[Coop63]

I posted yesterday about building in Village of Mautltrie Creek and was pleasantly surprised by the number and quality of the responses. I am now leaning towards renting in TV before buying or building. My wife and I love the Villages and it finally gave us inspiration to downsize and move to Florida. Still have a few years before retiring. High speed Internet is a MUST for my job.

Any tips or insights on renting, targeting August.

Thanks in advance

[Stu from NYC]

We wanted a resale, no time to wait for new build and rented for a month. Hindsight two months might have given us more info on size of house we bought.

Went from 3200 sq ft 4 bed/4 bath to 2000 sq ft 3 bed/3 bath and probably should have purchased a 4 bedroom.

[thelegges]

Originally Posted by Coop63

I posted yesterday about building in Village of Mautltrie Creek and was pleasantly surprised by the number and quality of the responses. I am now leaning towards renting in TV before buying or building. My wife and I love the Villages and it finally gave us inspiration to downsize and move to Florida. Still have a few years before retiring. High speed Internet is a MUST for my job.

Any tips or insights on renting, targeting August.

Thanks in advance

You have to options for rent long term 6 months or longer.. of the long term you can rent furnished or unfurnished. As long term renter you will be responsible for electric, gas, wifi and cable or streaming, in an unfurnished, and resident ID$50. This is the least rent
Long term furnished utilities an be included, ID $50. This however locks you into same house and same neighborhood.


What I would suggest is find furnished house in August for a month in one area in farthest South village

September One Month near Brownwood

October one Month near LSL

November one month in Spanish Springs.

Then find what area you like best and start to narrow different villages for however many months you choose.

Yep you move a lot but it’s just personal stuff, and you will find an area you like. Also pick different houses designer, verandas, CYVs and so on.

In early years we had short term rentals, after few years switching to all long term rentals, all of tenants ended up as great friends

[Coop63]

Originally Posted by thelegges

You have to options for rent long term 6 months or longer.. of the long term you can rent furnished or unfurnished. As long term renter you will be responsible for electric, gas, wifi and cable or streaming, in an unfurnished, and resident ID$50. This is the least rent
Long term furnished utilities an be included, ID $50. This however locks you into same house and same neighborhood.


What I would suggest is find furnished house in August for a month in one area in farthest South village

September One Month near Brownwood

October one Month near LSL

November one month in Spanish Springs.

Then find what area you like best and start to narrow different villages for however many months you choose.

Yep you move a lot but it’s just personal stuff, and you will find an area you like. Also pick different houses designer, verandas, CYVs and so on.

In early years we had short term rentals, after few years switching to all long term rentals, all of tenants ended up as great friends

Thank you, this is a great idea. Hope you don't mind asking a couple more questions. Sounds like there will be a lot of rentals available in the off-months? This would include access to the amenities as well? Is that what you meant by "ID"? One concern would be stretching this into "snowbird season". I would guess rentals are harder to find and more expensive. Thanks again.

[Coop63]

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC

We wanted a resale, no time to wait for new build and rented for a month. Hindsight two months might have given us more info on size of house we bought.

Went from 3200 sq ft 4 bed/4 bath to 2000 sq ft 3 bed/3 bath and probably should have purchased a 4 bedroom.

Thank you for the response.

We are in a similar situation. In Michigan we have another 1500 sq/ft downstairs and a 3 car garage, and shed. Thinking we will just keep 2 beds and items that would have direct use in our new place. The furniture in our family size home does not seem practical in a 2000 sq/ft Villages home (with little storage).

Looking at storing what we want to bring in POD(s) and having it shipped down when we are ready. Getting rid of 30 years of accumulation will be hard, probably sad, scary and freeing once it is done.

[Decadeofdave]

IMHO, rent for at least a month several times. We zeroed in on the area we are in after renting for 10 years while I was working. You can see the different areas before you decide. (Without a bunch of opinions from other people)

[Laker14]

Originally Posted by Coop63

I posted yesterday about building in Village of Mautltrie Creek and was pleasantly surprised by the number and quality of the responses. I am now leaning towards renting in TV before buying or building. My wife and I love the Villages and it finally gave us inspiration to downsize and move to Florida. Still have a few years before retiring. High speed Internet is a MUST for my job.

Any tips or insights on renting, targeting August.

Thanks in advance

What's your time frame?

When would you like to move here permanently?

[CoachKandSportsguy]

geez, there are only two decisions to make:

1) What style / model / floorplan house do you want to buy, highly proportional to the amount of money you have / want to spend?
There are plenty of sketches / virtual walk throughs, etc which get you started. . .

2) Based upon the house size and style, do you want to buy new or pre-owned?

After that, the decisions are more or less pretty easy. . BUT you have to know what you want, your must haves must be very clear, our friends took 5 years looking for a pre-owned which had all their must haves. . they did very well. . and ended up not at all where they started out looking in the villages.

pre-owned are areas are more / fully developed, older houses, requires more research and leg work over a bigger, wider area,

new areas are less developed, more concentrated in size and location, and there will be many more options between now and whenever. Different kind of work, more about finishing, furnishing, and functionality to your wants. . .

just figure out the above and the searching will be infinitely easier. . .

which is why i posted this way because your initial post leads me to believe that you haven't finalized your wants and requirements down first.

remember, the advice about neighborhoods is fair, more extroverted, where as finding the house you want to live in, is more introverted, but where you will spend more of your time than not as you age. .

good luck, for us, it was an impulse buy, on day 4 of a vacation to a place we had never heard of nor seen before. . so you don't have to overthink it and just as long as you can make a decision you are comfortable with

[cjrjck]

If you intend to stay here for an extended period of time, Long Term renting is the way to go. If you are just going to pop in for a month at a time here and there, then shorter term rentals are obviously the better choice. If the latter, as someone already suggested, you have the luxury of renting in different areas to get a feel for what each area has to offer. One thing I can almost guarantee you is that no matter where the rental is located, the owner is going to spout location, location, location as one of its best attributes. Just about everyone I have met in The Villages thinks that they live in the best part of The Villages.

[Randall55]

Originally Posted by Coop63

Thank you, this is a great idea. Hope you don't mind asking a couple more questions. Sounds like there will be a lot of rentals available in the off-months? This would include access to the amenities as well? Is that what you meant by "ID"? One concern would be stretching this into "snowbird season". I would guess rentals are harder to find and more expensive. Thanks again.

Google the words Villages for Rent. There are several sites that offer furnished homes for rent and provide their availability. When you rent, you pay for an ID card that will allow you to use the amenities. Some homes include a golf cart and bikes. Price? Cheaper in the off months, expensive in the winter months.

[Coop63]

Originally Posted by Laker14

What's your time frame?

When would you like to move here permanently?

Last year we stayed a month in a resort in Kissimmee, this year we are back for 3 months. Took a ride up to the Villages, did the trolley tour and my wife and we immediately agreed this is where we are spending next winter, full time. We have been wanting to downsize for years, after our children graduated college and established in their careers. We use to have a cabin, so not interested in being responsible for 2 properties.

I plan on retiring in 5 years and want to be ready to pick up my clubs and enjoy day 1. Also, want to have a good relationship with my neighbors and feel settled in. My wife is on the same page. Once we are established here, can figure how we go North in summer months.


Given that, we are putting our house up for sale June 1 and moving down here as early as August, more likely September. I want to hedge against a potential real estate mistake by either renting before we buy, or build a house that will appreciate in 2 years (why consider Maultrie creek).

[Coop63]

Originally Posted by CoachKandSportsguy

geez, there are only two decisions to make:

1) What style / model / floorplan house do you want to buy, highly proportional to the amount of money you have / want to spend?
There are plenty of sketches / virtual walk throughs, etc which get you started. . .

2) Based upon the house size and style, do you want to buy new or pre-owned?

After that, the decisions are more or less pretty easy. . BUT you have to know what you want, your must haves must be very clear, our friends took 5 years looking for a pre-owned which had all their must haves. . they did very well. . and ended up not at all where they started out looking in the villages.

pre-owned are areas are more / fully developed, older houses, requires more research and leg work over a bigger, wider area,

new areas are less developed, more concentrated in size and location, and there will be many more options between now and whenever. Different kind of work, more about finishing, furnishing, and functionality to your wants. . .

just figure out the above and the searching will be infinitely easier. . .

which is why i posted this way because your initial post leads me to believe that you haven't finalized your wants and requirements down first.

remember, the advice about neighborhoods is fair, more extroverted, where as finding the house you want to live in, is more introverted, but where you will spend more of your time than not as you age. .

good luck, for us, it was an impulse buy, on day 4 of a vacation to a place we had never heard of nor seen before. . so you don't have to overthink it and just as long as you can make a decision you are comfortable with

Thank you for sharing your experience, very helpful. My wife and I have been wanting to downsize for a few years since our last child got established. We have always loved Florida and the last 2 years we have been “snow birding” in Kissimmee.

On our way home back last year we said to each other “next year we are finding a place to live in Florida and putting the house up for sale”. Even told the neighbors, family, my golf partner. Not sure they believed me because I had no answers when they asked a basic question like “where?”. I like to believe that is how God works in my life, happens from time to time. Never regretted these type of decisions. I am very slow to move in most endeavors, with the exception of these inklings.

I told my wife I wanted to check out the villages a few weeks ago and she laughed. Her aunt told her told her it’s full of swingers. My wife begrudgingly agreed and we took the trolley ride, and spent the remainder of the day exploring the town centers and a couple neighborhoods. I am glad I ignored these crazy rumors and we formed our own opinions. We left that day convinced this is the place. Watched a ton of YT videos since. We toured Maultrie Creek last week with a realtor and looked at the models they have out there. We found a couple homes that my wife “loved”.

Now it’s time to make it real and I want to temper my enthusiasm by hedging against a potential real estate mistake by renting (before we buy) or finding an appreciating new build. Talked to realtor and our house is going up for sale soon after we return to Michigan. We are coming down next fall one way or another ha ha

[Dusty_Star]

For high speed internet, you will have to inquire for each rental you are considering, just make it one of the standard inquiries for all landlords. You can find high speed internet in all parts of the Villages, but probably not all houses. The newer areas might have Centric fiber or Quantum fiber. Quantum is rolling out to the older Villages currently, so some Villages have it now, & some might have it when you are ready to rent.

[CoachKandSportsguy]

Originally Posted by Coop63

Now it’s time to make it real and I want to temper my enthusiasm by hedging against a potential real estate mistake by renting (before we buy) or finding an appreciating new build. Talked to realtor and our house is going up for sale soon after we return to Michigan. We are coming down next fall one way or another ha ha

We have had several couples rent our house with the sole purpose of finding their TV retirement house. Most have taken 3-4 months to find their house, and some have rented while their house is being built. One couple we talked with up here in MA at the golf club, said, "packing the house into pods, moving to a rental in TV and will purchase the house within 3 months, based upon what my wife wants."

just remember, appreciation will occur naturally over a long period of time, however, the current rate of appreciation has slowed tremendously, and if you are going to live in the house as a retirement location, appreciation should be of no concern, because a house to live in is shelter costs, and produces no product nor service to be considered an investment to which to appreciate.

pm is on its way.

[CoachKandSportsguy]

The one benefit to renting which we didn't get, is to get the feel for a type of floor plan you are interested in, to see if you really like it, along with floor material, tile versus LVP, etc. each has their costs and benefits like any other decision. Otherwise, the way i look at house buying in TV, where the floor plans are very similar and have different variations depending upon the series / size:

all houses have the basic stuff, bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen, dining, living and lanais
what unique attractive unique stuff / location does each house have, which will add to the fun of living in retirement ?

lanai size configuration, sliders, etc.
central vacuum
internet cabling and outlets versus whole house wifi. (We custom built ours so there are two internet outlets in every room, and 4 gang outlets were the TVS and computers would go, as well as overhead ceiling WIFI access point.
garage sizing and additions
outdoor gas outlets to eliminate propane tanks for grilling
deadend streets versus through streets. .
finally who is next to your back yard, close fenced, etc.
east /west north south/ facing advantages and disadvantages

summer and winter are very different with sun and heat locations


good luck