[PamfromNY]

DO NOT SEND YOUR MONEY. At least not more than you are willing to lose. It happed to me. Sent $3000 for two months. My Father ended up having to have surgery. My house closing was delayed because of the buyer so we were not able to come to Florida during the rental time. There was no contract per se, that said no return of money in the event of unforeseen circumstances. Emailed several times with the owner Charlie, and asked for half the money. I was willing to compromise. He was in agreement and said he would speak with is wife. The one evidently who wears the pants and holds the purse strings and I guess other things of Charlie’s. Never heard back from him. Went to a lawyer and had Police trying to chase them down between NY and FL but they were slick and managed to evade the Police and I was never refunded a single penny. Oh, they went and stayed at the house also during the months that I had rented. So whatever you do DO NOT rent from Charlie and Barbara Brewer in the village of Calumet Grove

[billthecpa]

Don't do it!!!! Find a way to verify that the individual is legitimate before you send any money. I have personal knowledge of a case here in The Villages......where an acquaintance up north sent money supposedly to a Villages home owner who was advertising his home for rent....only to find out that it was a scam. He lost several thousand dollars. And the scammer had pulled the scheme on several people at the same time....for the same "home."

[yanksansky]

Airbnb is a great way to save $ and rent for shorter periods of time. A resident of Marsh Bend, (new area south of 44) has an airbnb in which she hosts. So you rent by the room or rooms, and it includes full service breakfast. It is more like an bed and breakfast though, but it looks beautiful and the house is gorgeous. Host name is Rhonda. Ps for a king room, only $69.00 per night.

[meme5x]

I would use a property manager..I use JV property.. they rent my villa and I trust them..am from STL

[Cupcake57]

Originally Posted by KRM0614

It’s the wild Wild West out there ! I personally would not do it. I rented from villages rental service and they’re the scum of the earth. Toilets and sewer backed up 4 times in a month could not shower flush etc. my deposit was by credit card and I had to dispute their refusal to return it. It took7 months and sadly I would have paid attention and not stayed.

Listen to your instinct. Proof of ownership in person and get a place thru a friend

I must disagree about Villages Hometown Property Management. I have rented twice with them while buying and getting work done on my new home. They let me extend my stay during the early months of COVID and the properties were in excellent shape and well appointed. I made one call about a noisy ceiling fan and they were there within the hour. I accidentally met the actual owner when he came to mow; a very nice Villager who left everything up to the management company except he was picky about the lawn and wanted to do that himself. I would not hesitate to recommend renting through them again. And yep, got my deposit back.

[em8tee]

Though I have in the past and still do currently bought and sold on Craigslist multiple times, in 2019 I was all set to rent a house in the Villages from a listing on Craigslist. I had the same fears as you. I set out to find out everything I could about the owners. I found the tax records, in turn, where they lived, and where they worked. I contacted the owners at their work. I had not been negotiating with the owners. BEWARE, do your research.

[Idaholady]

Rented from Down Home Properties twice and they are excellent

[yankygrl]

Originally Posted by yanksansky

Airbnb is a great way to save $ and rent for shorter periods of time. A resident of Marsh Bend, (new area south of 44) has an airbnb in which she hosts. So you rent by the room or rooms, and it includes full service breakfast. It is more like an bed and breakfast though, but it looks beautiful and the house is gorgeous. Host name is Rhonda. Ps for a king room, only $69.00 per night.

And you aren’t “allowed” to run a business out of your home according to TV “rules”, but many do

[Wrhobson]

Originally Posted by STLRAY

I am planning to rent a house in TV soon and it occurs to me that I am about to send a five figure check to a stranger who posted pictures and a description of a house on a website. The person does not need to actually own a house to post these pictures and collect checks from multiple strangers. Am I being paranoid or is this a real risk? I know lots of people have been ripped off on adds for cars on E-bay and Craigslist. Do the people operating these websites confirm that the person listing the rental actually owns or manages the properties they are advertising?

Go to the appropriate County's web site and do a property search to verify if the supposed owner really holds title to the property. That's what we did when we rented direct from owners before eventually buying here.

[B-flat]

Originally Posted by STLRAY

I am planning to rent a house in TV soon and it occurs to me that I am about to send a five figure check to a stranger who posted pictures and a description of a house on a website. The person does not need to actually own a house to post these pictures and collect checks from multiple strangers. Am I being paranoid or is this a real risk? I know lots of people have been ripped off on adds for cars on E-bay and Craigslist. Do the people operating these websites confirm that the person listing the rental actually owns or manages the properties they are advertising?

Here's one that happened in 2018. We were lucky we got our $900 deposit back.

for some reason the link will not work. Just do a search for Jackie Hamilton O'Neil at the Villages dash news dot com



"Villager who ripped off snowbird renters pays $42,000 in restitution " Do a search for that headline.

[Girlcopper]

Originally Posted by patlefebvre

As an owner myself and a renter before I understand every aspects on the issue. You NEVER know who you are dealing with on both sides. I used to rent with **** to have an intermediary in case of issue. Now I put my rental house also on ****. Lots of exposures, less fees than a management company and they offer property damages cover to the renter for $50. The renter don't have to pay a big deposit and wait for an eventual refund. Everyone is happier this way. An other tip, if you decide to rent from an owner, I recommend you pick one who is a permanent resident on site.
Good luck to you.

Very true. I use Homefinders.com twice for 2 different houses. The first one was ok. It was basicly clean but vabinets were cluttered with rag tag pots n dishes. Used rolls of toilet tissue and paler towels were left from the previous rented, the house had a musty smell and the owner lived out of state. A neighbor was supposed to be available for any issues. The second one I rented and is now the ONLY one I will rent was spotless with all welcoming touches. It smelled freshly cleaned. New rolls of paper products were available. Sample toiletries of everything possible were there and the kitchen was well organized. The owners lived around the corner and welcomed me when I arrived, were always available for any issues of which I had none. The place was better than the pictures and I now deal directly with the owners when I rent.

[Lindsyburnsy]

I wouldn't do it. Use a Realtor/Rental Agency or rent from someone you know, otherwise it's a lot of money to get scammed out of. It happens all of the time. Also, if you, for some reason ended up not going, will you get your money back? I rented from an individual I met while in The Villages. I met her husband and was able to go through the condo before committing. We signed a Lease, agreed on all of the terms and gave a refundable deposit to them. Paid in full prior to the actual rental dates, but because of COVID-19, decided to hold off. We received our full deposit and all of the money we gave them. Be careful, is all I'm saying.

[Hancie2]

Be careful with AirBNB. Rented a home (not in the Villages) through them for a vacation in Clearwater 6 months before the vacation. Owner sold the property and no one ever contacted us. We found out two days before. There was a full refund but didn’t help since nothing else in the area was available on short notice!

[lmack]

Lots of good details on this thread but, having been a landlord here for about 10 years, here are a couple more:
We advertise on villagershomes4rent.com. They did confirm thru their own research that we owned the home before they posted our ad. A good practice.
Our rental home happens to be in Sumter County so, if you go onto sumtertaxcollector.com you can put in the address and it replies with who the owner is (and when the taxes were paid).
I use a lease and I would not suggest anyone rent without one. Not only for the renters protection, but to protect the landlord's asset as well. My lease is provided before any money changes hands. It has the property address and also my home address (which is in the Villages also and can be confirmed the same way). It spells out the arrangement, when funds are due, check in, check out, etc.
I realize the rents here, especially high season for multiple months, can be a large check and concerning for many.
I believe in providing everything a tenant should need for a wonderful stay and take pride in repeat renters. But everyone's comfort level is different. I can only do so much and then both my renter and myself have to trust one another. I've had a lot of wonderful tenants over the years, many of whom are friends to this day.
Good luck with your rental decision!

[rogerk]

Originally Posted by STLRAY

I am planning to rent a house in TV soon and it occurs to me that I am about to send a five figure check to a stranger who posted pictures and a description of a house on a website. The person does not need to actually own a house to post these pictures and collect checks from multiple strangers. Am I being paranoid or is this a real risk? I know lots of people have been ripped off on adds for cars on E-bay and Craigslist. Do the people operating these websites confirm that the person listing the rental actually owns or manages the properties they are advertising?

I have worked in TV and helped renters get their proper renter's ID etc. for many years. I no longer work for TV; I am now fully retired so I don't have any skin in the game.

Most, but not all, private renters and third party rental management companies are okay or good, however for a first time rental I'd recommend you pay a little extra and rent through TV Hometown Property Management company.

Once you have been here and understand the importance of things, like the Renter's ID vs a Visitor ID, what does fully furnished mean, you'll be in a position to better evaluate a private renters offer. I have heard many horror stories, but most folks who rent their homes or property are good ethical people.

Enjoy your time in The Villages.