[vintageogauge]

Originally Posted by JerryLBell

We did NOT move here from another retirement community. However, before buying here 4+ years ago, we researched a number of other retirement communities in the central Florida area, winnowed the list down to 7 or 8 and visited them all during one vacation. We had a very nice little checklist of what features we were looking for in both houses and communities and checked them all off and made other comments about what we saw at each community we went to. After visiting The Villages a couple of times previously, we were hoping to find "Villages Lite"; a community with everything we liked in The Villages but perhaps less overwhelmingly large (and this was before the big expansion south of 44!) and possibly a bit less expensive. We found some nice places but all fell short of The Villages in our opinion. We decided on the drive back home to North Carolina that we were definitely buying in The Villages and that one of the models we had toured on this visit would be the kind of house we bought. We did so, moved here immediately after retiring and have been living the dream ever since.

That's not to say The Villages is perfect in every respect or that it's right for absolutely everybody. It is neither. During our visits, we even met a few folks who had moved from The Villages to other communities. The most common reasons we heard were "The Villages is TOO busy" and "We just wanted a quieter lifestyle." For those folks, the quiet communities they were in, where you saw nobody at the (one) rec center, nobody at the (one) pool, nobody golfing at the (one) golf course and nobody walking in the neighborhoods was just what they wanted. That was exactly what we did NOT want, so we are here and they are there. To each their own.

One of our neighbors lived in The Villages, moved to another community (they have never told us why) and then moved back. Not sure how that counts for the original poster's question.

We considered other communities before buying here. To make it brief, there were no communities that offered the choice of models that TV has nor do they offer the amenities found in TV. As JerryLBell noted, the single clubhouses sat vacant most of the time, evenings there would be a few seniors either playing pool, darts, or friendly card games in the clubhouses, pot lucks seem to be the highlight of the week. The pools were always empty and people were not that willing to even say hello. There really is nothing down here to compare with TV unless you want a small community with small homes and not much to do.

[michaelUK]

Originally Posted by LiverpoolWalrus

Michael, anyone who's lived in Florida for a while cannot help but notice "a startling number of retirement communities." They've been "springing up" for decades!

I have lived in two other Florida retirement communities before the Villages - one on the west coast (Tampa area) and one on the east coast (Ft Lauderdale area).

Florida has a large number of such communities consisting of mid-rise apartment buildings, with lots of amenities and activities, but nothing like the Villages. Those were the communities I lived in. Most were built in the 1970s and '80s and are well maintained with attractive landscaping. They are very affordable. You can still get a semi-remodeled two bedroom unit in the mid $100Ks. But since they're relatively small with no yards, and fairly old, I don't think they would appeal to most people looking to buy in a place like the Villages.

I basically lived there temporarily, "below my means" until I decided for sure what part of Florida I wanted to live in and what I was looking for in a retirement community. I ultimately decided on a third retirement community in southeast Florida, this one with single family homes built in the 1970s, and another home in the Villages. I bought both of those in the last year. I guess timing is not my strong suit.

Walrus,
It's not always easy to make the right decision; especially since my observation is that retirement communities seem to range from small developments with a pool, gym, and a seldom enforced age restriction to large, nearly self contained settlements that could pass for Earth's first lunar colony prototype.

[VApeople]

Originally Posted by michaelUK

Has anyone moved here from other existing retirement communities?

Our next door neighbors came from south Florida, as did their neighbors behind them. Another neighbor two doors away came from west Florida.

If you go to the visitor centers in Lake Sumter Landing or Brownwood, they have a list of the names of people who closed on a house in the last few days. About 40% of the people came from Florida.

[600th Photo Sq]

Originally Posted by michaelUK

Is it just my impression or have others noticed a startling number of retirement communities, with a variety of amenities and prices, springing up all over Florida and beyond? A difficult choice to be sure. A show of hands: Has anyone moved here from other existing retirement communities?

The answer is " Yes ". We moved here 7 years ago from Del Webb located in Summerfield FL, approx. 20/25 min. from The Villages.

The comparison really is gated, amenities, location, .

Del Webb one Rec Center, everthing at the center stays basically the same and remains that way to this day.

More house for the $$$ certainly but that said we wish we moved to the Villages sooner. Plus most retirement communities begin to show their age quickly, which effects the property values.

The properties at Del Webb have remained pretty much stagnate since we left. That said they remain the best of the retirement communities in this area in our opinion.

It is impossible to compare The Villages with any retirement community anywhere.

Look long range, what the Villages offer and take your time. The price point range in The Villages is for everyone and the location(s). We are smack between Sumter and Brownwood located in " Sumter County ".

I wish you all the best, I know it is an exciting fun time.

[maryanna630]

We lived in The Villages for 3 years in Lake Deaton. In 2018 we moved to The Villages of Citrus Hills near Crystal River. We built a custom home here. We really like it here....our home is maintenance free on the exterior including grass, irrigation and landscaping, we have 4 gyms, a state of the art spa, three restaurants, 2 activity centers, 3 swimming pools including an olympic indoor one. There are 3 golf courses and a beautiful, har tru tennis center. The surrounding area is just beautiful and the gulf of mexico is 7 miles away. We are at the highest point in florida so very little hurricane risk. We have many small chef owned restaurants, many activities and a really nice sized footprint wher we get to know many interesting people. It is affordable and lovely. We are very happy here.

[Southw2]

When my wife and i retired back in 2008 we looked at the villages for a possible move,
we came from the city of New York so all the crowds down at the 2 Squares then didnt bother us.
But we had 2 of our friends also from NY living in a community called Pennbrooke Fairways right on 44 just east of the sumter county line. Pennbrooke has all single one level family homes , it is also a 55 aged community with about 1200 homes.
It has 27 holes of golf, 2 pools with hot tubs a rec /mail center and a very large Grand Hall. The phoa dues where 125 dollars which include mowing/edging/blowing of lawns.
It also has 2 RV storage areas fenced in at no charge, and you can park your RV in front of your house for up to 32 hours for loading and unloading, also boats and utility trailers covered and open are also included in the storage ares.
We have a lovely softball field .
They have over 100 different activities clubs /games/cards etc and a full time activities director.
We get to use/visit the villages all the time go to their shows when we want.
we are only 10 minutes from Brownwood . Nice friendly people living here and we never regretted moving in here. Now our phoa dues are 157.00 but that also now includes cable.

But the best thing is we didn't have any BONDS to pay for when we moved in here and also our streets are private and gated.

[Southw2]

When my wife and i retired back in 2008 we looked at the villages for a possible move,
we came from the city of New York so all the crowds down at the 2 Squares then didnt bother us.
But we had 2 of our friends also from NY living in a community called Pennbrooke Fairways right on 44 just east of the sumter county line. Pennbrooke has all single one level family homes , it is also a 55 aged community with about 1200 homes.
It has 27 holes of golf, 2 pools with hot tubs a rec /mail center and a very large Grand Hall. The phoa dues where 125 dollars which include mowing/edging/blowing of lawns.
It also has 2 RV storage areas fenced in at no charge, and you can park your RV in front of your house for up to 32 hours for loading and unloading, also boats and utility trailers covered and open are also included in the storage ares.
We have a lovely softball field .
They have over 100 different activities clubs /games/cards etc and a full time activities director.
We get to use/visit the villages all the time go to their shows when we want.
we are only 10 minutes from Brownwood . Nice friendly people living here and we never regretted moving in here. Now our phoa dues are 157.00 but that also now includes cable.

But the best thing is we didn't have any BONDS to pay for when we moved in here and also our streets are private and gated.

[Kerlampert]

Originally Posted by michaelUK

Is it just my impression or have others noticed a startling number of retirement communities, with a variety of amenities and prices, springing up all over Florida and beyond? A difficult choice to be sure. A show of hands: Has anyone moved here from other existing retirement communities?

Aloha,

We just moved to TV from Ko'Olina Oahu.
It wasn't exactly a retirement community, but we think the amenities were similar ($500/MO) and the ambience/social opportunities similar. The Villages is quiet by comparison and not as congested. The Management/maintenance is vastly superior. The restaurants/bars are just OK and the folks are great, but not as diverse.
Not homesick for Hawaii yet....

[MandoMan]

I looked at a number of retirement communities in various states. In the end, there was no choice. I’m a bit of a recluse, but I want to spend the rest of my life making some friends and doing fun things with people. I studied the entire list of clubs on this site and identified a HUNDRED I’d like to try, though of course I won’t get around to all of them. That’s astonishing! Most communities don’t have a hundred clubs TOTAL, and may have only a couple that interest me (I don’t dance or play cards). Essentially, I paid for friendship and camaraderie—and also safety and a touch of exclusivity (though I have friends who live in much more exclusive communities in the vicinity, like Golden Ocala).

[davem4616]

Originally Posted by michaelUK

Is it just my impression or have others noticed a startling number of retirement communities, with a variety of amenities and prices, springing up all over Florida and beyond? A difficult choice to be sure. A show of hands: Has anyone moved here from other existing retirement communities?

We moved here from a 55+ HOA community in Ft Lauderdale.....it was on a canal, 6 miles to the beach and close to everything.

The community had many of the standard amenities, but certainly not the scope of amenities that TV has within it...however they were available nearby

It was the horrific traffic in Ft Lauderdale and the green iguana's eating my tomato plants that caused us to leave

[amexsbow]

As a true southerner who has roots in Louisiana and Texas I miss the south. The friendliness and openness of southerners is what attracts so many people to its way of life. We do not live in TV but I wish we did. We have visited often and I am continuingly trying to get my wife to move there. She loves TV also, but a son and his family have us located in N.C. We are in a Del Webb retirement community near Raleigh. It is ok but it is a blue state and some of the people who moved here fleeing high prices are making the same political choices which ruined the places they fled. The infrastructure of our community is not as good or well maintained as TV. Taxes and prices are going up and we will soon resemble failed northeastern states. We have looked at many retirement communities around the south and southeast and there are none to match TV. Even though we do not live there, to me it feels like home.

[mydavid]

I lived in The Top Of The World community in Ocala for 10 years before moving to TV 7 years ago. Each place has its + and - TOW is a private gated community, with several home options, which of all are built with cinder block construction. Truth you get more home for the buck there then here in TV. It is a lot smaller then TV, and the age average was older, the amenity fees were higher. While I lived there I seen people from TV move there, they were older and wanted a quieter life style. and people like me wanted more and moved to TV.

[72lions]

Originally Posted by maryanna630

We lived in The Villages for 3 years in Lake Deaton. In 2018 we moved to The Villages of Citrus Hills near Crystal River. We built a custom home here. We really like it here....our home is maintenance free on the exterior including grass, irrigation and landscaping, we have 4 gyms, a state of the art spa, three restaurants, 2 activity centers, 3 swimming pools including an olympic indoor one. There are 3 golf courses and a beautiful, har tru tennis center. The surrounding area is just beautiful and the gulf of mexico is 7 miles away. We are at the highest point in florida so very little hurricane risk. We have many small chef owned restaurants, many activities and a really nice sized footprint wher we get to know many interesting people. It is affordable and lovely. We are very happy here.

To be more specific, you built a home in Terra Vista, a spectacular gated community. Good friends of ours have just contracted to build a large home there and will be selling their premier home in Lake Deaton later this year. We almost did the same but have opted to leave the villages and build a custom home in Harbor Hills because we still have all of the amenities that the village area has to offer. We will remain close to our friends, our doctors, and have access to all of the restaurants and services. For us, the villages just became too crowded. For me, the notion of having to decide five days out whether I wanted to play golf with a large group was not something I enjoyed. I play the championship courses and do not have any interest in the social golfing of the executive courses. So for us, while the villages has been most pleasant, it’s novelty wore off and it was time to go.

For those unfamiliar with Harbor Hills, it is a truly gated community just six minutes from the new Wawa on 441. It was started some 20 years ago and still has a few houses left to be built out.

[joseppe]

We lived in 2 retirement communities in Southern CA before moving to the Villages in 2018. Each of the CA communities had the normal facilities, pools, pickleball, tennis, Fitness centers, walking trails. The first was on a Golf Course, but did not own the course. Almost everything available in the Villages was available there, BUT outside of the community. Amenities inside the community were all no cost (including the fitness centers), however outside Amenities were usually an hour drive in traffic and costly. Golf 'off season' rates were $50 to $125 + . There were no Executive / 9 hole courses available in the area. The Coast was 70 miles from our location and a 2 1/2 hour drive in traffic to get there. We lived in an inland area where housing was very reasonable (for CA), but removed from shopping and entertainment. Our costs here are about the same as they were in CA. We moved because of the easy availability of recreation in the Villages. Everything here is close by and easy. Recreation is much cheaper when you consider cost of Golf and other activities, However the quality of such is sometimes a bit lower than we had available in CA. So far its been a good move for us, but at times the Villages recreation seems a bit restrictive in comparison with Golf being the exception.

[Poirier]

Originally Posted by DianeM

Awesome question. Would also be interesting to hear from anyone who left or is considering leaving TV for some other community.

We are planning to On Top Of The World in Ocala. We are not moving because we dislike it, quite the contrary. It's just we found a really good deal at OTOW. We will be moving into a new house with no bond, complete outside maintenance taken care of by them, all new appliances and it has solar panels to help lower the cost of the electric bills. They have basically the same amenities. And each month we will be saving around $120. Our problem now is to sell our current home. We put this house on the market and then the pandemic hit. Not sure how we will manage this if we can't sell it....