Charge Renters Activity Fee. - An option to consider would be to charge an activity
 

An option that may be worth considering is to charge an amenity fee for renters. $500 a month to have access to all the activities and use the golf cart trails. In other words, your amenity fees only apply to the owners. This would mean that people who are serious about potentially buying and those who are serious about long-term rentals would actually contribute to the maintenance and upkeep of our community. Renters should also be limited on use of guest passes. At any given time particularly during season we are at capacity and many bring multiple guest
down which also impacts availabilities of activities and wear and tear on the community

There are a limited number of units that do not allow rentals.

Ask the developer if you want the truth!

Renting
 

What I have heard is investment companies are buying homes, renting them for a year to avoid the price increase limit and then selling at a good profit

1. Yes it is true
2 as of last fall restrictions were put in place on specific neighborhoods
3 i asked the sales team and was told that once a neighborhood has exceeded a number of new owners that are immediately leasing, then the developer triggers this clause. Intent to maintain TV as a retirement home community vs a transient rental community

The restriction is for 1 year from purchase date. Much like the similar 1 year resale restriction to minimize house flipping

Why don’t you call a villages sales agent and ask them? You’d have your answer in a second.

It does not matter what the developer is thinking. In real estate it must be in writing.
Is renting legal? It is in the contract you signed or are considering signing. It is not the same in every village. Future building? I would expect you can find people at the villages office who can answer that for you as well. That would be current thought again it only matters if it is in writing.

I have no relationship to the builder. This is a planned community. For better or worse, it is take it or leave it.

I've suggested the villages offices. A villages sales agent is a sales person. Again what matters in real estate is only what is in writing.

I was told by our realtor when we bought, that The Villages now requires you cannot purchase a home for rental purposes. Which I think could be good due to the permanent residents having a different neighbor every month can be discouraging. I also agree that the owner does not care as much about the property as one that is lived in. I also think that being said, The Villages should have more neighborhoods for the LifeStyle Plan so people can come here to visit and see if they are going to like TV or not. We just purchased in The Village of Hawkins and I see brand new homes that are just completed in the last month with rental signs in the windows. Not sure why some are allowed and some are not.

Why not contact The Villages directly, they would have the best and most current information.

Before we purchased a home here in the Villages we rented three different villas. I disagree with comments about renters bringing property values down due to disrespecting the homes.
It was apparent to us that it was the owners not taking care of the upkeep required.

Many people who are not ready to retire might want to buy-in now and rent out until their ready to make the move. One home in our neighborhood was perched over 10 years ago always up for rent, never a problem.

Sounds like a case of 'Now I am here, shut the shop!'
Welcome to TOTV.

Again, at the risk of repeating myself, if you signed such an addendum, please post it (cleansed of any identifiers of course!)

DING, DING, DING!

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!!!

Yes, it's a Mortgage restriction...

I live in Section 12 in Fenney. We are not allowed to lease or rent our houses. This has been since we moved in in 2018, so this really isn't a new thing.

I think most of us would “vote” for a deed restriction for a minimum of 3 months on a rental. Of course, there is no such thing as a “vote” as the deed restrictions are a Developers prerogative. Fore!

I really wonder why there are some really "Snarky" comments that seem to indicate
that if you are a renter you are really bad.
We have a property that we are renting long term to a retired lady that treats it as if it is her
own home. She just wants to pay a fixed amount, thus, not having to deal with ownership.
She does not create any problems at all, that we are aware of.
So how about keeping this "The Land of The Free"!!

Bought our house with a commercial mortgage. the rate is higher, and not allowed to live there. Converted to an LLC and rent it out in Marsh Bend. We visit every 6 months to clean, maintain it. Managed by a local PM. . have not been profitable for two years due to rental cancellations in high season, travel and covid restrictions, but did well on two several month rentals while waiting for their houses to be completed.

Just got out first full winter season rental for next year, 2023, Jan - Apr. . but that will still not break even with the PM fee, even with no mortgage unless there is a rental waiting for a house being built. . .

When we were deciding, the TV rental company said that the estimated annual rental on a seasonal is between $10K and $20K, which so far has been accurate. So being interested in rental property is great, but if you don't do your breakeven financial analysis with your marketing strategy, you might only cover your expenses, and be buying high while waiting for an optimal exit price.

Each property is unique, so YMMV

…you answered your own question
 

Because the DEVELOPER is making SURE the former CANNOT occur for a period of one year. Rentals ALWAYS lower property values for myriad reasons. We are GLAD the developer did this. We’ve owned many a rental unit and we’ve had some very good tenants who are/were nice people. Would I want to live next door to any of them? Not on your life! Trust us. You do NOT want a bunch of investors in TV. We know these guys and many (most) don’t give two s”*ts about about the neighbors.You WANT owners next door, not renters.

It also protects the ability to get a mortgage on a home. As the % of rentals increases in a community, mortgage companies are less likely to lend. They worry they will lose their 80% Loan- to- Value advantage that protects them in case of default. Rentals properties tend to decrease all property values.

Some buyers in TV do pay cash, but many get a mortgage, whether to maintain cash reserves or investment, or they don’t have the cash but do have qualifying retirement income.

Another problem can arise If folks buy a new home using a typical residential mortgage restricted to owner occupancy. They breach the terms of the mortgage if they rent the home out.

It is true. I just spoke to my real estate (Villages agent) last week. The house cannot be purchased for speculation, rented out, etc. You must buy for your own use & live there, even if just part time.

If that's true for all new homes being built down here it should push up the prices of re-sales that can be used as rentals as they would not be subject to that particular restriction.

Never said renters were bad. RENTALS, over time, bring down values. Period. It’s a fact. Great you’ve got a good tenant, but she is an exception. “That you are aware of” was an interesting statement. In one of our condos, we were only recently made aware of the unacceptable behavior of one our tenants…behavior that’s been going on for months. Owners don’t know because you’re not there. Nature of the beast. In RE, once a neighborhood reaches a certain percentage of rentals, owner-occupied sales plummet. It’s a wholly different dynamic that, generally speaking, owners don’t want. The land of the free is alive and well (mostly), and I could not agree more when it comes to preserving one’s property rights. However, when one signs a document one is presumed to have read it. Here at TV, you GIVE UP your right to rent for a year when you sign your Sales & Purchase Agreement. At least in here in Fenney.

Yes, new rule has pushed preowned prices. We had 3 homes in TV, one for a vaca home for us few months a year.

The other two we bought for parents to use, during high season, with no money out of their pocket, when 3 of 4 passed, we rented out the homes long term.

Our agent called with 4 buyers, before we had thought of selling. He explained that due to housing shortage, new builds had a clause in paperwork that home could not be investment property. We Sold above ask in less than 48 hours. Both buyers not ready to retire, so win win all around.

We wanted to invest in a larger home, with the profit, but as of today, It will have to be a preowned

BEST NEWS I'VE HEARD ALL DAY!!!!!!!:mademyday::a040:

The renter only maintains their property enough to rent it out again next year. Adds nothing to the neighborhoods. Permits for renters, money goes to amenities. This is a retirement community, not Disney World

I think this conversation has provided a lot more insight than I would have garnered from a conversation with a sales rep of the developer.

Whaddya know?

I find it interesting that so many recommend that people rent prior to buying, then complain that there are too many renters...

I rented for 3 years. Halfway through the third year we made a purchase. Renting worked out for us because it gave us time to be sure this is where we wanted to be, and it gave us some valuable information about what we wanted, and what we wanted to avoid.
I can say that while our rental unit was maintained "well enough", it certainly wasn't maintained exteriorly as well as the other homes on the street, or as well as our owner's place was. Yes, they had their own place in TV, and our rental was an investment property for them.
I can see both sides of the debate, but as someone who found their way slowly via renting, I feel badly that there is so much enmity pointed towards renters.
My next door neighbor is a rental unit, very well maintained.

If true? Good, got enough slumlord.

Never a truer word spoken
 

It's never a wise idea to by a home were they allow renter.

Just as an aside, to this subject, one of the things that I didn't realize about TV, until I rented for the January-March "high season" is that it really is a lifestyle, not a resort destination. What I mean by that is that many of the activities are set up, if not for "year-rounders", at least for long term residents, who are here for 6 or 7 months. It's hard to impossible to get into many of the clubs, leagues, and other activities if you are just here for 3 months.
That's not a criticism, that's just an observation, and it makes sense once you see it. As a short term renter you aren't surrounded by other vacationers, you are surrounded by people who LIVE here. Being on the outside of that, and wanting to be on the inside of it, was a big part of the reason we made the move to buy here and be here 7 to 8 months a year rather than just three. That and the weather where we live up north is still pretty nasty in November, December, April and early May.
Also, as a renter, it is a constant challenge to find short term rentals, as owners retire and want to use their places for themselves. In fact, our owner of the place we rented for 2 years sold her place and we'd have been on the hunt for a new place to rent.

That is a well stated insight.

If this is true, I may sell my current house and buy one in the restricted areas

Rentals
 

Our friends bought in Citrus grove and rented it immediately to an annual renter. Bought it totally furnished and rented through the Villages rental department. This was in January.

Love living here but it seems to me the developer has more and more power over this place.

Re-sale or new home?

Friends bought a brand new home in St. Johns, and closed last week. They rented the home out immediately, with their tenant moving in April 1st. Since St.Johns is the newest Village to open up, I would say the answer to the original question is "no".