbo's.

I have seen plenty of "permitted" developments with flooding issues. If you buy in Florida, or anywhere else for that matter, looking at flood zone maps is prudent. If you choose to ignore the information, and instead assume that the county, developer, and various builders did everything correctly, then go for it. I'm with rickeyd on this; due diligence.

Before you decide on a location, read the stickies regarding things to know before buying in TV. Trains, kissing lanais, neighborhood pools, proximity to activities, shopping, town centers, rec centers, being on the first hole of a golf course, electric grid towers, and about a hundred other things to consider.

Of the new neighborhoods...
 

Read my post again. I never said to ignore any information and I also advocate due diligence.

By the way, if it's not a "permitted development", it's an illegal development. So of course flooding occurs in permitted developments. That's where construction practices, engineering, and...yes...due diligence come into play.

I have read it here several times that a French drain costs about $125 and tons of young men who can put it in.


Sounds like there is more clay south of 466A.

"But there's no "perhaps" about it...they either control the water or they don't develop the property."

Your words, not mine.

Yes...and I stand behind them. Their design must control the water. If it's not constructed to do so, then they are in violation and it must be fixed.

Yes indeed, Gracie. At least, that's what IFAS says. All the sand we have up here turns to clay right around Brownwood.

We are having some issues on the side of our house sod seems to stay soggy all the time. We are having the sprinkler system checked. That's not our issue. We'll wait and see if we need to put in gutters and a French drain when we come down. It's a preowned apparently the original owner had it looked at more than once but apparently didn't get it taken care of. When we bought the home the sprinkling system had not been on for quite a while so lawn was completely dry. But since it's just one side of her house I'm not as concerned.

"they either control the water or they DON'T DEVELOP THE PROPERTY"

"If it's not constructed to do so, then they are in violation and it must be fixed."

So how did they get a permit if they didn't control the water?

Of the new neighborhoods...
 

I already answered that. They show control of the water in their design and they get their permit. If their project fails after construction, that's another issue altogether...and it must be fixed or they are in violation of their permit.

Control of the water is demonstrated in the design phase. That's the way engineering and development works. That's the control I was referring to. You want to continue your argument with parsing and semantics, knock yourself out.

How do I actually hire a realtor and a MLS agent? Will be looking to buy next month and only have a villages realtor so far.

If you are looking for a new home, the TV realtors are the only choice you have. On a resale, both TV and MLS realtors are options.